Introduction to Citizenship in Times of Turmoil? Theory, Practice and Policy

Citizenship in Times of Turmoil? Theory, Practice, and Policy is a collabora-tive work brought to life by academics and practitioners working in the field of immigration and nationality law and social sciences . The purpose of this edited book is to look at British citizenship and membership in British society in various contexts without making artificial distinctions between practice and theory, theory and policy, and policy and practice. Working across academic disciplines and legal specialisations, we analyse core contemporary issues of British citizenship. Wherever possible, we trace these over the long duration of history. Legal status is not our sole focus for analysing citizenship. Identity and belonging are dimensions of citizenship which permeate the chapters of the book. By integrating the social aspects of citizenship with the legal elements we straddle the worlds of formal citizenship (primarily legal elements) and substantive citizenship (inter-disciplinary sociolegal elements) scholarship. Our aim is to challenge the view that there are immutable values and enduring rights associated with citizenship status. Like the cover picture of the hot air balloon by English artist Barbara Jones, 1 citizenship appears to hover uplifted by the gentle breeze of values far removed from every day politics. This placid scene is dependent on the winds of change, often tempestuous. The current times, certainly times of turmoil, demonstrate that change is the only constant in the world of immigration and citizenship. Nearly three million EEA citizens are caught in limbo in the UK as long-term British residents during the Brexit negotiation process. The challenges of national security attacks and connected discussions on integration of migrant-citizens, also lead to soul searching about citizenship and what rights it protects. In terms of identity and belonging, when the Windrush pioneers and their progeny were suddenly asked to provide documentation of their British citizenship, or right