Constructing Citizens: Reintegration of former homeless persons in Utrecht

"In citizenship theory a division between bare life and full life is made to distinguish between those who are a citizen and those who are non-political subjects, who are merely humans. However, as the case of Dutch homeless persons shows, even with access to nationality, or full life, one can be in a state of exception , living a bare life. The process of reintegration of former homeless persons in The Netherlands can be studied as a socialization process where one learns to become a citizen, to learn about normative practices of a cultural group, ways of in- and exclusion of society, and citizenship. My research shows that two key concepts are central to be part of our society: self-reliance and participation. However, if all citizens have the duty to be self-reliant, and if all have the duty to participate, where lies responsibility for the people that struggle with these two demands? The good Dutch citizen is a self-governing body who makes decisions over one s own life, has to take responsibility for oneself and others in society. The goal of reintegration is to construct this citizen out of former homeless persons, but the problems that led them to homelessness often continue to haunt and stigmatize them during and after homelessness. Not everyone equally possesses skills and psychological mechanisms that can adequately provide self-reliance. As such, some citizens are better capable of being a good citizen than others. This thesis not only analyzes aid for homeless people on a practical level to combat homelessness and improve reintegration of former homeless persons, it also makes explicit controlling mechanisms, such as dominant frameworks and hegemonic ideas, that shape our ideas on citizenship and aid. Being aware of controlling mechanisms makes us less dependent upon them in our thinking, and therefore stimulates out of the box thinking to work towards a socially sustainable society with less exclusion, inequality and poverty.