Metro Vancouver is a diverse city where half the residents identify as people of colour, but only one percent of the population is racialized as Black. In this context, African-Canadians are both hyper-visible as Black, and invisible as distinct communities. Informed by feminist and critical race theories, and based on interviews with women and men who grew up in Vancouver, "Where Are You From?" recounts the unique experience of growing up in a place where the second generation seldom sees other people who look like them, and yet are inundated with popular representations of Blackness from the United States.

This study explores how the second generation in Vancouver redefine their African identities to distinguish themselves from African-Americans, while continuing to experience considerable everyday racism that challenges belonging as Canadians. As a result, some members of the second generation reject, and others strongly assert, a Canadian identity.

About the Author
Gillian Creese is the associate dean of Arts, Faculty & Equity, and professor in the Department of Sociology and the Institute for Gender, Race, Sexuality and Social Justice at the University of British Columbia.

Reviews

"In Where are you From? Gillian Creese discovered that some second generation African-Canadians reject Canadian identity, while others strongly assert being Canadian. She also found that boys had it easier than girls growing up in Vancouver. Frequently, teenage boys experienced popularity as 'the cool Black guy,' while girls in contrast found much less popular Black female imagery, making it harder for them to fit in."

* BC Bookworld *

"This accessible and well written book gives us pause as to how we treat those in our midst who we might perceive as different from ourselves."

-- Jean Barman, University of British Columbia * The Ormsby Review *



Book Information
ISBN 9781487524562
Author Gillian Creese
Format Paperback
Page Count 216
Imprint University of Toronto Press
Publisher University of Toronto Press
Weight(grams) 330g
Dimensions(mm) 229mm * 152mm * 15mm