Seeking Justice Far from Home:
A Multi-sited Ethnographic Inquiry into Diaspora Mobilizations in Sweden and Germany in the Aftermath of the Yazidi Genocide
Dr. Cansu Bostan
This postdoctoral project seeks to develop an understanding of the delocalized means of pursuing justice and the transnational social actions associated with it, focusing on the Yazidi diaspora in Sweden and Germany. It explores the role of the Yazidi diaspora in political, legal, and investigative actions following the Yazidi Genocide in the respective countries. Additionally, it investigates diasporization as a form of mobilization, integrating Foucault's counter-conducts into the field of legal mobilization.
The relationship between diaspora mobilization and international law is currently understudied, and the Yazidi Genocide has not been empirically examined in a comprehensive ethnographic manner. To address these gaps both empirically and theoretically, this project aims to: i. Provide an ethnographic mapping of the legal strategies adopted by the Yazidis, ii. produce a nuanced, multi-sited ethnography of diaspora mobilization, iii. examine the compatibilities/inconsistencies between international law and lived experiences, iv. offer theoretical insights into the field of research on legal mobilization, and v. shed light on diasporization and mobilization as continuous processes linking lived experiences to political projects.
This multi-sited ethnographic project will be conducted in Sweden and Germany, utilizing participant observations, life-history narratives, interviews, and document analysis to generate ethnographic insights about the Yazidis' justice aspirations and the socio-spatial obstacles to, as well as opportunities for, their mobilization to effect change far from home. The study explores how diaspora actors raise collective claims about genocide recognition and remembrance and strategically use international law to frame them, primarily drawing on the principle of universal jurisdiction.
Laufzeit
2024 - 2027
Finanzierung
Swedish Research Council (Vetenskapsrådet)
International Postdoc Grant
Betreuung
Prof. Dr. Olaf Zenker