The politics of trans-national belonging: A study of the experiences of second-generation Egyptians during a period of socio-political change in Egypt

Abstract

Building on insights from recent research on ‘return mobilities’ among the second generation, this paper addresses the trans-national practices of young British- and American-born people of Egyptian ancestry and, in particular, their experiences in Egypt during a time of great social and political upheaval. In observing the ways in which many of these individuals effectively operate in their parent’s homelands by drawing on Western credentials or established social networks, we also note how intersections of gender, religion, class and nationality sometimes constrain these activities. In the process, attention is drawn to the hierarchies of belonging that structure trans-national fields and the degree to which struggles for recognition and status are shaped by the demands of host populations, notably during periods when social identities come under sustained scrutiny.