Statelessness

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This work presents a groundbreaking genealogy of statelessness, challenging the notion that citizenship and its negation are solely European concepts. It posits that Europe first encountered mass statelessness outside its borders, in the New World, centuries before the twentieth century. Through an analysis of political philosophers such as Hobbes, Rousseau, and Kant, the author contends that statelessness emerged as a significant issue in political thought early on, influencing perspectives on the state and humanity. Europeans perceived the so-called “savages” of the Americas as living without political order, equating their statelessness with a lesser form of humanity. This view depicted the stateless as existing in a precarious, almost inhuman condition, lacking the achievements of those considered fully human. Yet, this existence also suggested that state-based life might not be the only or the ideal way to live. This unsettling idea spurred the development of Enlightenment political philosophy, which remains influential in contemporary discussions about statelessness, particularly regarding migrants and Indigenous peoples. The work ultimately reexamines the foundations of political thought and challenges prevailing narratives about citizenship and statelessness.