This article discusses collective identification among Sudanese refugee-background residents in Australia. The discursive data is drawn from semi-structured interviews through which identity self-categorizations and self-labelling were explored. In addition, mini-narratives about their experiences of intergroup communication with mainstream Australians were analysed in depth. In these narratives, the main topic was the story of being confronted with the question 'Where are you from?'. This article applies positioning theory to the narrative accounts and discusses how participants position themselves in the story world as well as in the interactional world. The findings demonstrate that Sudanese Australians have a strong ethnic self-concept and a strong desire to obtain an Australian identity. However, their stories reveal that they are positioned as outsiders by mainstream Australians.
This paper argues that whilst equitable educational pathways are integrated into educational policy discourses in Australia, there are significant gendered barriers to educational participation among members of the Sudanese refugee groups. The specific conditions of forced migration reinforce disadvantage and further limit opportunities. Cultural factors play a key role in this, as the data from this study demonstrate. Participants in this study are Sudanese refugees who arrived in Australia as part of the humanitarian program. The paper draws upon interviews and focus group data that were collected for a larger study on the broader issue of resettlement of Sudanese refugees in Australia. This paper argues that women from refugee backgrounds are particularly at risk and face cultural and linguistic barriers in accessing educational opportunities.
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