The Acts of Civil Subjects: Migration and Acts of Citizenship

Abstract

This article proposes a theoretical framework that allows a rethink on citizens’ activities, seeing them as a productive form of creative acts producing political subjects and new forms of politics and breaking out of the previous, rigid constraints of institutional logic and social structures. After a period that witnessed active political mobilization of citizens around the 2011–2012 parliamentary and presidential election campaigns in Russia, many commentators argued for demobilization; the people expressed their resentment on the streets only to be intimidated by the police and vow never go out again. I argue, however, that this activism did not decline but rather acquired new forms of participation. Street protests and political rallies transformed into the activities of self-organized groups, which started to reshape and replace welfare institutions in providing support to those who have the demand. The groups have had various levels of engagement and sustainability (issues that are beyond the scope of this paper), however, they do reflect an important transformation of political life in Russia. This transformation of becoming a citizen or, put another way, becoming a subject of active involvement in the life of political community instead of waiting for activity from the state bureaucracy to solve their pressing needs, problems and demands. I examine this situation with reference to the theory of citizenship, which provides a framework for analysing activist citizens’ ethics and actions. These activist citizens, invigorated by the momentum of the protest movement, targeted various aspects of state policies. This article discusses the possibility of achieving a theoretical understanding of one of these initiatives appearing as a result of political mobilization and was expressed in several projects related to improvement of life conditions of working migrants. The initiatives are well described by the theory of an "act of citizenship" proposed by Engin Isin and are based, in part, on Mikhail Bakhtin’s ideas.