Abstract
ABSTRACT Traditional theories conceptualized immigrants’ adjustment to new societies at the cultural and individual/psychological levels and did not consider the role of socio-historical and political contexts. Through ten in-depth interviews, we examined how colonial discourses about Africa and US racial politics shaped African international students’ relations with White Americans, African Americans, and Non-White/Non-Black/Non-Native Americans of Other Races and Ethnicities and, consequently, their adaptation to the US. Findings reveal that based on contextual interpretations of bodies, African students exercised their agency in differentially (dis)connecting with the various host society groups and strategically adopting identities (Africanness, Blackness, and otherness) in adjusting to the US. Hence, our study underscores the significance of an embodied approach when examining adaptation—neglecting this perspective obscures vital (dis)connections that unfold within the contextually nuanced realm of body politics.
Published Version
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