Dear all,

I am pleased to share this upcoming in-person guest lecture hosted by the Kobe Migration Research Center (KoMiReC) at Kobe University  on July 17. Please see the attached poster for further details.

Speaker: Alexei Kazakov (University of Ottawa, JSPS Research Fellow)

Date and time: July 17, 17:00-18:00 

Venue: Room E401, Tsurukabuto 1st Campus, Kobe University

Language: English

Registration: Please register at the following link (walk-ins also welcome): https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdX6SCzrPZnhbcHnlrZTrJMIrwRiikVWh_PzHs52YkZee2vOA/viewform

Contact: asamin@people.kobe-u.ac.jp (Asami Nakamura)

From the perspective of its proponents, the relative success of multiculturalism tends to be measured by the satisfaction of two principal criteria: the immigrant's full integration into the institutions of the host culture (through mastery of the language and the obtention of access to things such as housing, employment, and public services) while simultaneously retaining aspects of their cultural heritage that are worthy of contributing to a "cultural mosaic". As such, whenever the "difficulties" or "problems" of immigration and multiculturalism are addressed, they tend to only focalize two main elements: barriers to access of the above-mentioned elements of the host culture, and native resentment towards immigrant populations (generally intersecting with prejudices relating to race and religion).

Approaching topics of immigration solely through this lens, though well-intentioned in its goals, glosses over deep structural issues that relate to immigrant affect which tend to have no place in the popular discourse of multiculturalism due to its unwillingness to grapple with certain difficult truths. The consequence of this is a major lacuna in multicultural policy and ideology in helping immigrants flourish. This talk aims to rectify this state of affairs by taking a closer look at how themes of nostalgia, exile, and disenchantment express themselves in some immigrant writers, most notably Edward Saïd and Svetlana Boym. Following a consideration of Saïd's seminal essay "Reflections on Exile", I will emphasize certain elements that policymakers should consider when designing policies aimed at successful immigrant integration.