Abstract

This research focuses on an element of migratory experience that has been relatively neglected thus far: a dynamic view of changes over time. The material underpinning the arguments is the qualitative life-course analysis of 35 indepth interviews with Senegalese migrants living in Antwerp. I describe how respondents may move from purely survival stages, over phases of looking for a regularisation of their administrative status, to a more stable context in which they can invest in improving their socio-economic situation. In analysing their life courses, attention is paid to the changing roles of the community, the legal context, and the relationship with home. An in-depth insight is given into the lives of migrants, the limits, rights, and possibilities for getting by in an urban setting. The project shows how a more dynamic approach on the position of newly arrived migrants in receiving economies improves the static perspective common to most theories.

How to Cite:

Van Nieuwenhuyze, I., (2007) “Senegalese arbeidsmigratie naar Antwerpen: een levensloopanalyse”, Tijdschrift voor Sociologie 28(3-4), 321–343. doi: https://doi.org/10.21825/sociologos.86687