2 - Manifesting Citizenship through Local and Distinct Actions

Summary

Citizenship-from-below constitutes one element of youth everyday citizenship. When asked the meaning of good citizenship, youth report emotional closeness, joy, and gratitude as key localized components, as well as moral character and concern over preserving one’s reputation. They particularly emphasize that citizenship manifests in local volunteering to help others and collective problem solving, and they often connect these acts to a broader commitment to building the nation. We juxtapose these youth perspectives with Afrobarometer data on reported attendance at community meetings and membership in a community or volunteer group to find that, although youth engage in formalized ways less frequently than their elders, they are locally engaged. They continuously contest their citizenship, framing it as distinct from that of their elders and highlighting their particular local contributions (e.g., security provision and environmental protection). Despite urban environments that stress individuality and uncertainty, urban youth citizenship is highly relational and embedded in obligations that undergird belonging.