Moral economy and deservingness in immigration policies. The case of regularisations in Italy

Abstract

This paper has two purposes. The first is theoretical: to revise use of the concept of moral economy in migration studies, and the related concept of deservingness. I will identify different versions and meanings, showing their significant contribution to the understanding of migration issues, but discussing their lack of consideration of a particular aspect: the conflict between competing moral economies. The second and related purpose will be to apply the concept of moral economy to an analysis of the public debate on the recent measure, related to theCOVID-19 pandemic, enacted to regularise unauthorised immigrants in Italy (May–August 2020). The measure, almost unique in Europe and in the Global North has involved only workers, and workers employed in two sectors: agriculture and domestic/care services. This decision can be seen as a choice in terms of moral economy: some sectors and some immigrant workers have deserved more consideration than other workers. The empirical material is constituted by declarations and statements by social and political actors who took part in the debate, using moraleconomic arguments to support their position. I will review it through the lens of competing moral economies and different notions of deservingness. In the conclusion I argue that in migration policies, relevant moral and political values are involved: human rights and national sovereignty, the right to mobility and citizens’ rights, the right of asylum and social cohesion. I wish for a more subtle use of the concept of moral economy to feed a better discussion of these crucial topics.

The moral economy of voice within IOM’s awareness-raising industry: Gambian returnees and Migrants as Messengers

“…Recognising the discursive and affective as well as commodification sides of awareness-raising led us to the long-standing concept of moral economy. In migration studies, this concept has been used to variously refer to informality in labour relations between immigrants; expectations and socio-cultural interpretations of economic exchange in migrants' communities of origin; and the value-systems informing the rules of in-and exclusion of migrants in host societies (Chauvin and Garcés-Mascareñas 2012;Dinler 2016;Hiah and Staring 2016;Alpes 2017;Kleist 2017;Morris 2021;Ambrosini 2022). However, its origins are traceable to the works of Thompson (1971) and Scott (1976), which approached the failed expectations of the crowds vis-à-vis the provision duties of the authorities and the risk-aversion strategies of peasants from colonial societies.…”