Categories, Practices and the Self – Reflections on Bordering, Ordering and Othering

Abstract

Since the publication of the paper ‘Bordering, Ordering and Othering’ by Henk van Houtum and Ton van Naerssen (2002), there has been an increase of complexity and diversification of borders and border-making practices while at the same time one can observe an unprecedented development of research on these phenomena from a multitude of disciplinary perspectives. By revisiting the text, I will discuss three main comments referring to bordering categories, bordering practices and bordering self in the wider field of migration. The growing ambiguity of borders is once more underlined, but more importantly, these comments flesh out some of the far-reaching profundities as well as political powers and new relevance which borders and practices of bordering have gained.