The representations of racism in immigrant students’ essays in Greece

As one of the primary means for identity construction (see DE FINA, 2015), narrative has recently been examined in relation to immigrant and refugee movements. Having at our disposal elicited, written autobiographical narratives of immigrant students living in Greece, we investigate the identities they construct therein. Our sample consists of 118 essays collected from 8 different lyceums situated in different parts of the Peloponnese, Greece. The students who wrote the essays were bilingual immigrants of various origins (mostly from Albania). The broader theoretical framework of our study is that of Critical Discourse Analysis. One of the most important research issues within Critical Discourse Analysis concerns the investigation of the relationship between the macro-level of dominant discourses and the micro-level of the individual (in the present case, narrative) positionings towards dominant discourses (see VAN DIJK, 2008). For the analysis of the narrative positionings of the immigrant students we employ the model of three dilemmas proposed by Bamberg (2011) in combination with the concept of face threat (BROWN and LEVINSON, 1987). The analysis shows that the decision of some immigrant students to reveal their victimization, due to racist behaviors by majority people, constitutes a threat against the collective face of majority people. We support the claim that these immigrant students position themselves in a complex manner towards the national, xenophobic and homogenizing discourse by projecting themselves as victims and victimizers simultaneously, and thus constructing hybrid resistance identities.

The aim of this paper is to show that the ambivalent identities projected by immigrant students could serve the goals of a culturally sustaining pedagogy which seeks to perpetuate cultural pluralism at school.In our view, language teaching should not limit itself to correcting their lexicogrammatical "errors", but could also concentrate on the content of immigrant student essays, so as to bring their identities to the surface.To this end, we investigate the ways young immigrants living in Greece position themselves towards the dominant assimilationist discourse in Greek society.We discuss immigrant students' ambivalent identities showing their wish to legitimize themselves as members of the host community and simultaneously to resist its monoculturalist pressures.We finally argue for the exploitation of immigrant students' texts involving their experiences and identities: such texts could enhance all students' critical language awareness and could foster multiculturalism and multilingualism at school.

Drawing on Critical Discourse Analysis and, more specifically, on the relationship between the macro-level of dominant discourses and the micro-level of individual positionings, we examine the way linguistic identities are constructed by immigrant students of Albanian origin in Greece. We elaborate on two ‘competitive’ discourses: the national, homogenizing one and the post-national, deconstructing one, and the way they influence the construction of immigrant students’ linguistic identities. Our data come from lyceum immigrant students’ essays which are analyzed in order to trace their positionings towards the two ‘competitive’ discourses, and in particular, towards the linguistic dimension of these discourses. For a systematic investigation of immigrant students’ linguistic identities we employ the membership categorization device

This article presents a study of how teenage immigrant students, newly arrived in Norway, constructed themselves discursively through a number of identity texts. Drawing on theories from New Literacy Studies, Critical Discourse Analysis, and Social Semiotics, we analyzed a corpus of 97 multimodal identity texts. The study aimed to explore how the students contributed to their personal discursive construction in a society that was new to them. Our study showed that, while struggling with acquiring the dominant language, the immigrant students demonstrated linguistic and semiotic skills and talents. By analyzing the students’ use of linguistic and visual resources, we identified three main categories of identity construction in the students’ texts – spatial identity, relational identity, and functional identity. The analysis suggested that, in their identity work, the immigrant students simultaneously internalized and challenged dominant discourses of the globalized society.

The research aimed to analyze how Adidas uses Twitter to convey messages about racism and solidarity in its tweets. Methodologically, the research applied a descriptive qualitative study on the representation of racism in Adidas’s tweets involving (1) what are the themes of discourses that represent racism and solidarity in Adidas’s tweets? (2) What is the representation of racism and solidarity in Adidas’s tweets? And (3) What are the meanings of Adidas’s tweets? Twelve tweets from Adidas were collected, coded, analyzed, and described using Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA). It was an effective method for deconstructing the identity of Twitter users to make arguments on the themes exposed during coding. The research findings reveal that the declarative statement and humanitarian as the most themes in Adidas’s tweets are the ones that give straightforward and positive messages to Twitter users and followers. The findings also indicate firm and meaningful tweets for Adidas to speak out against racism and spread solidarity through Twitter. However, those tweets also give the messages about their commitment to always supporting the black community, their black employees, the Asian community, and the Black Lives Matter event to embody valuable and eternal change through solidarity, unity, and commitment against racism.

