Inclusion or Exclusion?

Inclusion and exclusion represent the two sides of citizenship’s coin. Whereas much of the literature on citizenship has traditionally focused on its inclusionary face, more radical contemporary writings tend to portray citizenship as a force for exclusion. This and the next chapter examine the exclusionary tensions inherent in the concept of citizenship and how they operate at different levels to create non or partial citizens. These non or partial citizens can be characterised as ‘those who are excluded from without’ and ‘those who are excluded from within’ specific citizenship communities or nation-states (Yeatman, 1994, p. 80). The former, together with a more general account of citizenship’s exclusionary tendencies, are the subject of this chapter.