Transnationalism Identity

How does the idea of transnationalism “de-territorialize” nation-states and “re-territorialize” identities?

There were two central themes or platforms that struck me as most consequential in readings. The first being the concept of a power struggle between the hegemonic ruling state and the periphery or minorities that help make up that state. The second theme was the role of race, gender, ethnicity, and other traditional social groupings being used to further the agenda of the ruling elite.

Power centers [hegemonies] define and peripheries [minorities] constantly try to redefine the terms of the debate and thus gain control over them. And as the peripheries develop their own definitions, the centers of power coopt, reformulate and again disseminate these definitions in order to continue their hegemony. (BaschLinda., 1995).

It is clear that there is a power struggle between the ruling power and its subjects. The ideas of transnationalism can seemingly be thought to deconstructionist, working towards re-branding state identity, and creating an identity that spans across the boundaries of multiple backgrounds. It seemed to me that the core of the argument in whether transnationalism is “de-territorializing” nation-states and recreating new territorial identities was how it felt insignificant in its scope. The real issue behind transnationalism to me was how it is a functioning tool of hegemonic powers to continue to stay in power. Using Sociologist Michael Kearney’s definition, the primary responsibility of the state is to simultaneously project a sense of unity among its disparate population, while at the same time a distinct notion of otherness for all other foreign entities. It would appear at face value that the ideas of transnationalism would contradict this definition.  I propose that idea of transnationalism is being used by the hegemonic powers to strengthen their respective power within their own nation-states.

When looking at the case-study of hua yi, or Overseas Chinese, the goals of the state was to create a Chinese identity and then strengthen the ties the individual has to the state of China. The goals of the hua yi were similar, they were individuals that were looking to create a stronger self-identity. “Their attitudes toward China as an ancestral homeland had been shaped primarily by U.S. racial and identity politics that marked them as perpetual foreigners whose roots lay outside the United States.” (LouieAndrea, 2000)  However, the ruling power also has to instill a sense of oneness and membership among its actual citizens.

In the case study we saw that the state was very successful in creating an identity for the hua yi.  The methods that they used to forge an identity were to drawn upon the notion of nostalgia and racial brotherhood. By bringing the hua yi to the towns of their ancestors and having them interact, however briefly, with their distant relatives and the local townspeople created bonds that reinforced their shared culture and identity. Furthermore there was both subtle and blunt reminders pointing out the fact that even in their “home” countries they are often treated with discrimination. “Guangdong Chinese increasingly view Chinese in Hong Kong, Latin America, the United Sates, and Canada as victims of discrimination, living in countries that rob them of their ‘native’ cultures and languages.” (LouieAndrea, 2000) The idea of racial unity also helped create a sense of oneness or ‘Chineseness’ since all Chinese share physical traits of “yellow skin and black eyes”. So while the state provided an identity for the hua yi and they in-turn were able to be part of a larger community even though their backgrounds were largely different from those of Native Chinese. The state power by fostering and welcoming these “foreigners” as true members of the state is a great win for the ruling power. While it might have been argued that introducing Overseas Chinese to the local population could weaken the state’s power by providing examples of individuals who had successfully emigrated from the country. By showcasing that the hua yi were incapable of finding true identity outside of China, reinforced the position that it is better to be inside China than outside.  Additionally the advance of technology has enabled the native population to become better educated about the quality of life and value of life outside of China.  The ruling power was able to use individuals with transnational identities to further strengthen its own control of the state.