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Call for Papers for Special Issue and Workshop

Same-Sex Marriage and Migration: Politics of Belonging, State Regulations, and New Ways of Doing Family acro= ss Borders

Special Issue editors and workshop conveners: Apostolos Andrikopoulos (University of Amsterdam/ Harvard University) and S= askia Bonjour (University of Amsterdam)

In an era where the social significance of marriage is under scrutiny, marr= iage has emerged as a platform for migrants and LGBTI+ individuals to asser= t their rights. However, governmental responses to these assertions vary. W= hile many countries have expanded their marriage laws to encompass same-sex= couples and protect their families, they have also imposed restrictions on= cross-border marriages, such as income thresholds, integration requirement= s, and age limits, aimed at curbing marriage migration. This dual developme= nt reflects a contradictory approach to marriage, ostensibly inclusive towa= rds LGBTI+ individuals and their families but exclusionary towards migrants= and their families. These represent two facets of the politics of belongin= g in which liberal democracies are increasingly invested, intersecting in t= he regulation of marriage migration for same-sex couples. The legal recognition of same-sex marriage in numerous countries worldwide = has not only redefined the legal concept of marriage, with significant impl= ications for sexual citizenship, but has also reshaped the landscape of fam= ily migration, granting marriage migration rights to same-sex spouses. The = traditional paradigm of a male breadwinner and a female dependent, which ha= s implicitly informed the design of family reunification policies in Europe= and elsewhere, is now being challenged by the migration of same-sex couple= s through formal family reunification routes. Migration through same-sex marriage assumes global significance as marriage= often serves as one of the few viable avenues for legal migration to the G= lobal North, particularly for those from economically disadvantaged backgro= unds who are excluded from other mobility categories. The legalization of s= ame-sex unions has, therefore, not only extended marriage rights but also o= pened up a previously unavailable route for migration for same-sex couples. In preparation for a Special Issue, we aim to address these tensions and ex= plore the interconnections between same-sex marriage and migration. The goa= l of the Special Issue is to establish the groundwork for a new research ag= enda that promises to deepen our understanding of the intricate dynamics su= rrounding same-sex marriage and migration with broader relevance for the po= litics of belonging and sexual citizenship. We invite contributions from sc= holars who investigate the implications of the legal recognition of same-se= x marriage on the state's efforts to regulate migration through family regu= lation. We are also interested in papers examining how the legal recognitio= n of same-sex unions has led to new mobility patterns and novel ways of doi= ng family. If you are engaged in topics related to same-sex marriage alongside migrati= on and other forms of mobility, please submit an abstract of up to 300 word= s and a short bio by May 20, 2024, to a.andrikopoulos@uva.nl. Abstracts of selected papers will be included in a specia= l issue proposal, which will be submitted for consideration to migration st= udies journals. Furthermore, authors of selected papers will be invited to = a workshop in Amsterdam on September 19-20. The workshop aims to discuss th= e papers before the submission of the Special Issue for review. All worksho= p participants will be required to submit their drafts by September 1, 2024= , and expected to read the other papers and serve as discussants for a few = of them. We aim to assign at least three discussants per paper. There will = be no paper presentations during the workshop. For participants with no or = limited institutional travel funds, we have secured funding for their accom= modation and potentially to partially cover their travel expenses.

Apostolos Andrikopoulos Marie Sk=B3odowska-Curie Global Postdoc Fellow Harvard University and University of Amsterdam

New Book: Argonauts of West Africa: Unauthorized Migration and Kinship Dynamics in a = Changing Europe, University of Chicago Press. New Article: Apostolos Andrikopoulos & Rachel Spronk (2023). "Family matters: same-sex r= elations and kinship practices in Kenya" Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institu= te.