Community solidarity initiatives as spaces for connection, resistance and change

People seeking asylum in Ireland are accommodated in the Direct Provision (DP) system. Dehumanising policies and poor living conditions within DP exacerbate social exclusion of displaced people. Community responses to DP include community solidarity initiatives (CSIs) that aim to build solidarity among displaced people and resident/nationals through intergroup contact. Collaborative intergroup contact is associated with positive outcomes; however, intergroup power asymmetries produce different experiences of contact. Additionally, the relationship between intergroup contact and solidarity is complex and influenced by relative group status and contextual factors. I investigated experiences and outcomes of contact in CSIs for resident/nationals and displaced people through a pluralist, multi-method programme of three studies: 1) interviews with (n =17) resident/national and displaced participants of one CSI, 2) Photovoice and interviews (n=18) with resident/national and displaced stakeholders of four CSIs, and 3) a quasi-experimental investigation (n = 199) of the relationships among CSI participation, cross-group friendship, collective action intentions, and intergroup attitudes. This research employs the social identity approach, social representations theory, and theories of contact and social change within an ecological framework. Findings demonstrated the role of power asymmetries in shaping participants’ experiences and outcomes of contact. CSIs facilitated recognition of valued collective identities and shared identification, and cross-group friendship mobilised resident/nationals’ intentions to act in solidarity with displaced people. Together, these findings make important contributions to research on intergroup contact, solidarity, and migrant justice and have practical relevance to researchers, practitioners and policy makers who aim to build solidarity with people on the move and support social change towards equity.