Representations of Europe among Argentine migrants in Europe

This EuroBroadMap working paper is issued from the final report of the work package 3 (migrants and borders). To explore, reveal and analyse the Argentinian's representations of Europe, a qualitative survey was conducted with : candidates for a European nationality, people standing for emigrate, and Argentinian migrants settled in Spain and France from 2000s. Indeed, the crisis of corralito (2001) has led to a strong wave of migration, especially to Spain. This migration is part of the particular history of Argentina : Argentina was a Spanish colony and a land of an important European emigration in the 19th and early 20th century. Now, Argentina holds a special place in the North-South international relations. Argentinian national history meets singular family histories of descendants of European migrants. Thus, we analyse the administrative trajectories of Argentinians who want to get a European nationality. Italian and Spanish legislation offer this option to the descendants of their former national who has emigrated to Argentina. Holding a European passport allows free circulation through the world. Migrant experiences are an opportunity to reconstruct family ties with Europe. It also revive the images and sentiments about Europe, forged in school and through the media. If Europe, particularly Spain, is seen as relatively close and attractive, it also draws a positive opposite of the Argentinian crisis. But Europe is seen in a more ambivalent way : a negative vision can be explained by various obstacles (during the administrative phase and during the migration). Indeed, the stories change progressively during the stages of migration : personal projects are redefined downward. Furthermore, the European vision is awakened by restrictive rights for undocumented migrants and racism and xenophobia. To concluded, Spanish crisis (2007-) is reconfiguring, once again, family memories, identifications, projects and performances