ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book explores various approaches to membership and identification in order to elaborate on a set of concepts that act as foundations for discussion on what it means to be an European Union (EU) citizen outside of the EU. It presents a picture of contemporary emigration from the EU, with a special focus on Canada. The book provides analysis of the diasporic relationships to the EU of French, British, Polish and Portuguese in Canada. It also presents an examination of the qualitative interviews allows for the interpretation of national citizenship practices for emigrants in Canada, and evaluation of the impact of these nationally-driven diaspora policies. The book also explores the policies and politics that strengthen, or weaken, links between the legal and identitarian dimensions of European citizenship by examining a specific empirical case study—that of European immigrants in Canada.
