Social Inclusion and Immigrant Status among African-descent Youth in France

• In Event: 2384 - Section on International Migration Refereed Roundtable Session
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: Table 02. Comparative Immigrant Integration

Abstract

This research uses qualitative data gathered from in-depth interviews with first- and second-generation immigrant youth, ages 14 to 23 years old, and their mothers to understand the intersection of race and immigrant status among African-descent youth in France. One in seven French children has immigrant parents. I asked youth: Where do you fit in French society? I use respondents’ voices to identify cultural and structural factors that define their experiences in three areas: 1) identity formation, 2) the intersectional nature of immigrant and racial-ethnic statuses, and 3) the negotiation of French Republicanism with an outsider status. This research explains the socioeconomic and cultural alienation felt by visible minorities in France today.

Author

• Loretta Bass, University of Oklahoma