What is it about?
Borders look like solid lines on maps, or queues at airport immigration desks. But, recent academic research has shown that borders are actually all around us. Wales' borders are a good example of this. In this article, we look at how the 1997 Welsh devolution referendum and 2016 Brexit referendum relate to borders. We argue that votes do not change borders - but if borders are all around, they might affect us more than we think.
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Why is it important?
Brexit is about borders - from fearmongering about immigration, to negotiations for trade and free movement. But where are these borders and what do they look like? The answer is not simple. The question is especially tricky for the devolved nations - Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland - because devolution is about borders, too. With Scottish independence back in the media, and the Irish border a big deal in Brussels, Wales has not had as much attention.
Perspectives
We wrote this article after working on research with EU citizens living in Wales. Their stories really brought home to us how borders matter in people's lives. We wanted to understand how borders work and what happens when they change.
Dr Bryonny Goodwin-Hawkins
Aberystwyth University
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: 1997 and 2016: Referenda, Brexit, and (Re-)bordering at the European Periphery, New Global Studies, November 2019, De Gruyter,
DOI: 10.1515/ngs-2019-0031.
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