Tracing Migrant-Mothers’ ‘Return’ Narratives in the Mexico-U.S and Peru-Belgium Migratory Circuits.

How do contemporary migrant mothers strategize return to their home countries? And how does the social protections available for their bi-national children in sending and destination countries factor in the decision to return? Through this contribution, we aimed to tackle these questions. We draw from the analysis of two longitudinal migratory careers and argue that our participant’s return decisions were influenced both by their children’s effective access to social protection and their subjective perceptions of ‘good-motherhood’. This Trans-Atlantic comparison shows how different situated-institutional-contexts, cultures of care and motherhood resulted into different patterns of mobility for these women and their families