Social Media Usage, Tahriib (Migration), and Settlement among Somali Refugees in France

Authors

  • Houssein Charmarkeh Université Sorbonne Nouvelle, Paris

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.25071/1920-7336.37505

Keywords:

France, Somali refugees, tahriib, migration, social media, information technology, communication, resettlement, living conditions

Abstract

Technologies are omnipresent in our society, from mobile telephone systems to satellite television and Internet broadcasting, which shape the way we live, work, and interact. They have also transformed the experience of international migration, making it possible for migrants to maintain strong ties between the host society and the home country. In this article, we examine the precarious situation lived by Somali refugees in France, and we explore their uses of social media during tahriib or their migratory path and settlement in three French cities. The first section discusses the method on which this field study is based, that of critical and multi-sited ethnography. After describing living conditions experienced by Somali refugees in France in the next section, the last section presents the findings of the field study. In doing so, the present research strives to fill a research gap by contributing to the advancement of knowledge on social media use by refugees.

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Author Biography

Houssein Charmarkeh, Université Sorbonne Nouvelle, Paris

Houssein Charmarkeh is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Communication at the Université Sorbonne Nouvelle, Paris 3. His current research examines the usage of social media by refugees in North America and Europe. He has applied critical and multi-sited ethnography to the study of migration patterns and usage of ICT. He is a lecturer in the Department of Communication at the University of Ottawa. His current research includes a multi-year, multidisciplinary project which was awarded a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) grant to explore the role of digital technologies and media in the integration and adaptation of  immigrants to Ottawa (Ottawa Multicultural Media Initiative, http://artsites.uottawa.ca/ommi/).

Published

2013-10-18

How to Cite

Charmarkeh, H. (2013). Social Media Usage, Tahriib (Migration), and Settlement among Somali Refugees in France. Refuge: Canada’s Journal on Refugees, 29(1), 43–52. https://doi.org/10.25071/1920-7336.37505

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