Perceptions of Bosnians in St. Louis

Perceptions and attitudes towards immigrants shape their adaptation and acculturation experiences. For immigrant youth, these perceptions also influence their developing sense of self and how they navigate different social contexts. Considering the growing diversity of immigrants and their places of settlement in the U.S., however, the empirical focus on native Whites’ perceptions of immigrant newcomers does not adequately reflect the range of potential in-group/out-group configurations. We know very little, for instance, about native minorities’ perceptions of White newcomers in different receiving contexts. The experience of Bosnian youth in St. Louis provides a unique case for examining perceptions of White newcomers in a nontraditional immigrant gateway, characterized by a sharp racial binary in its native population. Data for the present study includes i) qualitative interviews with 62 s-generation Bosnian youth and ii) a quantitative survey of non-Bosnian adult residents in St. Louis. Results show that overall, St. Louisians have positive views of Bosnians. This finding is complicated, however, by somewhat less favorable perceptions among Blacks than among Whites and the fact that most respondents indicated limited contact with Bosnians. In their interviews, Bosnian youth revealed that they use subtle cues such as mannerisms and shared cultural knowledge that are largely invisible to natives, to differentiate between groups. While our findings indicate that Bosnian youth may simply pass as Whites in their daily interactions with non-Bosnians, the results raise important questions about the extent to which these perceptions influence actual social networks and socialization patterns.