The RESIST Project Report. Effects of, and Resistances to 'Anti-Gender' Mobilisations Across Europe: A Report on People Living in Exile in the EU
Contributors
Research group:
- 1. RESIST: Fostering Queer Feminist Intersectional Resistances against Transnational Anti-Gender Politics
Description
The report is based on the findings of 4 focus groups (with 20 participants, between 4-6 in each group) and 12 individual interviews (some of whom were in focus groups) with people based in Europe. They responded to the invitation to take part in the focus groups or interviews because they had experienced some form of 'anti-gender effects'. The sample was recruited through targeted emails to individuals and groups who might be affected. This was followed by telephone calls/emails to encourage participation. The study's participants include activists, academics, and intellectuals from Turkey and North Kurdistan who have fled to various European countries, such as Germany, Switzerland, France, the Netherlands, and Spain, as migrants and refugees from environments of oppression and violence, in part due to anti-feminist and 'anti-gender' politics that endanger their physical, social, political, and everyday lives. In this phase of the study, we focus on the effects of these 'anti-gender' politics and discourses on everyday life and how these effects might be influenced or transformed by the experience of crossing borders into Europe. 'Anti-gender' experiences continue through complex migration processes, illegal pushbacks, and poor conditions in refugee camps, along with everyday and structural racism in host countries. This shows how 'anti-gender' and migration politics and discourses intersect. Following an overview of the national context, the main findings are presented, summarising the main points that emerged from the focus groups and interviews.
Abstract (English)
This case study examines the daily life experiences of exiles from Turkey and Northern Kurdistan who have been displaced by ‘anti-gender’ politics and now reside in Europe. The participants recounted how under the AKP government, increasing 'anti-gender' and anti-feminist politics perpetuated by the media, religious institutions and social pressure from their families put significant pressure on LGBTQIA+ individuals, leading to harassment, abuse, and death threats. These oppressive politics intersect with broader resistances against authoritarian state politics, compelling activists, politicians, and intellectuals to seek refuge in Europe. However, the migration journey and life in exile present ongoing challenges, including difficult migration processes, adverse conditions in refugee camps, and everyday racism. In Europe, the loss of social status profoundly shapes the impact of 'anti-gender' politics on everyday life, with participants facing unique manifestations of this loss: from marginalised citizenship to professional displacement. Working in academia in Europe, exiled scholars are confronted with racism, precarious employment, and devaluation of their qualifications. Feelings of non-belonging and isolation are pervasive, exacerbated by anti-immigrant sentiments and integration barriers. LGBTQIA+ individuals, particularly trans women, face compounded marginalizations due to intersecting identities of race, gender, and refugee status. Participants who are also part of the leftist, pro-Kurdish movement, face multi-layered repression: LGBTQIA+ participants’ struggles for freedom and human rights are intertwined with their experiences of racism and their refugee status in Europe. Activists resist these challenging experiences through social media campaigns and transnational networks, yet mainstream LGBTQIA+ activism in Europe is experienced as exclusionary and dominated by cis white middle class perspectives, prompting the participants to create more inclusive, intersectional spaces.
Series information (English)
Part of the: Deliverables of the RESIST Project (EU Project ID: 101060749). Output ID: “D2.1: Report on the effects and everyday resistances to anti-gender mobilisations”.
Files
RESIST-Listen-Case-Study-Findings_InExileInEUEnglish.pdf
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Additional details
Related works
- Is part of
- Report: 10.5281/zenodo.11180744 (DOI)