Spurred by wars and a drive to urbanize, Africans are crossing borders and overwhelming cities in unprecedented numbers. At the center of this development are young refugee men who migrate to urban areas. This volume, the first full-length study of urban refugees in hiding, tells the story of Burundi refugee youth who escaped from remote camps in central Tanzania to work in one of Africa's fastest-growing cities, Dar es Salaam. This steamy, rundown capital would seem uninviting to many, particularly for second generation ...
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Spurred by wars and a drive to urbanize, Africans are crossing borders and overwhelming cities in unprecedented numbers. At the center of this development are young refugee men who migrate to urban areas. This volume, the first full-length study of urban refugees in hiding, tells the story of Burundi refugee youth who escaped from remote camps in central Tanzania to work in one of Africa's fastest-growing cities, Dar es Salaam. This steamy, rundown capital would seem uninviting to many, particularly for second generation survivors of genocide whose lives are ridden with fear. But these young men nonetheless join migrants in "Bongoland" (meaning "Brainland") where, as the nickname suggests, only the shrewdest and most cunning can survive. Mixing lyrics from church hymns and street vernacular, descriptions of city living in cartoons and popular novels and original photographs, this book creates an ethnographic portrait of urban refugee life, where survival strategies spring from street smarts and pastors' warnings of urban sin, and mastery of popular youth culture is highly valued. Pentecostalism and a secret rift within the seemingly impenetrable Hutu ethnic group are part of the rich texture of this contemporary African story. Written in accessible prose, this book offers an intimate picture of how Africa is changing and how refugee youth are helping to drive that change.
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Seller's Description:
Very Good. No Jacket. Size: 8vo-over 7? "-9? " tall; Refugee and Forced Migration Studies, Volume 8. Trade Paperback in Very Good Condition. Gently used clean and solid book. A few pages with pink highlighted text, otherwise pages quite clean, no other markings. Studies in forced migration involve a multidisciplinary approach involving international law, anthropology, medicine, geography, social psychology, and economics. Wars and a drive to urbanize are driving Africans to cross borders and overwhlem cities. This volume, the first full-length study of urban refugees in hiding, tells the story of Burundi refugee youth, second generation survivors of ethnic genocide, who live in fear of one of Africa's fastest growing cities, Dar el Salaam. This book creates an ethnographic portrait of urban refugee life. 219 pages with Bibliography and Index. 5.75 x 8.75 inches. 2001, Berghahn Books, New York and Oxford.
