Homecoming or tourism? Diaspora tourism experience of second-generation immigrants

Abstract

Diaspora tourism is often considered a form of ‘homecoming,’ but for the children of immigrants who are born in the new country, the question remains as to whether they perceive their parents’ homeland as ‘home’ or destination. Moreover, advancements in transportation and communication technologies allow contemporary immigrants to maintain transnational ties to their homeland, which in turn may affect the nature of diaspora tourism. The purpose of this study is to understand the lived experience of second-generation immigrants when they travel to their ancestral homeland, and explore the extent to which second-generation transnationalism shapes their diaspora tourism experiences. Using a phenomenological approach, 26 second-generation Chinese-Americans who had the experience of traveling in China were interviewed. Four themes were identified from semi-structured interviews: language and appearance, search for authenticity, family history, and sense of ‘home.’ Proficiency in their parental language was found to be a main cause of negative experiences, yet occasionally a source of pride and attachment. Their search for authentic experiences was not unlike other tourists, while familial obligations sometimes limited their experience. Traveling back to the homeland not only allowed them to understand their parents and family history, but also reflect upon their life through experiencing contemporary China. Finally, as the transnational attachment of second-generation immigrants was not rooted in a specific locale, they could feel connected to the homeland without actually visiting their family's place of origin. Findings contribute to transnationalism and diaspora tourism literature by comparing first- and second-generation immigrants and identifying the difference between contemporary transmigrants and classic diaspora groups with regard to their diaspora tourism experience. 离散旅游经常被认为是一种“回家”的形式，但是对于移民他乡出生的子女，他们是把父母的“故土”看作他们的“家”还是旅游目的地尚未知晓。而且，交通与通讯技术的发展允许当今的移民维持与他们故土的联系，这进一步影响了离散旅游性质。本研究旨在理解二代移民赴先祖故土旅行的现场体验，探索二代移民跨国主义影响其离散旅游体验的程度。使用现象学的方法，对 26 个曾赴中国旅行的二代美籍华人进行了访谈，识别出四个主题༚语言与表象，寻求原真性，家族史和故乡感。发现，对语言的熟悉程度是负面体验的主要原因，尽管也偶尔是产生骄傲与依恋的来源。二代移民寻求真实体验与其他旅游者有所不同，尽管家庭责任有时候会限制他们的旅游体验。回到故土不仅使他们了解了他们的父母和家族史，也使得他们通过体验当代中国反思了他们的生活。最后，由于二代移民的跨国依恋并未扎根于某一具体的场所，他们可能实际上并未参访家族的来源地而仍能感觉与故土发生地方依恋。本研究通过比较一代与二代移民的旅游体验而有助于理解跨国主义与离散旅游文献，识别出当代跨国移民与典型的离散群体在离散旅游体验方面的差异。