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From Objects of Care to Citizens—Young Carers’ Citizenship

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Lived Citizenship on the Edge of Society

Part of the book series: Palgrave Politics of Identity and Citizenship Series ((CAL))

Abstract

Wihstutz explores children’s everyday care practice as an expression of lived citizenship. Based on secondary qualitative data on young carers in the Global North and child headed households in the Global South, children are depicted as citizens struggling for recognition and equal access to resources. Concepts of ‘good childhood’ and ‘children at risk’ are discussed in terms of possible excluding and discriminating effects on young carers. Through the lens of feminist ethics, care strategies become context-bound expressions of interdependence between children and their (adult) kin, embedded in asymmetrical power relationships. The question is raised how social services need to be oriented to contribute to the empowerment of young carers and their citizenship.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Protestant University of Applied Sciences, Berlin, Germany

    Anne Wihstutz

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  1. Anne Wihstutz
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Correspondence to Anne Wihstutz .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Social Sciences and Business, Roskilde University, Roskilde, Denmark

    Hanne Warming

  2. Department of Social Work, Metropolitan University College, Copenhagen, Denmark

    Kristian Fahnøe

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Wihstutz, A. (2017). From Objects of Care to Citizens—Young Carers’ Citizenship. In: Warming, H., Fahnøe, K. (eds) Lived Citizenship on the Edge of Society. Palgrave Politics of Identity and Citizenship Series. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-55068-8_9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-55068-8_9

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  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham

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  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-55068-8

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