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The Politics of Conducting Research in Africa pp 115–132Cite as

Palgrave Macmillan

Researching Diaspora Citizenship: Reflections on Issues of Positionality and Access from a Zimbabwean Researching Zimbabweans in South Africa

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Abstract

In this chapter, Langton Miriyoga discusses the complexities and challenges he faced as a Zimbabwean returning to South Africa—the place where he lived for a number of years before moving to the UK to begin his doctoral research—to conduct field research. Far from the ease of access he anticipated as a Zimbabwean migrant researching Zimbabwean migrants, Miriyoga describes how his own memories of crime in the townships of Cape Town, together with the outbreaks of xenophobic violence at the time of his fieldwork, colored his research and compounded the already difficult situation of conducting research on marginalized populations.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, UK

    Langton Miriyoga

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  1. Langton Miriyoga
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, UK

    Lyn Johnstone

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Miriyoga, L. (2019). Researching Diaspora Citizenship: Reflections on Issues of Positionality and Access from a Zimbabwean Researching Zimbabweans in South Africa. In: Johnstone, L. (eds) The Politics of Conducting Research in Africa. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-95531-5_7

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