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Host Land Or Homeland?: Civic-Cultural Identity and Banal Integration in Latvia

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Host Land Or Homeland?: Civic-Cultural Identity and Banal Integration in Latvia Host land or homeland?: Civic-cultural identity and banal integration in Latvia Indra Dineh Ekmanis A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Washington 2017 Reading Committee: Scott Radnitz, Chair Guntis Šmidchens Sabine Lang James Felak Program Authorized to Offer Degree: Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies ©Copyright 2017 Indra Dineh Ekmanis University of Washington Abstract Host land or homeland?: Civic-cultural identity and banal integration in Latvia Indra Dineh Ekmanis Chair of the Supervisory Committee: Scott Radnitz, Associate Professor Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies This dissertation challenges conventional approaches in the study of minority integration by looking at the spaces in which integration occurs, rather than at instances of conflict. It develops a framework that considers banal manifestations of social integration in quotidian and national life. Concentrating on the case study of Russian-speakers and ethnic titulars in Latvia, it compares top-down, elite-led discourse on integration with lived interethnic interactions. In many conventional analyses, Latvia is considered a divided society wherein ethnic, linguistic, and cultural cleavages separate ethnic Latvians from the proportionally large population of Russian-speakers “left behind” when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. This population has been analyzed through immigrant, diaspora, and fifth column frameworks that suggest Russian speakers remain outside of the Latvian state and nation, if not always civically, then certainly culturally. This dissertation argues the frameworks and indicators traditionally used to measure integration do not sufficiently consider integration in everyday experiences, and therefore overlook much of the integration that is occurring on the ground. Rather, banality – or the lived experiences that fade into the hum of everyday life – is an indicator of significant interpersonal and socio-national integration that incorporates minorities as active members of the nation. The dissertation considers relevant theories in the study of integration, nationalism, and identity to create frameworks of interpersonal and socio-national banal integration. These capture both person-to-person experiences and minority engagement with society and the state. The dissertation then links the theoretical concept with three critical elements in the Latvian integration debate. First, it notes the disconnect between top-down integration priorities and ground-level realities. Second, it examines banal integration in daily life, looking at interpersonal interactions, public spaces, and civic connections with the state. Finally, the dissertation considers the ways in which minorities engage as embedded members of the Latvian nation, looking at participation in cultural events and national holidays. Theoretically, this dissertation highlights the necessity of prioritizing banal, quotidian experiences over elite-led discourse in the study of integration. Methodologically, it accomplishes this goal through a multi-method approach, using extant document summary and analysis, medium-n survey data, and qualitative ethnography. Empirically, the dissertation pushes back against a narrative of conflict in Latvian and Russian-speaker relations. Indeed, it argues that not only is Latvian society far less divided than it discursively appears, in many cases, minorities see themselves as active members of the Latvian cultural and civic nation, not tangential to it. This dissertation is a dedicated analysis of the Latvian case, but contributes more broadly to the literature on post-Soviet diaspora and migration studies, integration studies, and questions of nationalism and identity in the modern global context. Table of Contents List of Figures ____________________________________________________________ iv List of Tables _____________________________________________________________ v Chapter 1 | Introduction ____________________________________________________ 1 Baltic background _______________________________________________________ 3 Driving questions ________________________________________________________ 5 Significance of the study __________________________________________________ 6 Host land or homeland? ___________________________________________________ 8 Overview of the dissertation structure ______________________________________ 10 A note on terminology ___________________________________________________ 12 Chapter 2 | Studying integration ____________________________________________ 14 What is integration & who does it? _________________________________________ 14 Theories of identity, ethnicity & nationalism __________________________________ 19 (Re)emergent nationalism ________________________________________________ 23 Balancing theory & reality: Russian-speaker integration _________________________ 25 Immigrant acculturation ________________________________________________ 26 Diaspora ____________________________________________________________ 28 Stratification _________________________________________________________ 29 Banality of integration in daily life __________________________________________ 32 Conceptual framework of banal integration ___________________________________ 33 Interpersonal banal integration __________________________________________ 35 Socio-national banal integration _________________________________________ 37 Clarifications & assumptions ____________________________________________ 39 Another everyday ethnicity? ____________________________________________ 41 Summary _____________________________________________________________ 42 Chapter 3 | Methodology: Challenges of capturing the banal _______________________ 45 Case study settings _____________________________________________________ 47 Method of inquiry _______________________________________________________ 51 Extant document summary & analysis _____________________________________ 52 Ethnography _________________________________________________________ 53 Medium-n student survey ______________________________________________ 57 Constraints ____________________________________________________________ 62 Reflexive perspective ____________________________________________________ 63 Chapter 4 | Against the grain: A look at the state of top-down ‘integration’ ___________ 67 Host land or homeland? | i Building & rebuilding the Latvian state ______________________________________ 69 Defining ‘a Latvian’ _____________________________________________________ 74 Integrating an integration policy ___________________________________________ 81 History & memory ____________________________________________________ 81 Citizenship __________________________________________________________ 84 Education ___________________________________________________________ 90 Language ___________________________________________________________ 95 Culture _____________________________________________________________ 98 Elite-led strategies in conflict with realities? _________________________________ 101 Conclusion ___________________________________________________________ 105 Chapter 5 | Banal integration in everyday life _________________________________ 108 Talking integration _____________________________________________________ 110 Negativity bias & the generation gap _____________________________________ 110 The stereotype & its weaknesses ________________________________________ 113 Public interactions _____________________________________________________ 117 The significant insignificance of language ___________________________________ 125 ‘Sights’ of integration ___________________________________________________ 128 Landscapes & cityscapes ______________________________________________ 131 Belonging to the nation _________________________________________________ 135 Conclusion ___________________________________________________________ 145 Chapter 6 | Sound of the nation: Integration & ecstatic cultural nationalism _________ 147 Ecstatic nationalism & banal integration ____________________________________ 148 Nation of singers & dancers ______________________________________________ 152 Minority engagement in the Song & Dance Celebration ________________________ 156 General picture of Daugavpils city/municipality _____________________________ 157 Minority engagement _________________________________________________ 162 Collective Celebrations __________________________________________________ 165 Environment & school integration _______________________________________ 165 Collectives, participation & access _______________________________________ 170 Pedagogical influence _________________________________________________ 173 Latvia’s Russian speakers _____________________________________________ 175 Bridging the gap & bonding the nation ___________________________________ 177 ‘A drop of tar in a jar of honey’ _________________________________________ 179 Celebrating the nation __________________________________________________ 181 Latvian statehood ____________________________________________________ 182 War and commemoration ______________________________________________ 184 Host land or homeland? | ii Conclusion ___________________________________________________________ 186 Chapter 7 | Conclusions: Embracing the banal _________________________________ 189 Goals & findings _______________________________________________________ 189 Significance __________________________________________________________
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