Navigating Identity and Sense of Belonging of Youth with Refugee Backgrounds in Clarkston, Georgia: Multi-modal Storytelling

• In Event: Fostering inclusion for refugee children and youth through education and employment

Proposal

Approximately 26.6 million refugees in the world have been forced to flee from home due to the fear of persecution, war, and conflicts (UNHCR, 2021). The United States (US) is one of the major refugee-hosting countries in the global north. In 2020 alone, it admitted about 11, 840 refugees mainly from Democratic Republic of Congo, Myanmar and Ukraine (UNHCR, 2020; US Department of Homeland Security, 2022). Clarkston, Georgia, the “Ellis Island of the South,” is home to more than 60,000 ‘resettled refugees’ from around the world. Representing at least 40 nationalities and 60 languages, Clarkston is the most ethnically diverse square mile in the country. Despite living in communities with diverse cultures, youth with refugee backgrounds are taught in public schools with curriculum and in language that are irrelevant to their cultures. Their shared experiences or representations are rarely reflected in texts and classroom discussions (Paw et al., forthcoming). While current trends in US education attempt to integrate practices that are relevant to the culture of diverse populations, there are few, if any, opportunities to recognize the experiences of youth with refugee backgrounds. When school is a place where experiences and perspectives of these populations are seldom reflected or prioritized, students in displacement lack opportunities to reflect on their identity and belonging in their newly settled places, which is key to their academic motivation (Cha, 2020).
While the importance of adopting culturally-relevant curriculum and pedagogy is increasingly recognized, it is still not commonly practiced in schools. Dominant narratives, as portrayed through the media, are generally told of the youth instead of by them (de Block & Buckingham, 2007). Policymakers, practitioners, and educators often work with the ‘refugee label,’ which can bring about unintended consequences: a deficit approach and homogenization (Eastmond, 2007). These labeling practices and narratives largely shape perceptions about displaced populations, many of whom are seen as vulnerable, voiceless, and passive (Dryden-Peterson, Dahya, & Adelman, 2017). In an attempt to explore alternatives to dominant narratives, this study employs approaches that offer powerful ways of creating an inclusive, safe space for displaced populations to speak for themselves (de Block & Buckingham, 2007). Using mixed methods and participatory action research, we answer the following questions: How do youth with refugee backgrounds narrate their stories of belonging in a multi-cultural community in Clarkston, Georgia? To what extent do teachers of refugees understand youth’s sense of belonging in the curriculum and classroom settings?
We employ Antonsich’s (2010) analytical framework, wherein five factors that generate a sense of belonging are highlighted: autobiographical, relational, cultural, economic, and legal. Because youth with refugee backgrounds may develop feelings of estrangement and detachment in relation to their construction of belonging, it is imperative that we explore their “feeling of connectedness to other humans in distress” (Osler & Starkey, 2005, p. 8). Youth with refugee backgrounds can establish meaningful relationships in host communities when they feel socially accepted, respected, and valued (Correa-Velez et al., 2010). The construct of belonging is highly intertwined with identity, which has been perceived as fluid and shaped through interactions with others (Combs & Freedman, 2016). Youth with refugee backgrounds may experience belonging through continual navigation and (re)construction of identity across past, present, and future, informing them of what they wanted to and could belong to (Farzana, 2007).
This is part of a larger multi-phase project, which uses a combination of participatory action research (PAR) and mixed methods. Modeled after the McIntyre’s (2000) principles, PAR is the collective investigation of a problem, the reliance on indigenous knowledge to better understand that problem, and the desire to take individual and/or collective action to deal with the stated problem. Our approach is premised on the belief that the youth with refugee backgrounds being investigated are best positioned to identify issues pertaining to their communities (Gilhooly & Lee, 2017). The use of autobiography not only allows the opportunity for refugee youth to reconstruct memories but also extends an invitation to others to do so (Rosen, 1998). At the Conference, we will present the findings from the following activities (pilot stage): an intensive 2-day storytelling workshop and online autobiography sessions. Based on the youth narratives, reflective journals, and interviews, we will present how the youth navigate their identity and sense of belonging amidst displacement.
In formulating, designing, and implementing policy and practice on displaced populations, the perspectives of refugees are seldom reflected. When youth from refugee backgrounds are not given the space to narrate their own stories, dominant narratives shape the way they are viewed by others (de Block & Buckingham, 2007). Moreover, refugees are viewed as lacking individuality or being incapable of possessing individual stories (Marlowe, 2010). Overemphasis of traumatic experiences can lead to disempowering refugee youth and limiting their agency (Daniel, 2019; MacDonald, 2015). By highlighting the narratives of youth, this project aims to offer educators, practitioners, and policymakers opportunities to consider how they can actively create spaces for children and youth from refugee backgrounds to feel belonging and navigate identity in their new social milieu.

Authors

• Jihae Cha, The George Washington University

• Minkyung Choi, Bronx Community College CUNY