“Westerners,” “Chinese,” and/or “Us”: Exploring the Intersections of Language, Race, Religion, and Immigrantization

Based on a four‐year ethnography, I draw on critical race theory and B ourdieuian theory of language to analyze why a C hinese I mmigrant couple regarded their 1.5‐ G eneration C hinese C anadian leaders at an evangelical C hristian church as “ W esterners,” and how the leaders differentiated themselves from “ W esterners” and “ C hinese/ I mmigrants.” I argue that language and race intersect in complicated ways to racialize Immigrants and their children differently, and linguistic nationalism as a form of structural racism permeates everyday interactions.