Negotiating Swedishness : Exploring citizenship and belonging among Swedes residing abroad in the context of Swedish migration policies

Abstract: This thesis examines how Swedish citizens deal with the increasingly difficult process of returning to Sweden with family members who are third country nationals, following the passage of a law that places temporary limits on residency permits. The goal of this thesis is to examine how negotiations of citizenship and belonging play out in the context of Swedish migration policy and family reunification regulations. In order to explore these questions in more detail, I have chosen an ethnographic methodology based on a combination of virtual ethnography in two groups on the social media platform Facebook as well as seven semistructured interviews with participants found through these groups and one expert interview with an organization lobbying for Swedes abroad. In this study, the concepts of citizenship, belonging, whiteness, Swedishness, and diaspora are used to understand the relationship of utlandssvenskar (Swedish citizens living abroad) to Sweden and their Swedish citizenship. The study concludes that these Facebook groups provide a space to share and receive support, generate discussion, interact with other Swedes, and help create a sense of community among members scattered around the world by creating a "we". The process of family reunification reinforces feelings of deservingness, and the idea of privilege and citizenship rights is taken for granted. Obstacles to claiming one's homeland and citizenship rights challenge and harm notions of Sweden and Swedishness. Moreover, the study concludes that being utlandssvensk challenges notions of belonging and the way Swedish citizenship is negotiated.