Uvjetovane ličnosti: hrvatska dijaspora i politika želja

The collapse of communism in the former Yugoslavia has sparked an avalanche of personal and political questions for Croatians everywhere on the meaning of Croatian history, traditions and identity. In the midst of tumultuous changes brought about by the war, homeland Croatians have been struggling to (re)build/(re)imagine a new/old state and, in the process, reinvent themselves. Similarly, diaspora Croatians, who have, over the years, constructed themselves as an ethnic group within the Canadian political and multicultural landscape, have been grappling with the impact of these changes on what is now means to be Croatian. This paper investigates the politics of recognition and representation for Croatians through an analysis of the (re)production of sentiments of desire and disdain between diaspora and homeland Croatians. This multi-sited research demonstrates that the mutually constitutive relationships of diaspora Croatians and the focus of their desiring gaze, a free Croatia where its citizens are participating in the “production” or “recovery” of the historic Croatian state, are highly contested. For example, Croatians in the homeland have been reluctantly drawn into the politics of diaspora identity by virtue of their newfound status as members of the new Croatian state and outright reject the nostalgic imaginings of the diaspora. By spuming the gaze of the diaspora, homeland Croatians, in effect, blunt diasporic efforts to positively identify with and/or participate in the (re)invention of the homeland, underscoring the paradoxes that characterize the condition of multiple location and belonging.Propast komunizma u bivšoj Jugoslaviji izazvao je lavinu osobnih i političkih pitanja o značenju hrvatske povijesti, tradicije i identiteta za Hrvate svugdje u svijetu. Usred potresnih promjena koje je uzrokovao rat, Hrvati u domovini hrvali su se da (ponovo) izgrade i (ponovo) zamisle novu/staru državu, i da u tom procesu (re)kreiraju i sebe. Na sličan način i Hrvati u dijaspori, koji su se tijekom godina konstruirali kao etnička grupa unutar kanadskog političkog i multikulturalnog krajolika, suočavali su se s učinkom tih promjena na to što sad značiti biti Hrvat. Članak istražuje politiku prepoznavanja i reprezentiranja za Hrvate kroz analizu (re)produkcije osjećaja želje i prezira između dijaspore i domovinskih Hrvata. Istraživanje (provedeno u Kanadi i Hrvatskoj) pokazuje visoku napetost u uzajamno izgradujučem odnosu Hrvata iz dijaspore i središta njihovih željnih pogleda, slobodne Hrvatske u kojoj njezini građani sudjeluju u "proiz’odnji" i "povratku” povijesne hrvatske države. Na primjer, Hrvati u domovini novoljko se uključuju u politiku identiteta dijaspore temeljem njihovog novog statusa kao članova nove hrvatske države i potpuno odbacuju nostalgične slike dijaspore. Odbijajući pogled dijaspore, domovinski Hn’ati zapravo otupljuju napore dijaspore da se pozitivno identificira i/ili sudjeluje u (re)invenciji domovine, potcrtavajući paradokse koji karakteriziraju stanje mnogostrukih lokacija i pripadnosti

Family Matters: Homeless Youth & Eva’s Initiative’s Family Reconnect Program

Young people become homeless largely because of challenges they experience within their families. We know well that conflicts within family - whether related to abuse, mental health, or addictions issues of either young people themselves or other family members – often lead young people to the streets. Because of this, most street youth serving agencies largely ignore the potential role of family members in helping people make the transition to adulthood. There are some exceptions, and one of these is the Family Reconnect program of Eva’s Initiatives in Toronto. In the report, Family Matters, this program is examined to evaluate how reconnecting with family may help some young people avoid long term homelessness. In doing this review, the authors raise some important questions about the Canadian response to youth homelessness. They argue for a rather radical transformation of this response, one that reconsiders the role of strengthened family (and community) relations in preventing and responding to youth homelessness