Unseen And In-Between: Afghan American Students Navigating Racial and Ethnic Identity in Higher Education

This dissertation examines the racial and ethnic identity formation of Afghan American college students, a population largely absent from higher education research. This study uses a three-manuscript format to explore how second-generation Afghan American students navigate racial classification, identity development, and belonging within U.S. higher education. The first manuscript investigates the contested racial classification of Afghan Americans, who have historically been rendered invisible due to their White racial classification. In 2020, they were reclassified as Asian by the U.S. Census. Afghan Americans occupy a space in between various racial, religious, and panethnic identities, and this study found that students rejected imposed identities in favor of self-defined racial and ethnic categories. The second manuscript examined how academic and sociocultural factors shaped these students' sense of belonging on college campuses. Familial expectations, the U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, and student organizations played essential roles in shaping their experiences in higher education. The third manuscript presents a scholarly digital story, integrating personal narratives, visual storytelling, and academic analysis to provide a multimodal perspective on Afghan American students’ resilience and identity development in college. This qualitative study draws from ethnographic research conducted at George Mason University between 2021 and 2024. It includes interviews with 16 undergraduate and graduate students, along with participant observation at student organization events, off-campus events, and virtual spaces. Additionally, interviews with scholars on immigration, race, higher education, and the Afghan American diaspora were conducted. Findings from this research revealed the inadequacy of current racial classifications to capture the lived experiences of Afghan Americans, the significance of ethnic and cultural identity in shaping their college experience, and the critical role of student organizations in fostering community and support. This dissertation provides an essential counterstory to the traditional deficit framing of Afghan Americans and Muslim college students, challenging mainstream narratives of lacking social and cultural capital within higher education.

Author

• Aziz, Omar

• Afghan
• Diversity
• Ethnicity
• Immigrant
• Muslim
• Race

Identifier

hdl:1920/14755

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:MARS:1920/14755