Rebordering Britain & Britons after Brexit
The hostile environment, Brexit, and `reactive-' or `protective transnationalism'
Abstract
The `reactive transnationalism hypothesis' posits a relationship between discrimination and transnational practice. The concept has generally been studied using quantitative methods, but a qualitative approach augments our understanding of two context-specific dimensions: the nature of the discrimination involved, and the types of transnational behaviour that might be affected. Drawing on in-depth interviews with Bangladesh-origin Muslims in London, Luton and Birmingham, in the UK, we demonstrate how anti-Asian and anti-Muslim racism have been conflated with intensified anti-migrant racism in the context of `hostile environment' immigration policies and the EU referendum (Brexit), producing an amplification of racist discourses associated with purging the body politic of its non-white bodies. The insecurity generated is altering some people's relationships to Bangladesh, incentivizing investment in land and property `back home'. While this represents an example of `reactive transnationalism', we argue that `protective transnationalism' might be a more appropriate way of describing the processes at work.
You might also be interested in :
Young Europeans in Brexit Britain: Unsettling identities
Since the 2016 European Union referendum, young European migrants living in Britain have faced growing exposure to social exclusion and insecurities over their future. The Brexit process has not only changed their rights but has also increased their experiences of xenophobia and discrimination.