Immigration and social citizenship in times of crisis: deepening and broadening citizenship

2026/04/03 by Daniel Sharp · 2 voices · 1 citation
Social Sciences · #Migration, Refugees, and Integration #Diaspora, migration, transnational identity #Interdisciplinary Cultural and Social Studies

paper · doi:10.1080/16544951.2026.2660465

Abstract

Citizenship regimes are under pressure. Decades of neoliberalism have eroded the social rights that make citizenship into a form of equal membership. Concurrently, democracies have hardened the borders of their citizenship regimes . In this paper, I contend that these two dynamics are interlinked. Based on this diagnosis, I argue that the familiar claim that democracies must choose between broadening and deepening citizenship is, in the long-term, mistaken. Deepening citizenship is necessary for broadening citizenship because economic precarity trengthens support for the far-right. Broadening citizenship is necessary for deepening citizenship because only an inclusive conception of citizenship can counter the neoliberal nationalist ideology that fuels the erosion of social citizenship.

Citations

• The Electoral Risks of Accommodating the Radical Right. Evidence from the British Labour Government
• Far-right agenda setting: How the far right influences the political mainstream
• Competition Between Unequals: The Role of Mainstream Party Strategy in Niche Party Success
• When Does Accommodation Work? Electoral Effects of Mainstream Left Position Taking on Immigration
• Competing for Loyalists? How Party Positioning Affects Populist Radical Right Voting
• Does accommodation work? Mainstream party strategies and the success of radical right parties
• A Rising Tide? The Salience of Immigration and the Rise of Anti‐Immigration Political Parties in Western Europe
• What Is the Point of Equality?

Cited by

• Between openness and resilience: rethinking citizenship in times of polycrisis

Discussions

• New paper! “Immigration and social citizenship in times of crisis: deepening and broadening citizenship.” doi.org/10.1080/1654... [bsky, 23 points, 3 comments]
• In the first essay, @deeesharp.bsky.social argues that the erosion of social citizenship under neoliberalism and the current border-hardening of nationalist conceptions of citizenship are interlinked [bsky, 0 points, 1 comments]

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