Hidden Immigrants

(originally posted on 2016-09-16)

My (Brandie’s) work lately as part of the member care team for Wycliffe Canada has been preparing resources for families with children. I want to take the next several posts I write to tell you about MK’s and some of their characteristics that may be hard to identify. May this information help you as you welcome and spend time with missionary families who are home for visits or are returning permanently.

The first characteristic can be called “Hidden Immigrants”. I’ve picked this one to talk about first because I have the perfect story to share with you that shows this characteristic clearly. You all know what an immigrant is: someone who has moved to Canada, to live, from another country. Typically they look different, they dress different, they think somewhat differently, they approach relationships differently, they may have different beliefs about faith, politics, society, etc. A hidden immigrant is someone who looks like they fit in. They dress ‘normally’, they look like everyone else. Of course, in Canada there isn’t necessarily a ‘normal’ look but we still have ways of categorizing people as either Canadian or not.

Our children are Canadian, they have Canadian passports, two of them were born in Canada, and they were raised in a Canadian household. They wear Old Navy and don’t have an accent. They are not obviously different from the majority of their classmates.

This week at school one of our children was sitting in a social studies lesson. The teacher was explaining various ways Canada was great. An easy way to do this, for the teacher, was to compare Canada to other world regions. Our child related this lesson to us after school and noted that the teacher was bragging about Canada. Our child was quite upset. Why? Internally this child significantly identifies with China. In talking about the good of Canada, the bad of Asia was brought forward. Our child felt that their home was being attacked. I’m sure the teacher never realized that our child would sooner identify with China instead of Canada. This child is a hidden immigrant.

The next time you spend time with an MK, remember that although they may hold a Canadian passport and even though they may have had Canadian schooling by their Canadian parents, much of who they are has been shaped and informed by the culture in which they have grown up. What they believe to be home may not line up with their passport.