64 research outputs found
CHALLENGES IN CREATING GLOBAL AWARNESS: An ethnographic account as a Global Volunteers intro-course facilitator
No full textAided by ethnographic accounts, the paper aims at illuminating several challenges and critical moments the author has faced during his internship at the Danish NGO ActionAidDK. Through a postcolonial lens and drawing from critical pedagogies, the paper concludes that critical examinations of whiteness are important in volunteer tourism but equally challenging when conducted in a homogenic white space
How racialised minority boys participate in off-school activities in Nordvest
No full textThis project aims to elucidate how ethnic minority boys, as understood as boys with another ethnic background than Danish (thus a minority within Danish society), participate in off-school activities in a multicultural setting and what social mechanism surround and influence them in this participation process. According to this paper’s problem area and related studies, we find that ethnic minority boys are surrounded by multiple discourses and categorisation processes that stamp them as the stereotyped ‘other’ as well as predisposing them to processes of marginalisation and exclusion in and across the school and other contexts. In order for us to better understand their position within the Danish society, we were thus motivated to investigate how we through the lens of performativity can understand how the boys act in their everyday lives, and how social practice- and positioning theory can help to illuminate the societal processes we find in these multicultural settings, and lastly, how the processes of inclusion and exclusion play a role in the boys’ participation in off-school activities. Furthermore, through a methodological abductive and social constructionist approach, this project establishes its empirical data from a focus group interview with six ethnic minority boys who weekly join football practice with the social organisation Street Society in Nordvest. Through the project’s qualitative method, we gain access to the ethnic minority boys lifeworld, and in collaboration with this project’s theoretical frame of reference, as well as our analytical methodological approaches; thematic- and positioning analysis, our discussing analysis is thus formed. Our analysis elaborates on and discusses four themes; Ethnic identity and Performativity, Institutional prejudice, Cultural dichotomy and Unity and Safety net, which all encircles prominent aspects on the matter. It is concluded, based on the discussing analysis that these themes contribute to an understanding of how the societal mechanism influence how and why ethnic minority boys participate in off-school activities. <br/
REAL UTOPIAS? - an exploration on how to make change
No full textFormålet med dette projekt er at undersøge hvordan samfundsmæssig forandringer kan opstå,og hvilke nuværende strukturer i samfundet der inspirerer mennesker til at efterstræbe disseforandringer. Projektet tager sit udgangspunkt i begrebet Real Utopias udviklet af denmarxistiske sociolog Erik Olin Wright, som danner grundlaget for projektets teoretiskefremgangsmåde. Begrebet dækker over sociale bevægelser som søger at realisere “utopiske”forestillinger om fremtiden gennem realistiske delmål. Med afsæt i dette vil en kvalitativdokumentanalyse af udgøre det metodiske værktøj til at bearbejde empirisk materiale frahenholdsvis The Venus Project og Auroville, som begge er sociale projekter der efterstræbersamfundsmæssig forandring. Projektets ontologiske grundforståelse er inspireret af denamerikanske professor Donna Haraway, som udfordrer individualistiske og dualistisketankemønstre som præger nutidige samfund. Med Haraways ontologi og Wrightsbegrebsunivers vil projektet kulminere i en analyse og diskussion af, hvorvidt The Venus Projectog Auroville kan siges at praktisere Wrights begreb om real utopia. Til sidst vil det konkluderes,at begge empiriske eksempler indeholder elementer fra dette begreb, men at de er forskelligepå afgørende vis. The Venus Project indebærer Jacque Frescos vision af et bæredygtigtsamfund, hvor jordens ressourcer bliver ligeligt fordelt mellem mennesker ud fra jordenskapacitet til at reproducere disse ressourcer. Fresco anvender naturvidenskabelig retorik til atargumenter for, at hans vision vil være den rationelle forandringsproces at efterstræbe. Aurovilleprojektet indeholder samme vision om miljømæssig bæredygtighed, men bliver praktiseretgennem gensidig interesse mellem mennesker for eksperimentering med alternative måder atføre samfund på
Negotiating Identity From a Post-colonial Perspective: The Greenlandic case
No full textI dette projekt undersøges hvordan her levende unge grønlænderes identiteterformes ud fra et postkolonialt perspektiv. I dette projekt beskrives de roller, detdanske og det grønlandske sprog spiller i identitetsopbygningen. Desudenundersøger vi, hvordan forskelsbehandling udtrykkes og modsættes i tilsyneladendeneutrale interaktioner. Ved hjælp af strukturel forskelsbehandling ser vi på, hvordandenne form for diskrimination bidrager til racialisering af nationale tilhørsforhold idansk og grønlandsk sammenhæng. Vi undersøger især, hvordan begrebet hybrididentitet og mimicry er knyttet til racisme. Desuden diskuterer vi nogle dilemmaer,der opstår i postkolonial perspektiv. Vores resultater tyder på, at den postkolonialeperiode og manglen på de-kolonisering af Grønland endvidere de-koloniseringen afdet danske sprog spiller store roller i at forme den unge grønlandske identitet.This paper investigates how the identities of young Greenlanders, who live inDenmark, are shaped in the post-colonial present. This paper addresses the roles,that the Danish and Greenlandic language play in the construction of identity.Moreover, we explore how discrimination is expressed and resisted in seeminglyneutral interactions. Using structural discrimination as our framework, we look at howthis type of discrimination contributes to the racialisation of national belonging in theDanish and Greenlandic contexts. In particular, we examine how the notion of hybrididentity and mimicry are linked to racialisation. Furthermore, we discuss somedilemmas that arise in the post-colonial perspective. Our findings suggest that thepost-colonial period and the lack of decolonisation of Greenland, moreover, thedecolonisation of the Danish language play huge roles in shaping youngGreenlanders identity
