“Where Are the Promises of America?” Educating Iraqi Refugee Youth in Our Public Schools

• In Event: Security, Democracy, and Learning: Exploring the Dialectics of In/Security in Educational Space

Abstract

In this project I critically examine Iraqi refugee youth’s civic discourses and practices as they take up the challenges of inclusion and citizenship in their new host country. Previous research suggests that living in a post 9/11 America has been an increasing challenge for Arab, Arab American, and Muslim students as they are often seen as the “other”, a threat to the nation, and inherently linked to terrorism and violence (Abu El-Haj, 2006, 2007; 2009; Zaal, Salah & Fine, 2009). Public schools have profound effects on the ability of students to negotiate their sense of nation, belonging and citizenship (Suarez-Orosco, 2001; Banks 2004; 2008). It is in light of the growing anti-Arab and anti-Muslim sentiment in the West, and especially in the U.S., that I situate this research.

Undergirding this project is a conceptual framework grounded in critical race theory, built on the assumption that race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status play a significant role in the lives of Arabs and Muslims, both in the U.S and in their home countries. This assumption is informed by my own experiences as an Arab American woman navigating a post 9/11 U.S., as well as reports by families and students. Several male students have been being labeled as “violent” and “unstable” within their school communities, and have experienced suspensions, expulsions, and even legal consequences.

Methods included interviewing refugee students and families, as well as observing them within their school and home settings. Participants included twelve high-school aged youth, eight males and four females, ranging from 15 and 22 years of age, as well as three mothers. Over the course of ten months, participants were interviewed individually, in focus groups, and observed within their school and home settings. Transcripts of interviews and field notes were analyzed qualitatively through a multi-faceted analytical process including traditional, paradigmatic methods, as well as narrative and heuristic methods which allowed for the exploration of the collective themes and individual stories that emerge from the data.

The central questions of the study are: How does the securitization of Arab and Muslim refugee students affect these youth and their families? What experiences and expressions of identity become salient for refugee youth in the U.S. setting, and consequently how do these shape their school experiences? While this research is still currently underway (projected completion September 2011), initial findings indicate that multiple factors influence refugee youth’s civic identities and engagement, including religious affiliation; gender, and experiences of being policed within their school community.

Author

• Sally Wesley Bonet, Rutgers University