LIVING BETWEEN BORDERS: TRANSNATIONAL MARRIAGE AND US ...

LIVING BETWEEN BORDERS: TRANSNATIONAL MARRIAGE AND US RESETTLEMENT PATTERNS IN SUDANESE REFUGEE POPULATIONS

A Thesis Presented to The Faculty of the Department of Anthropology San Jos? State University

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree

Master of Arts

by Deirdre Patterson

August 2016

? 2016 Deirdre Patterson ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

The Designated Thesis Committee Approves the Thesis Titled LIVING BETWEEN BORDERS: TRANSNATIONAL MARRIAGE AND US

RESETTLEMENT PATTERNS IN SUDANESE REFUGEE POPULATIONS

by Deirdre Patterson

APPROVED FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF ANTHROPOLOGY SAN JOS? STATE UNIVERSITY August 2016

Dr. A.J. Faas Dr. Marco Meniketti Dr. Charlotte Sunseri

Department of Anthropology Department of Anthropology Department of Anthropology

ABSTRACT LIVING BETWEEN BORDERS: TRANSNATIONAL MARRIAGE AND US RESETTLEMENT PATTERNS IN SUDANESE REFUGEE POPULATIONS

by Deirdre Patterson

Many South Sudanese refugees who have resettled in the USA have actively sought to maintain their unique cultural identity while simultaneously working to integrate into American society through the pursuit of formal higher education and successful careers. One of the most interesting developments within this population is the establishment and maintenance of transnational families. The process for marriage is economically tiresome and, due to strict immigration policies, often compels family members to live transnational lives. Systems of transnational marriage--often arranged by families--and married life allow Sudanese refugees living in the USA to continue important cultural practices, speak their native languages within their homes and communities, and to create Sudanese families. Despite the economic strain these efforts have on the relationships between husbands and wives, they can be culturally empowering to members of this community and their families that live elsewhere in the world. Even decades after resettlement in the USA, their ties to their homeland and to their people still remain top priorities in their lives. Efforts of resettlement and the attempts to continue cultural and social ties to their homeland despite time and distance are altering the role of family in Sudanese culture and the continuation of traditional cultural practices. The goals of this research are to describe and analyze the practice of transnational marriage and to examine the extent that resettlement in the USA is changing the structured gender roles in South Sudanese communities.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would foremost like to acknowledge all the members of the San Jose South Sudanese community who participated in this study and the 2015 Board Members of Hope with South Sudan. I learned so much about Dinka and Nuer culture and I was inspired by the commitment that all of you have to your family members living abroad. Jerry Drino, you are truly the gatekeeper to this community and a father-figure to so many of its members. Thank you for our many discussions; I learned so much about the processes transnational marriages in this refugee community and the underrepresentation of South Sudanese women in the refugee resettlement system. Gabriel Tor, thank you for discussing traditional Dinka marriage practices with me and introducing me to several members of this community. I would also like to thank the members of my thesis committee. My committee chair, Dr. Faas, counseled me on how to design and shape this thesis. Your high standards encouraged me to produce a quality of work that I would be proud of as I advance my career as an applied anthropologist. Dr Meniketti and Dr Sunseri, I loved your graduate classes and I find your insight on and approval of this research very valuable.

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