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Reaching Across: Migrant Support Activism on a Divided Island

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The Courage for Civil Repair

Part of the book series: Cultural Sociology ((CULTSOC))

Abstract

This chapter discusses migrant support activism on the divided island of Cyprus, presenting an analysis of the work of KISA (Movement for Equality, Support, and Anti-Racism), the longest-running migrant support NGO in Cyprus. On an ethnographic level, the chapter analyzes KISA as a case study in civil courage, delving into the agency and motivations of activists engaged in exercises of civil translation with the goal of expanding the horizons of solidarity. On a theoretical level, we suggest that this case study reveals how civil sphere theory, whose original formulation is bounded by the borders of the state, could enlarge its scope by incorporating transnational considerations. This endeavor entails an examination of the specific resources and potential obstacles afforded to a Cypriot-based activist organization, KISA, by a broader EU-wide civil sphere.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Seeger Center for Hellenic Studies, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA

    Argyro Nicolaou

  2. Department of Social and Political Sciences, University of Cyprus, Nicosia, Cyprus

    Yiannis Papadakis

Authors
  1. Argyro Nicolaou
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  2. Yiannis Papadakis
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Correspondence to Yiannis Papadakis .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Schar School of Policy and Government, George Mason University, Arlington, VA, USA

    Carlo Tognato

  2. Department of Sociology, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic

    Bernadette Nadya Jaworsky

  3. Center for Cultural Sociology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA

    Jeffrey C. Alexander

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Nicolaou, A., Papadakis, Y. (2020). Reaching Across: Migrant Support Activism on a Divided Island. In: Tognato, C., Jaworsky, B., Alexander, J. (eds) The Courage for Civil Repair. Cultural Sociology. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-44590-4_8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-44590-4_8

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  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-44589-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-44590-4

  • eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)

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