Gender and Asylum-Seeking in a European Borderland: Intersectional Discriminations and “Lessened” Citizenship

Authors

  • Chara Karagiannopoulou Department of International, European and Area Studies, Panteion University, Athens, Greece https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3257-2754
  • Evangelia Tastsoglou Department of Sociology and Global Development Studies, Saint Mary’s University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6679-2747
  • Sandy Petrinioti Department of Global Development Studies, Saint Mary’s University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6802-4645

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.25071/1920-7336.41162

Keywords:

lessened citizenship, intersectional discriminations, gender-based violence, asylum-seeking women, Greece, Europe

Abstract

This paper presents a feminist analysis of the manifold and intertwined discriminations faced by asylumseeking women in a European “borderland”—specifically, Greece. It explores how these discriminations operate across law, policy, practice, and discourse, while highlighting the dynamic interplay of intersectional discriminations with citizenship rights and practices. Data were collected through 35 interviews with asylumseeking women. The analysis shows that (a) intersectional discriminations occur at both macro- and microlevels, reproducing and consolidating the women’s “lessened” citizenship, while (b) “lessened” citizenship reinforces their precarious status and leaves them vulnerable to multiform, multi-sited gender-based violence.

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Author Biographies

Chara Karagiannopoulou, Department of International, European and Area Studies, Panteion University, Athens, Greece

Chara Karagiannopoulou is an Associate Professor of Comparative and International Politics at Panteion University. She can be reached at charakaragiannopoulou@yahoo.gr or charakara@panteion.gr.

Evangelia Tastsoglou, Department of Sociology and Global Development Studies, Saint Mary’s University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

Evangelia Tastsoglou is a Professor of Sociology and Global Development Studies at Saint Mary’s University. She can be reached at Evie.Tastsoglou@smu.ca.

Sandy Petrinioti, Department of Global Development Studies, Saint Mary’s University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

Sandy Petrinioti is an Adjunct Professor of Global Development Studies at Saint Mary’s University. She can be reached at sandy.petrinioti@smu.ca.

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Published

2024-07-26

How to Cite

Karagiannopoulou, C., Tastsoglou, E., & Petrinioti, S. (2024). Gender and Asylum-Seeking in a European Borderland: Intersectional Discriminations and “Lessened” Citizenship. Refuge: Canada’s Journal on Refugees, 40(1), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.25071/1920-7336.41162

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