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International Workshop on Intersectionality and Migrant Enterprise Workshop Report, 11th June 2015

Centre for Research on Ethnic Minority Entrepreneurship (CREME) 1

The workshop entitled ‘International Workshop on Intersectionality and Migrant Enterprise’ was held on the 11th of June 2015 at the University of Birmingham. The workshop attracted researchers, practitioners and entrepreneurs interested in diversity and entrepreneurship. The workshop was generously funded and organised by the Institute of Advanced Studies (University of Birmingham); and supported by Centre for Research in Ethnic Minority Entrepreneurship (CREME) (University of Birmingham), and the Enterprise and Diversity Cluster (EDC) at the Birmingham Business School. The workshop brought participants up to date with current research in the area of immigrant entrepreneurship, and in particular looking at categories of difference (gender, ethnicity, family composition, religion and class), providing the space and opportunity to discuss emerging challenges for research and policy.

The event outlined key aspects on the theoretical advancement of intersectionality applied to immigrant entrepreneurship. Intersectionality is a theoretical and analytical approach, which has gained prominence by the work of

black feminism (Crenshaw, 1989)1. This analytical lens reveals the need to understand the intersections between different forms of discrimination, oppression and power, such as class, gender and/or race.

When looking at the experiences of immigrant entrepreneurs, intersectionality becomes a useful approach to capture gender, class, religion or ethnicity simultaneously, rather than in isolation. This casts light on the way social divisions and categories are understood; for example, one’s ethnicity and class are always structured in gendered ways. However, empirical work within immigrant entrepreneurship studies using this approach is rare. Building upon insights from the research carried out at CREME, this event highlighted the advantages of adopting an intersectional approach to research in immigrant entrepreneurship. Leading scholars reflected on multiple categories of difference when in the study of diversity and entrepreneurship. Practitioners joined academics in in

1 Crenshaw, K. (1989) ‘Demarginalizing the Intersection of Race and Sex: A Black Feminist Critique of Antidiscrimination Doctrine, Feminist Politics and Antiracist Politics’ University of Chigaco Legal Forum 139-‐167.

considering the value of intersectionality for their work. The event attracted around 30 participants from a wide range of affiliations: junior and senior academics from several UK and European institutions, as well as practitioners and policy makers. Professor Monder Ram (University of Birmingham) is the Director of the Enterprise and Diversity Cluster (EDC) and CREME. Professor Ram shared the rationale of the event and facilitated the conversation among participants. Professor Sue Marlow (University of Nottingham) has published extensively on gender and entrepreneurship, and presented a conceptual paper on how to understand gender, intersectionality and positionality within the context of entrepreneurship. Professor Sara Carter (University of Strathclyde) examined the relationship between business ownership on the economic wellbeing of entrepreneurial households, as well as the structure and dynamics of business households, and access to and use of external finance. Her contribution to the workshop focused on the Entrepreneurial Household and the ways in which resourcing and managing occurs in diverse businesses. Dr Caroline Essers (Radboud Nijmegen University, The Netherlands) has worked extensively on the identity constructions of entrepreneurs, particularly female (Muslim) migrant entrepreneurs, as well as



how the images of Otherness play a role in the construction of the entrepreneurial identities. Caroline has visited the University of Birmingham as a Distinguished Visiting Fellow of the Institute of Advanced Studies (IAS). She shared her work on how she analyses entrepreneurship from an intersectionality perspective, looking at the case of female migrant entrepreneurs in the Netherlands. Dr María Villares is a Research Fellow at CREME carrying out research in the field of ethnic minority business and small firms, gender and intergenerational dynamics. During the workshop, she has presented her research on Latin American immigrant women entrepreneurs in Spain, looking at the role of class-‐based femininities and masculinities in the entrepreneurial strategy. The presentations were followed by a round table discussion facilitated by Professor Kiran Trehan (University of Birmingham) on the relevance of using the concept of intersectionality for the agendas and challenges of institutions working alongside and for migrants and/or entrepreneurs. The roundtable discussion featured: Jawaahir Daahir BEM (Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Somali Development Services, Leicester); Khadija Barday-‐Wood (Empower, Inspire and Motivate through Advocacy and Nurturing -‐ EIMAN) , and Alicja Kaczmarek (Polish Expats Association).

This brief report aims at synthesising key insights of the presentations and rich discussions.

