Becoming Political: The Experience of Volunteers in Buddy Schemes with Refugees

Abstract

This paper explores the experiences of native volunteers in buddy scheme programs with refugees in Italy. The paper addresses the following questions: to what extent and how does native volunteers’ engagement assume political significance for them? If so, in what terms and in what phase of the buddy scheme? Drawing on qualitative research conducted between May and December 2024, we argue that buddies’ understandings of their experience is political, resulting in: deconstruction of stereotypes associated with refugees; increased awareness of power asymmetries; more critical understanding of migration policies; ri-signification of urban public spaces; fostering of more egalitarian social relations.