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“Unconventional Canadians”: Second-Generation “Habesha” Youth and Belonging in Toronto, Canada

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Abstract

This paper explores how second-generation Ethiopian and Eritrean youth in Toronto, Canada, are perceiving and forging their identity in a society increasingly influenced by forces of globalization and by how cultural diversity in the host society is defined, implemented, and maintained. From the analysis of 20 in-depth interviews, two major categories of interrelated concepts emerged: (1) developing cultural capital and “ethnic” identities—with factor “ethnic” heritage maintenance and cultural values—and (2) becoming Habesha, a supra-national/ethnic term—with factors (a) recognition in private vs the public space and (b) experiences of racial exclusion. Findings suggest that the conflation of ethnicity, race, and culture as labels created for administrative purposes (i.e., multiculturalism policy) indicates a minority status in relation to the dominant white, thus taking on a racial and inferior meaning despite being applied to Canadian-born individuals. This has significant implication for second-generation youth in how they understand, experience, and form responses to the proscribing nature of policy that methodizes the borders of a nation at geographic and socio-political levels. The significant implication for social work practitioners is the importance of organizing and grounding practice in a solid understanding of how ideological practices institutionalized in policies like multiculturalism organize personal experiences.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Social Work, Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies, York University, 880 South Ross Building, 4700 Keele Street, Toronto, ON, M3J 1P3, USA

    Mary Goitom

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  1. Mary Goitom
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Correspondence to Mary Goitom.

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All procedures performed in this study were in accordance with the ethical standards of the University of Calgary’s Conjoint Faculties Research Ethics Board (CFREB) where ethics approval was granted. Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical Approval

This study involved human participants. All procedures performed in this study were in accordance with the ethical standards of the University of Calgary’s Conjoint Faculties Research Ethics Board (CFREB).

Informed Consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Goitom, M. “Unconventional Canadians”: Second-Generation “Habesha” Youth and Belonging in Toronto, Canada. Glob Soc Welf 4, 179–190 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40609-017-0098-0

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