Exploring the Intersectional Dynamics of Identity and Reintegration for Women Return Migrants

Abstract

The issue of female returnees and identity is a key aspect of the discussion on return migration, resettlement, reintegration, and identity construction. Female returnees bring back a range of beliefs, ideas, attitudes, and values that shape their identities and the communities they return to. Some choose to return voluntarily, while others are compelled to leave due to social, economic, or political circumstances. While some argue that female return migration is simply a matter of "going home," others emphasize the profound impact it has on the identities of migrants and the communities they rejoin. These researchers highlight the vulnerability of female returnees to social, economic, political, and demographic inequalities, which they confront in their daily struggles to resettle, readjust, and reintegrate into their communities of destination. However, the question of how identity is constructed tends to be rather problematic and fraught with complexities because it remains a difficult process due to the determinants that intervene with it. Taking inspiration from Crenshaw's intersectionality approach, this paper aims to explore how different aspects like class, age, education level, geography, ability, ethnicity, tribal affiliation, desires, living conditions, means, and more, intersect to shape the identity construction of female returnees as they settle down and start a new life.