Journeying Through Precarity: The Trajectories of Unaccompanied Minors in Italy

The present article applies a tripartite conceptualization of precarity–precariousness–precarization to examine the condition of unaccompanied minors (UAMs) in Italy during the COVID-19 pandemic, on the basis of 20 semi-structured interviews conducted with UAMs from 5 foster homes in Milan and 3 group interviews with their educators in 2022. By providing a detailed ethnographic account of UAMs’ trajectories, this study distinguishes between the macro-level forces of structural precarity (global inequalities, border regimes governing the entry of UAMs) and the micro-level, individual experience of precariousness (anxiety, necessitated short-termism) produced by processes of precarization, by which we refer to the normalization of insecurity, and the internalization of imperatives of adaptability. These appear evident both in the decision to migrate, with migration being described as a “normal” strategy, and in UAMs’ interaction with the border regime, whose moral economy (imposing a deservingness test to UAMs in order to include them) serves the States’ interests, rather than children’s best interest. This work shows that, on the one hand, the concept of precarization can significantly contribute to migration scholarship—by shedding light on the uncertain agency that individuals can exert amidst the ubiquitous precarity they face along their trajectories—and, on the other hand, the study of UAMs’ migration may add further layers of understanding of precarization dynamics.