Your home, my refuge: being a refugee in Brazil

Abstract

The objective of this study was to reveal how refugees who live in Brazil perceive the macro-dynamics of the local society and how their response to them varies in accordance with their different psycho demographic profiles. We interviewed 24 refugees from different countries, genders, ages, and races. The interviews were taped, transcribed, and subjected to critical discourse analysis, resulting in three a priori categories: social, discursive, and textual practices. We found out that social practices did differ in terms of their countries of origin, gender, and race. The analysis of their discourses revealed three different places and roles: hero, victim, or faker. Finally, the textual analysis indicated the choice of words that subverted the hegemonic discourse of refugees, revealing resistance to the place refugees are relegated to in Brazilian society.