The present study concentrates on immigrants’ positionings towards the discourse of the majority in Greece. While facing an influx of immigrants during the 1990s, the Greek majority adopted a particularly racist discourse. My purpose here is to explore how immigrant students attending Greek schools attempt to articulate their voice in relation to the assimilationist, racist discourse surrounding them. Focusing on the functions of the disclaimer I am adjusting myself, but … used by immigrant students in a corpus of school essays, we will argue that it constitutes a particularly effective means of allowing them to raise a complex and polyphonic voice pursuing adjustment to the host country, without, however, losing face and pride. More particularly, the data analysis shows that in their school essays, and under the influence of their immigrant/ethnic communities and their negative experiences in the host country, immigrant students recontextualise the majority disclaimer I’m not a racist, but … used by the majority population. The disclaimer seems to have undergone an entextualisation process that has led to the new disclaimer I am adjusting myself, but …, which is intertextually linked with the former, but reversing its target. While the majority disclaimer is an expression of latent racism, the one discussed here involves mitigated threatening acts against majority assumptions as well as the enhancement of immigrant students’ face.

The recent immigrants’ and refugees’ movements towards western nation-states undermine symbolic national boundaries. Such movements are perceived as a threat to linguistic and cultural homogeneity, and reinforce the reproduction of national discourse. The present study focuses on how majority and immigrant students attending a Greek elementary school position themselves towards the Greek national discourse concerning refugees. Using analytical tools from Critical Discourse Analysis, we demonstrate that both majority and immigrant students reinforce Greek national discourse which takes the form of either racist or humanitarian discourse.

In this qualitative collective case study with 6 high school civics teachers, I found that using an asset-based approach to teaching civics for, with, and by immigrant students enriched teaching and learning for immigrant and native-born students, although participants missed some opportunities for deeper exploration. I used a combined theoretical framework of additive acculturation, civic education, and codetermination, and nested this study in immigrant civic education and asset-based literature. Data revealed 3 “sites” of enriched civics teaching and learning when teachers employed an asset-based approach: adding comparative and international perspectives, initiating critical civic discourse, and challenging native-born students’ assumptions.

"Memories of My Body" screening ban in 2019 by Depok local government is deemed problematic since it has already passed Film Censor Board (LSF). This paper aimed to better understand the decision made by the Depok local government in banning the movie through critical discourse analysis. This paper is a discourse analysis understand the discourse surrounding the movie ban in Depok.. This paper's primary data is literature studies from numerous electronic news sources. Norman Fairclough’s critical discourse analysis is used as a theory and methodology. The result from this research shows that there are two main discourses: protecting younger generation and incompatibility toward Islamic values. After further analysis, it is found that these discourses also exist in another events. This fact shows that the movie ban is an effect from a dominant discourse against LGBTQ community.

Critical Policy Discourse Analysis bridges the literature on critical discourse analysis (CDA) and critical policy analysis to provide a practical guide on how to combine these major approaches to critical social science. The volume gives a clear introduction to concepts and analytical procedures for critical policy discourse analysis. Utilising ten international case studies, the authors explain and critically reflect upon the methods and theories that they have used to successfully integrate CDA with critical policy studies across a diverse range of policy issues. Case studies are used to explore issues in economics, health, education, crisis management, the environment, language and energy policy. Analysing these through discursive methodological approaches in the traditions of CDA, social semiotics and discourse theory, this book connects this discursive methodology systematically to the field of critical policy studies. This is an essential read for researchers wishing to practically combine methods of CDA with critical policy studies. It provides key insights for politics scholars looking to gain a more in-depth understanding of the impact and analysis of discourse.