Usefulness of Intersectionality to understand experiences of migrant entrepreneurship The presentations and discussions showed the need for thinking of categories of ‘difference within difference’ when looking at entrepreneurship. This report summarises three different ways in which an intersectionality approach facilitates a better understanding of migrant entrepreneurship: (i) Moving beyond the dominant image of ‘the entrepreneur’. Mainstream understandings of entrepreneurship tend to understand it as a strongly charged gendered and ethnicised image. Hence, intersectionality opens up the box of thinking of categories of difference. In other words, what do we mean when we study immigrant entrepreneurs? What are our categories of reference for comparison? In order to avoid having the ‘white, Christian, middle-‐class men’ as the epitome of ‘the entrepreneur’, we need theoretical tools that enable us to unpack the meanings, experiences and differential outcomes of entrepreneurship.

An intersectionality approach can help us to capture the interactions between categories such as gender, ethnicity, class, religion, etc. Postmodern standpoint theory has contributed a range of important critiques as well as reflections from a black feminist perspective, which proposes an analysis of the intersection of these categories. This postmodern frame has particular implications to understand social axis of difference, because it prevents reifying groups together. This way we can approach categories such as ethnicity, not in isolation but in relation to other categories, such as class, gender, sexuality, age, etc.

This was reflected for example in Dr Caroline Esser’s presentation, where she explained how the different identity discourses and experiences of work for Turkish Muslim migrant women in the Netherlands. Esser’s work shows how Muslim women navigate and mobilise western and non-‐western, modern and traditional values simultaneously when becoming entrepreneurs. The panel discussion by practitioners also reflected upon



the need to avoid programmes and policies designed as ‘one-‐size-‐fits-‐all’: migrants and entrepreneurs come with different needs, levels of financial, human and social capital that position them differently in the societies where they settle. (ii) Enhancing theoretical developments within immigrant entrepreneurship studies. Accounts looking at the drivers and dynamics explaining the origin and proliferation of migrant entrepreneurship have interrogated the role of the state, policies, and markets to understand the opportunities available to migrant entrepreneurs. However, they have generally overlooked how the spaces available to migrants are also conditioned by racialised, gendered and classed social structures. An intersectionality approach allows us to look at power relations and different positions that individuals might have. This knowledge might help us to enhance current theoretical developments by bringing further layers of complexity into our understanding of how migrants navigate the labour market and open up businesses. For example, Prof Carter’s presentation showed that understanding diversity in household composition, as well as the links between business and family dynamics, impact the management of resources to become an entrepreneur. Dr Maria Villares’ presentation looking at the

role of class in the gendered experiences of work for women entrepreneurs also enables us to move beyond the focus on the ethnic and cultural traits that motivate particular groups to enter the ethnic economy, which might conceal the relevance of class-‐based resources and identities. (iii) From intersectionality towards ‘positionality’. The discussions held during the workshop established the advantages of an intersectional approach to capture difference within categories. However, new approaches building upon intersectionality were also proposed as a way to move forward. Prof Marlow showed how ‘positionality’ can capture how intersectionality occurs and when it matters. Marlow presented this framework as an alternative to understand gender and entrepreneurship. Positionality refers to the positions individuals hold in a given society in relation to different social categories. It moves beyond an intersectional approach since it accounts for the dynamics behind the social positions that individuals have and how they navigate through these in different realms (public, private, employment, family, etc.). In other words, positionality would bring the dynamism that intersectionality lacks of. Next steps The event proved useful to keep on-‐going collaboration among scholars working within these approaches. Some of the initiatives

that will be developed as a result of this workshop are:

-‐ Developing other axes of difference in forthcoming workshops organised by the EDC (such as, for example, disability and entrepreneurship to be held in 2016)

-‐ Edition of a special issue or edited volume on intersectionality and migrant entrepreneurship

-‐ Exploring incorporating an

intersectional perspective in forthcoming research projects

For further details about the event or the Institute of Advanced Studies (IAS), please contact Sue Gilligan Email: [email protected] Phone: +44 (0121) 414 5997 Visit: http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/ias Twitter: @IAS_UoB For further details about the Centre for Research on Ethnic Minority Entrepreneurship (CREME) or the Enterprise and Diversity Cluster (EDC), please contact Sophie Sinclair: Email: [email protected] Phone: +44 (0)121 415 8362Website: http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/research/activity/business/creme/index.aspx Twitter: @CREMEatBham

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