 Abstract | The study uses racialisation as a lens to understand the racist experiences of ordinary Asian
Australians. It examines the racialisation processes underlying these experiences and
explores the strategies employed to respond to and mitigate the impact of being racialised. It
addresses the need to develop the theoretical and methodological underpinnings of
racialisation and anti-racism in light of the dearth of research work on these especially in
Australia.
Different elements from various theories were drawn to frame the empirical investigation
since no single theory was adequate as anchor for this qualitative study. In-depth interviews
and focus groups with 64 Asian Australians generated rich narratives that provided
interesting insights on the personal, political, and spiritual dimensions of human experience
that connect the lives of racialised subjects.
Deconstructing stories of racialised subjects laid bare the essence of racist experiences by
revealing insights into when and how race becomes a salient signifier of difference.
Racialisation provides a productive way of understanding racist experiences since it allows
for the unpacking of the multi-layered linked processes of racial categorisation, racial
differentiation and problematisation, marginalisation and exclusion, inferiorisation and
devaluation. These processes are ordinarily part of the experiences of minority people. They
constitute what can be called ‘everyday racialisation’.
The study uses stress-coping theory to examine the long-term and cumulative impact of
being part of a racialised group. It shows how exposure to racism stressors has multifarious
effects on the health and well-being of racialised subjects. The everyday racialisation of
minority groups affects their socio-psychological functioning and limits the life chances and
economic opportunities available to them.
In addition, the study demonstrates how Asian Australians cope with the stress of their
everyday racialisation by drawing from their personal repertoire of discursive, cognitive and
behavioural strategies. These, in combination with outside support mechanisms, make up
what can be termed ‘everyday anti-racism’ strategies. Racialisation provides valuable
insights into when, how and why racialised subjects deploy these different strategies to
negotiate, contest and bridge the constraints and boundaries imposed on them.
The study offers an integrated model for understanding racialisation experience and lays the
foundation for developing further the concepts of ‘everyday racialisation’ and ‘everyday antiracism’. |
