Description
This paper offers insights about decentering migration research from a project exploring the relationship between narrative practices and meaning making as a key component of resilience. Our project is distinguished by its transformative goals and participatory methodology: it is facilitated by, and with, former refugees, or “NewAmericans,” toward a goal of influencing their communities through the co-creation of a trauma-informed, resilience-oriented curriculum. The project design, research methodology, coding process, and theme distillation are being shaped by a research team comprised of New Americans in the United States. Our approach intentionally seeks to center voices and perspectives that are absent, or suppressed, by seeking “othered ways of knowing” with a goal of “transformative praxis.” From the perspective of our former refugee friends, the participatory methodology is indispensable, not only because it aspires to bring change in their refugee
communities, but also because serves to decenter our research and protects against the dangers of objectifying former refugees. Interstitial integrity has proven to be an indispensable frame for clarifying and defining our commitment to decentering migration research.
| Period | 2 Jul 2025 |
|---|---|
| Event title | IMISCOE : Decentering Migration |
| Event type | Conference |
| Location | Paris, FranceShow on map |
| Degree of Recognition | International |