The variable geometry of proof: the use of evidence in EU family reunification processing
Résumé
The concept of evidence has been at the core of legal and policy work and scholarship but has not been explicitly addressed by social scientists. Building on available studies on bureaucratic processing of family reunification applications by EU member states, our paper aims to enrich the understanding of this concept as used in migration policy and border work. Specifically, we produce a classification of five types of evidence: personal status, integration, bio-medical, narrative and affective evidence. Drawing on three empirical examples from our respective ethnographic fieldwork with refugee, migrant and mixed-status families, we illustrate how EU family reunification processing typically involves a 'variable geometry' of evidence by which different types of evidence are flexibly combined in everyday administrative practices mostly shaped by a widespread culture of suspicion.
| Origine | Fichiers produits par l'(les) auteur(s) |
|---|---|
| licence |


