African diaspora in a mobility perspective

Mobility and diaspora are important perspectives when analyzing experiences of historic and contemporary African migration patterns, from the transatlantic slave trade to Mediterranean boat crossings and heritage tourism. In a keyword article in the journal African Diaspora, DIIS ResearcherNauja Kleist reflects upon resonance and tensions when applying a mobility approach to African diaspora studies and vice versa. In the former case, attention to regimes of mobility highlights how mobility and immobility is governed, facilitated or constrained historically and today, shedding light on the unequal distribution of safe, legal and free (im)mobility for African diaspora groups, whether descendants of the transatlantic slave trade or contemporary migrant groups. This includes enforcement through violent relocation, such as enslavement or present-day deportations; facilitation, such as highly skilled African professionals in demand in selected sectors; and constraint through restrictive visa legislation and border control.

Turning the analytical lens around, Kleist explores the tension between the emphasis on belonging and collectivity in much diaspora research vis-à-vis mobilities studies where these dimensions may be seen as generalising. She concludes that 'a way to navigate this tension is through emphasis on potentiality, elusiveness and friction, rather than fixity and stability' when analysing diaspora formations and narratives as well as remembering the political and often violent history of African diaspora.

The keyword article is a part of the anniversary issue of African Diaspora that also contains keywords on Africanisms, Afropolitan genealogies, conviviality, mobile worlding and city-making, as well as a photo essay on undocumented migration in Paris, and five articles on the future(s) of African diaspora. Nauja Kleist is an associate editor of the journal.