This paper contributes to the development of a critical realist approach to discourse analysis by combining aspects of ‘critical discourse analysis’ (CDA) and ‘the morphogenetic/morphostatic approach’ (M/M). Unlike poststructuralist discourse theory, CDA insists on the maintenance of two distinctions: (i) between discourse and other aspects of social reality; (ii) between structure and agency. However, CDA lacks clarity on these distinctions. M/M, on the other hand, offers a coherent modelling of these distinctions that can underpin the application of CDA. The paper begins by introducing CDA, M/M and the existing literature on critical realist discourse analysis. It then establishes the M/M model of social change within CDA’s existing social theory by focusing on ‘analytical dualism’ and ‘social practice’. Finally, the paper locates the concept of discourse within M/M’s model of social change by theorizing discourse as one of four objective structures of meaning.

This research aims to investigate the relationship between critical reading abilities and critical discourse analysis (CDA) competencies among future 21st century educators, emphasizing the critical necessity for these educators to possess such skills in today's demanding educational landscape. A sample of 70 prospective teachers was analyzed to determine the interconnection between their abilities in critical reading abilities and CDA, with an exploration into how one skill may influence the other. Additionally, the study examines the role of cognitive style—specifically, field-independent and field-dependent thinking—as a moderating factor in this relationship. Findings indicate a significant positive impact of CDA capabilities on critical reading abilities, suggesting that proficiency in analyzing discourse critically enhances one's ability to read with a critical eye. Furthermore, the study reveals no significant difference in CDA and critical reading abilities between participants categorized as field-independent thinkers versus those identified as field-dependent thinkers. These outcomes highlight the need for further research to explore additional factors that may affect the development of critical reading and discourse analysis skills. The study concludes with a call for educational strategies that integrate both critical reading and CDA competencies, considering the varied cognitive styles of learners.

Using critical discourse analysis and Undocumented Critical Theory, I analyzed 16 statements from New Jersey higher education leaders who addressed federal anti-immigrant policies (2017–2019). Findings show leaders responded in four ways: (1) acompañamiento through explanatory support, political action, and affiliations; (2) reducing fear by providing relevant information; (3) recognizing immigrant students’ diverse experiences with legal liminality; and (4) sharing conflicting messages about immigration processes and undocumented parents. None included state-specific information relevant to undocumented or immigrant students. Recommendations are provided for university leaders addressing immigration issues, especially during politically uncertain times.

Language and cinema make use of distinctive tools to interpret and reflect external reality. While signs in language consist of signifiers and signified(s), in cinema they are fiction, sound, image, and most importantly, discourses within the screenplay. A discourse is a unit of communication value that, for the most part, includes the social and production conditions of language beyond utterances. Examinations of discourse can be done from a linguistic perspective that engages grammar, sentence structures, and voice, or from a non-linguistic perspective. Critical discourse analysis approaches its object of study from a broad perspective. It aims to critically examine texts and speeches on subjects such as racism, sexism, colonialism, and other forms of social inequality. Critical feminist discourse analysis focuses on the complex structures of hidden power relations and the ideologies that support gender regulations in discourse, though it is separate from critical discourse analysis in various ways. In this study, the film Marriage Story, written and directed by Noah Baumbach, undergoes critical feminist discourse analysis. By constructing the character Nicole, the female protagonist who attempts to exist in a masculine public sphere and, in the process, becomes a liberated individual who makes a series of decisions in line with her desires and needs and self-expression, Baumbach criticizes the dominant ideology of his own cinematic making.

In this article, we explore and problematize the coming out discourses of Ricky Martin and Tiziano Ferro’s through a creative (critical) discourse analysis. We first contextualize the historicity of Ricky Martin and Tiziano Ferro’s artistic careers and argue that their coming out process is a privileged laboratory to understand the ways strategies and tactics of discourses are deployed. Second, through a Critical Discourse Analysis and collaborative writing inquiry approach, we present a creative fictional dialogue to showcase our analysis. This can be called creative (critical) discourse analysis. Third, we further reflect and theorize about these coming out discourses using Queer Theory, Governability, and the concept of Glory and the Media as privileged spaces for power. This will lead us to question the centered subject or a solid identity, the manifestations of coming out discourses, and the role of Glory and the Media in the socialization process.