ABSTRACT
Diaspora organizations are strategically placed to leverage the social capital of diaspora communities to influence citizenship regimes in both countries of origin and destination. This chapter first describes the different ways DOs claim citizenship, including the right to retain citizenship in their country of origin, the right to apply for naturalization in the country of destination, and the rights of non-citizen immigrants. Second, I propose a framework for analyzing DO strategies for making these rights claims that includes transnational advocacy networks, the strategic lobbying of governments for protection, and the leadership from the “1.5” or second generation. Third, I apply this framework to the case of Bosnian DOs during the early 2000s that campaigned to secure their right to dual citizenship. Crucially, I find that when citizenship rights are threatened, DOs build strong transnational advocacy networks by connecting local and national organization, partnering with domestic institutions, and learning from other ethnic or migrant groups; DOs leverage these networks through elite lobbying, activism, and strategic litigation to defend their rights. This chapter analyzes how Bosnian DOs strategically lobbied powerful states to defend their rights to citizenship in their country of origin.
