National Narratives and Belonging: Iranian Immigrants and their Adult Children in the United States

• In Event: 242 - Section on International Migration Roundtable Session (one-hour).
  In Refereed Roundtable: Table 16. Assimilation and US Immigration 2

Abstract

Immigrants in a new nation encounter an environment that differs from the one that they’ve left behind in their homeland. This new environment contains new laws and regulations, national ideologies, and policies regarding immigration and citizenship. It also contains socially constructed ideals of imagined communities, and narratives about the social and cultural norms and practices, which are central to this environment’s national identity. The combination of these factors creates a context that immigrants inhabit and form relationships with. This paper’s primary goal is to uncover how the American national narrative of immigration influences the ways in which Iranians experience being and belonging in the United States.
In the US, Iranians live in a national context that prides itself on being “a country of immigrants” and that utilizes the immigrant success story as a universal framework for all newcomers. When Iranians feel that they can fully participate in American society and are given the equal opportunities for upward mobility, regardless of their racial/ethnic and religious identities, they perceive belonging. This paper attempts to address one central research question: How does America’s national narrative of immigration influence Iranians’ sense of belonging? The data presented in this paper is a part of my larger dissertation research, which examines the lives of Iranians in the US and Germany. This paper draws from 32 qualitative interviews with Iranian immigrants and their adult children living in northern and southern California.

Author

• Sahar Sadeghi, Temple University