‘My multiple cultural backgrounds are pulling me in all directions with my identity’: Asian and Latino Canadian youth experiences of cultural identity

ABSTRACT

Identity, diversity, and inclusion are constantly being reshaped in the face of global migration and resettlement. New research is needed that examines youth identities. In this article, we analyse Asian and Latino youth’s understandings and experiences of how their cultural identity has been influenced by exclusion, inequitable access and racism on the part of their host society. We report on a qualitative study; focus groups (2) and individual interviews were conducted with 15 youth participants. Analysis process included code-driven guided by grounded theory. Youth narratives resisted oversimplified representations by inserting their gendered, minority, and youth identity within mainstream multicultural narratives to make visible immigrant youth experiences. Interwoven in youth’s narratives were experiences of racial discrimination, gender inequality, and indeterminate belonging. Cultural identity is a complex and changing concept. We analyse how youth living in multicultural view their need to negotiate their identities to adapt to their challenging multicultural context where they live.

KEYWORDS:

• Migration
• youth
• cultural identity
• Asian
• Latino
• Canada

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by SSHRC Research Opportunity Grant, York University, Toronto ON, Canada.