12.2: Citizenship

Substantive Citizenship

Substantive Citizenship is linked to the idea of forming an identity and cultural distinction. In this type of citizenship, minority groups are at a disadvantage as it can ascribe “imagined labor market identities to workers with different nationalities”^[7]. Which ends up causing a lot of problems and unfair treatment. This concept “implies the notion of equality in that citizens are said to share a common status in respect of the rights and duties that they hold”, but instead it deals with who gets to “enjoy the rights that ensure effective membership of a national community”^[8].

An example of this seen in the world is that countries like the United States, France or England see working on a farm or the growing of crops as a lower job. While in places like Central and South America, farming is seen quite frequently and is accepted as an equal job. This means that when the people from these areas move to the United States or Europe they face discrimination as this is the only job that they know how to do.

Flexible Citizenship

Flexible citizenship [16] was defined by anthropologist Aihwa Ong as “ the strategies and effects employed by managers, technocrats, and professionals who move regularly across state boundaries who seek both to circumvent and benefit from different nation-state regimes.” This concept allows the nation-states to work together to move toward a better economy and global success. This is closely related to the concept of globalization [17]. It seemed before that in order for the nation-states to become globalized they would need to be independent, this has proven to be very contradictory due to flexible citizenship. This concept allows people such as business owners and managers to better their company and do so on a much larger scale.

This is exemplified in the Chinese culture. Chinese elite families are large components for the successes in the economy of the Pacific Rim. This all began when the Chinese moved into European empires, while doing so the Chinese were required to strengthen their bonds with their family and business partners in order to be successful. For example, a Hong Kong family business owner had their son run a part of the hotel chain in the Pacific regions, while another brother lived in San Francisco and managed the hotels that were located within Northern America and Europe.

Post-National Ethos

Within the Chinese Culture and Flexible Citizenship, there can sometimes be a few negative effects. When families are dispersed all throughout the world it can seem hard to stay happy and close together when things such as support, relationships, and parental responsibilities are neglected. It seems as though the success sometimes gets out of control and all that is seen by them is success. It is forgotten what it is like to think of things other than globalization[18], a capitalist economy, and money. The concept of Nationalism can completely lose its meaning and they seem to follow a Post-National ethos. This happens when “an attitude toward the world in which people submit to the govern mentality of the capitalist market while trying to avoid the govern mentality of nation-states.”

Pathway to and Problems with Gaining US Citizenship

For thousands of Americans, gaining citizenship to the United States was the most frustrating and time-consuming process they have ever experienced. However, it is not the civics test or the pointed questions from federal officials that make the process so hard. For most, the real block comes sooner, when prospective citizens seek to live and work in the United States by obtaining their "green card." Some 140,000 professionals, more than half working in the technology sector, are granted permanent residency out of nearly 900,000 immigrants America welcomes each year. It is this group that tends to go through an increasingly costly, risky, and tedious process. For example, most immigration lawyers charge between $5,000 to $7,500 to accompany a client through the green card process. Some cases can cost closer to $15,000 before adding on application feeds and any potential family members. The real cost, however, is harder to quantify. Many applicants can spend years marked by a feeling of lost opportunity and helplessness as they wait for the process to conclude. The process takes a while because they want to ensure that all green card members in the United States are qualified to become a citizen. They are tested for their dedication, loyalty, and trust for the country.[13]