Cousin marriage among migrants doubles as reproduction control and migration strategy

Evidence

Amidst the tribal figures and irrational Muslims, it is difficult to establish the truth value of the arguments in Human Visas. While the marriage patterns are indisputable – Muslim migrants do marry others from within their culture and approximately half of such marriages are contracted with people outside Europe – the meaning of these practices remains contentious and almost certainly various. It is of course not at all surprising that family reunification might be a compelling reason for migrant communities to contract marriages outside of Europe. Many parts of the non-West currently exist in economic and political peril, and rich countries have by and large closed their doors. Cousin marriage where one party lives outside Europe solves two problems at once: the ‘problem’ of controlling girls’ and women’s sexuality and the problem of migration. — Sherene Razack, Casting Out, 267

Categorization

• QUESTION: The functionalist reading — cousin marriage driven by closure of western borders — invites deeper empirical checking of Razack’s claimed counter-explanation.