Model Minority and Discrimination: Case of the Second Generation of Cambodians Refugees in France

It is said that immigrants and foreigners in France posed a problem of socio-political order in the middle of 1970s. While the Maghrebian immigrants have undergone the experience of discrimination and exclusion in French society, South-East Asian refugee were considered to be a ‘non provocative’ or ‘silent’ group in the integration process at the local resettlement and benefitted from a warm welcome （Gilles 2000; Simon-Barouh  2003）. They have a conscience to take advantage of their positive image based on ethnic category. It is suggested that for French people, receiving Southeast Asian refugees provides an opportunity to justify their virtue as non-racist citizens （Roquejoffre 2009:118）. With this good reputation, they became a ‘model minority’ in France.  As Asians have a fairly positive image compared to other immigrants, it is difficult to say that there is a feeling of hostility and racism against them (Gayral-Taming 2000）. However, the idea that Asians can be accepted because they are silent while other ethnic groups without such a personality could be rejected is itself a radicalized stereotype. In the context of French society, the positioning of Southeast Asian refugees as ‘exceptional’ resulted from colonial history and the politics of compassion. But this exceptionality risks generating racialised practices. Regarding Second generation, their educational success in science and their typical choice for the sector of the communication industry has been noticed (Le Huu 1996 ; Meslin 2006 ; Masse 1996).  Are they really success in their schooling and professional career?  It is doubtful if they really benefit from their positive image in their living experience.   By examining educational and occupational attainments of the second generation of Cambodians refugees in France, I will show aspects of discrimination encountered by them as a model minority. I use interviews collected from my field research conducted between 2010 and 2011 for this analysis.