This editorial introduces and contextualizes five scholarly papers on ‘Violence, Memory, and the ... more This editorial introduces and contextualizes five scholarly papers on ‘Violence, Memory, and the Dynamics of Transnational Youth Formations.’ The topic of this special issue is conceptually organized around theories of postcolonial and diasporic citizenship and probes the extent to which these theories have shaped the discursive field of ‘youth formations’. We outline how an emerging scholarly field on youth cultures, youth activism and youth political organizations has responded to the new challenges of globalization and transnational mobilization. As experiences and memories of violence give shape to these mobilizations as well as the social imaginations characterizing youth movements, this special issue takes an interest in drawing connections between different youth formations. In establishing such a comparative lens, we contribute to ongoing discussions in Sikh Studies on youth issues in relation to violence, discrimination and transnational mobilization.
Within transnational networks of diasporic youth identities and formations, how are narratives of... more Within transnational networks of diasporic youth identities and formations, how are narratives of migration, memory, and violence rendered intelligible by youth? How are diasporic experiences articulated by Sikh youth in Canada, and what creative means do youth utilize to do so? In this paper we examine personal narratives and the artistic practices of diasporic Sikh youth living in the Greater Toronto Area in order to examine the nexus between youth formations and diasporic citizenship (Cho, Lily. 2007. Diasporic Citizenship: Contradistinctions and Possibilities for Canadian Literature. In Trans.Can.Lit: Resituating the Study of Canadian Literature, edited by Smaro Kamboureli and Roy Miki, 93–109. Waterloo, ON: Wilfrid Laurier University Press). By doing so, we aim to elaborate upon how Sikh youth situate themselves within larger frameworks of citizenship and migration. The narratives and practices of Sikh youth that we examine in this paper do not fit neatly into these larger frameworks, which often position the Sikh body as a radical, potentially dangerous, racialized, gendered and subversive sign in a post-9/11 world and in the context of Canadian liberal multiculturalism. By examining memorial events, youth-created media content, artistic performances and by conducting interviews with second and third generation Sikhs, we contend that diasporic Sikh youth in urban Canada are actively involved in debates over identity under the rubric of Canadian citizenship and multiculturalism. These dissenting voices hinge upon critical analyses and experiences of present and past violence which shape their everyday worlds.
In this paper we report on findings from a qualitative study of marijuana use by adolescents in t... more In this paper we report on findings from a qualitative study of marijuana use by adolescents in two communities in British Columbia, Canada. During 2005 and 2006, 45 interviews were carried out at schools with students aged 13–18, with an aim of understanding how adolescents perceive their experiences with marijuana to be shaped by gender. While it has been established that patterns of use differ for girls and boys, there is relatively little qualitative research addressing marijuana smoking as gendered social practice. Drawing from contemporary social theories of gender our analysis explores the normative functions of gender discourse within adolescents' narratives, situating their descriptions of marijuana use within the context of the research interview and within the social contexts of drug use. The results highlight the challenges we encountered in asking about gender during one-to-one interviews, juxtaposed with examples from the narratives that illustrate how boys and girls use marijuana as a way of “doing” gender. To conclude, we suggest how our findings can inform the design of gender-specific health messaging on adolescent marijuana use.
This editorial introduces and contextualizes five scholarly papers on ‘Violence, Memory, and the ... more This editorial introduces and contextualizes five scholarly papers on ‘Violence, Memory, and the Dynamics of Transnational Youth Formations.’ The topic of this special issue is conceptually organized around theories of postcolonial and diasporic citizenship and probes the extent to which these theories have shaped the discursive field of ‘youth formations’. We outline how an emerging scholarly field on youth cultures, youth activism and youth political organizations has responded to the new challenges of globalization and transnational mobilization. As experiences and memories of violence give shape to these mobilizations as well as the social imaginations characterizing youth movements, this special issue takes an interest in drawing connections between different youth formations. In establishing such a comparative lens, we contribute to ongoing discussions in Sikh Studies on youth issues in relation to violence, discrimination and transnational mobilization.
Within transnational networks of diasporic youth identities and formations, how are narratives of... more Within transnational networks of diasporic youth identities and formations, how are narratives of migration, memory, and violence rendered intelligible by youth? How are diasporic experiences articulated by Sikh youth in Canada, and what creative means do youth utilize to do so? In this paper we examine personal narratives and the artistic practices of diasporic Sikh youth living in the Greater Toronto Area in order to examine the nexus between youth formations and diasporic citizenship (Cho, Lily. 2007. Diasporic Citizenship: Contradistinctions and Possibilities for Canadian Literature. In Trans.Can.Lit: Resituating the Study of Canadian Literature, edited by Smaro Kamboureli and Roy Miki, 93–109. Waterloo, ON: Wilfrid Laurier University Press). By doing so, we aim to elaborate upon how Sikh youth situate themselves within larger frameworks of citizenship and migration. The narratives and practices of Sikh youth that we examine in this paper do not fit neatly into these larger frameworks, which often position the Sikh body as a radical, potentially dangerous, racialized, gendered and subversive sign in a post-9/11 world and in the context of Canadian liberal multiculturalism. By examining memorial events, youth-created media content, artistic performances and by conducting interviews with second and third generation Sikhs, we contend that diasporic Sikh youth in urban Canada are actively involved in debates over identity under the rubric of Canadian citizenship and multiculturalism. These dissenting voices hinge upon critical analyses and experiences of present and past violence which shape their everyday worlds.
In this paper we report on findings from a qualitative study of marijuana use by adolescents in t... more In this paper we report on findings from a qualitative study of marijuana use by adolescents in two communities in British Columbia, Canada. During 2005 and 2006, 45 interviews were carried out at schools with students aged 13–18, with an aim of understanding how adolescents perceive their experiences with marijuana to be shaped by gender. While it has been established that patterns of use differ for girls and boys, there is relatively little qualitative research addressing marijuana smoking as gendered social practice. Drawing from contemporary social theories of gender our analysis explores the normative functions of gender discourse within adolescents' narratives, situating their descriptions of marijuana use within the context of the research interview and within the social contexts of drug use. The results highlight the challenges we encountered in asking about gender during one-to-one interviews, juxtaposed with examples from the narratives that illustrate how boys and girls use marijuana as a way of “doing” gender. To conclude, we suggest how our findings can inform the design of gender-specific health messaging on adolescent marijuana use.
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Papers by Kamal Arora