Geographies of (un)ease: embodying racial stigma in public space

Combining insights from stigma, postcolonial and geography studies, this article examines how Moroccan-Dutch men perceive their embodiment of stigma and what coping strategies they employ in public space. Understanding racial stigma in public space requires a new approach that is more attentive to the racialized body, how it interacts with other bodies and how it is spatially situated. This exploratory study conducted twelve semi-structured walking interviews in Rotterdam. Our findings reveal that the men are aware of how their bodies are read as different and the suspicion that comes with it. We theorize that double consciousness could be considered the embodied state of stigma that triggers both mental and bodily alertness to their environment. Simultaneously, it also seems to be double consciousness that makes the men more vulnerable to stigmatization in the streets. Besides other bodies, spatial and temporal factors (whiteness/ diversity, day/night, outdoor/indoor culture, quietness/liveliness, rest/movement and familiarity/ unfamiliarity) incite alertness. These factors are closely intertwined with the figure of the stranger and thus the embodiment of these men. Furthermore, we have mapped the men’s geography of (unease). It confirms that stigma is spatially situated and spaces of ease play a pivotal role in their everyday lives. Therefore, we propose shifting from a language of fear to a language of (un)ease. Moreover, the main coping strategies utilized were ignoring, avoiding, reforming and contesting. In contrast to previous studies, the men did not seem to only opt for conflict avoidant strategies. The spatial and bodily coping techniques revealed that what seems docile, could also be interpreted as unyielding. We conclude that racial stigma in public space has fostered discomfort in the men, but more and more Dutch-Moroccan men dare to cross social and spatial boundaries.