The Normalisation of Christiania
No full textAbstract Centrally located in the heart of the Danish capital Copenhagen there is a place known as ‘The Freetown of Christiania’. Christiania, is a squatter foundation born in 1971, where a small group of young people took over 49 hectares of government owned land and founded their notion of a perfect society, a community based on consensus democracy and personal freedom. Throughout the history of the Freetown there has been a continuous debate around the legitimacy of the self proclaimed area, and the various Danish governments in power over the years have continuously tried to regain their right to the land. The Freetown has existed a little more than 40-years and throughout its existence it has continuously challenged and resisted the Danish government. In 2004, the Danish Liberal-Conservative government decided to put Christiania on a path of normalisation with the enactment of the Christiania Law. The intent behind this was to privatize the communally owned buildings and land. This project explores the intentions behind the process of normalisation and how it has been implemented and embedded throughout time. We investigate the process in various contexts, such as social, cultural and economically, mainly through Michel Foucault’s theory of normalisation. The actual process of normalisation is explained in steps through the lenses of May and Finch and their theory called the ‘Normalisation Process Theory’ in order to understand the steps involved with enacting normalization on a subject. By focusing on the governmental interventions in Christiania and all the resulting political, social, and cultural perspectives, this project examines the various attempts made and reasons behind normalising Christiania. More specifically, the normalisation process is analyzed in how it can be understood through a theoretical approach in assisting neoliberal society. This project examines various aspects of the effects and intentions of the normalization process, such as the criminal activities in Christiania i.e. the drug trade that takes place in a confined area in the Freetown called Pusher Street. We also investigate the relationship between the Danish state and Christiania and in what ways they have both benefitted from each other regardless of conflict. From here we question “What was the actual intention behind the Normalisation Plan?”. An analysis ensues based on the observation of a possibility that the reason of the allowance of the Freetown’s existence was to contribute to neoliberal society and the greater area of Copenhagen.Abstract Centrally located in the heart of the Danish capital Copenhagen there is a place known as ‘The Freetown of Christiania’. Christiania, is a squatter foundation born in 1971, where a small group of young people took over 49 hectares of government owned land and founded their notion of a perfect society, a community based on consensus democracy and personal freedom. Throughout the history of the Freetown there has been a continuous debate around the legitimacy of the self proclaimed area, and the various Danish governments in power over the years have continuously tried to regain their right to the land. The Freetown has existed a little more than 40-years and throughout its existence it has continuously challenged and resisted the Danish government. In 2004, the Danish Liberal-Conservative government decided to put Christiania on a path of normalisation with the enactment of the Christiania Law. The intent behind this was to privatize the communally owned buildings and land. This project explores the intentions behind the process of normalisation and how it has been implemented and embedded throughout time. We investigate the process in various contexts, such as social, cultural and economically, mainly through Michel Foucault’s theory of normalisation. The actual process of normalisation is explained in steps through the lenses of May and Finch and their theory called the ‘Normalisation Process Theory’ in order to understand the steps involved with enacting normalization on a subject. By focusing on the governmental interventions in Christiania and all the resulting political, social, and cultural perspectives, this project examines the various attempts made and reasons behind normalising Christiania. More specifically, the normalisation process is analyzed in how it can be understood through a theoretical approach in assisting neoliberal society. This project examines various aspects of the effects and intentions of the normalization process, such as the criminal activities in Christiania i.e. the drug trade that takes place in a confined area in the Freetown called Pusher Street. We also investigate the relationship between the Danish state and Christiania and in what ways they have both benefitted from each other regardless of conflict. From here we question “What was the actual intention behind the Normalisation Plan?”. An analysis ensues based on the observation of a possibility that the reason of the allowance of the Freetown’s existence was to contribute to neoliberal society and the greater area of Copenhagen
Women with refugee background enrolled in integration programs in Denmark - the barriers they encounter
No full textProject Radicalization: Why do "they" hate "us"?
