Paper short abstract:

In an age of increasingly hegemonic "integration" measures in Europe, it is important to examine seemingly neutral policies. This paper aims to shed light on hegemonic narratives about "refugeeness" and "Austrianness" operationalized through the Austrian Values and Orientation Courses for refugees.

Paper long abstract:

In the wake of the so-called "refugee crisis," the Austrian government enacted a new "Integration Act" in 2017. This law, among other things, requires refugees to take one 8-hour "Values and Orientation Course" (Werte- und Orientierungskurs). These courses are supposed to teach participants about Austrian history, law, and customs, and place particular emphasis on topics such as gender equality, LGBTQ rights, and secularism. By design, refugees may only take the course after being legally granted asylum--a process that often takes years. This, coupled with the fact that the first concept for such courses dates back to 2009 or even earlier, highlights the symbolic nature of such a policy. We carried out fieldwork among refugees and other related institutions such as the primary organizing institute, the Austrian Integration Fund (ÖIF), and an Austrian ministry responsible for integration programs. One focal point of our research was not only to look into the policies, politics, institutions, and organizational actors, but we also sought to include perspectives of individuals who are directly affected by the policy. Through interviews, participant observation, and document analysis, we found that the course curriculum creates an essentialized "Austrianness" that is placed against an imagined, homogenous refugee identity--in other words, a non-Austrian identity. These imagined differences that are produced and reproduced by the courses serve to "other" the refugees, contributing to existing power asymmetries. Although just one example of numerous European "integration" measures, these courses serve as a window into understanding hegemonic histories and narratives about "refugeeness."