Identity, identification, and racialisation : immigrant youth in the Canadian context

As the number of immigrant youth in Toronto increases in a time of federal budget cuts in social services, policy makers and service providers must focus on how identity and identification are integral to youths' integration process as newcomers to Canada (Desai & Subramanian, 2000; Kilbride, Anisef, Baichman-Anisef, & Khattar, 2000). Racialized immigrant youth face unique barriers and struggles as intersecting effects of 'race', class, age, and gender meditate their experiences (Desai & Subramanian, 2000; Kilbride et aI., 2000; Rummens; 2003). Through focus groups and individual interviews with foreign-born, non-white youth, this study explores how youth are able to articulate, negotiate, and problematize their identity. Employing an antiracist theoretical framework and a critical social research approach, the study asks in particular: how do racialized immigrant youth self-identify and perceive their 'racial', ethnic, and/or cultural identity? The study's findings confirm that identity is constructed in a relational and contextual manner that is dependent on experiences of being othered and racialized.