No full textThe phenomenon of global terrorism is still not fully understood by the international community whether within the contingents of public decision-makers, security agencies and researchers. Radicalization as explanation and analytical tool for understanding terrorism has relatively recently gained new prominence. In this project the question of which discourses can be found in the scientific material within the research field of terrorism and radicalization is addressed. A sample of scientific texts were chosen from within the timeframe ranging from 2004 - 2013. The sample was analyzed using an approach composed of Fairclough’s critical discourse theory concepts of intertextuality and interdiscursivity, combined with the concepts for identifying discourses found in Laclau and Mouffe’s discourse theory. Our findings suggest that a more nuanced discourse in relation to the concept of radicalization developed during the applied timeframe. Furthermore, our findings suggest that an arguably sensitively laden and ideologically dominated topic which is likely to be subjectively conceived, can fuel a commonly constructed perception of certain population groups. The analysis supports to a certain degree the argument that the study of radicalization needs to be detached from Muslims and Islam and the perception of risk, in order to break new ground in how we think about challenging/disagreeing on the status quo within a society.The phenomenon of global terrorism is still not fully understood by the international community whether within the contingents of public decision-makers, security agencies and researchers. Radicalization as explanation and analytical tool for understanding terrorism has relatively recently gained new prominence. In this project the question of which discourses can be found in the scientific material within the research field of terrorism and radicalization is addressed. A sample of scientific texts were chosen from within the timeframe ranging from 2004 - 2013. The sample was analyzed using an approach composed of Fairclough’s critical discourse theory concepts of intertextuality and interdiscursivity, combined with the concepts for identifying discourses found in Laclau and Mouffe’s discourse theory. Our findings suggest that a more nuanced discourse in relation to the concept of radicalization developed during the applied timeframe. Furthermore, our findings suggest that an arguably sensitively laden and ideologically dominated topic which is likely to be subjectively conceived, can fuel a commonly constructed perception of certain population groups. The analysis supports to a certain degree the argument that the study of radicalization needs to be detached from Muslims and Islam and the perception of risk, in order to break new ground in how we think about challenging/disagreeing on the status quo within a society
EU Organisational Identity
No full textThis paper examines the intersubjective relationship between the EU and its members states concerning the construction of an EU organisational identity, in order to understand the different aspects that contribute to the creation of an EU organisational identity. The paper states that the EU is a hybrid organisation due to different interpretations of how identity components are integrated on sub-national and societal levels of the EU. The paper argues that the EU has cosmopolitan ideal viewpoints concerning the construction of an EU organisational identity, but the communitarian sentiments from the member states create a sovereignty conflict concerning the integration of an EU organisational identity on sub-national and societal levels, due to sub-national historical, political and cultural circumstances. The paper assesses this focus by using the theoretical concept of Organisational Identity (OI) and the International Relations theory (IR), to examine both the supranational and subnational level of the construction and integration of an EU organisational identity.This paper examines the intersubjective relationship between the EU and its members states concerning the construction of an EU organisational identity, in order to understand the different aspects that contribute to the creation of an EU organisational identity. The paper states that the EU is a hybrid organisation due to different interpretations of how identity components are integrated on sub-national and societal levels of the EU. The paper argues that the EU has cosmopolitan ideal viewpoints concerning the construction of an EU organisational identity, but the communitarian sentiments from the member states create a sovereignty conflict concerning the integration of an EU organisational identity on sub-national and societal levels, due to sub-national historical, political and cultural circumstances. The paper assesses this focus by using the theoretical concept of Organisational Identity (OI) and the International Relations theory (IR), to examine both the supranational and subnational level of the construction and integration of an EU organisational identity
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