Anthropology MA thesis makes tabloid headline in Holland

I blogged earlier about the visibility of anthropologists in the Dutch public. Well, get this: a just-graduated masters student in my department at the VU made the front-page of the free (!) tabloid Spits (described by my colleagues as “right-wing”) today. The article, entitled “Chinese feels [sic] discriminated” describes “research by anthropologist Lilly Witte (23)” about Dutch-raised ethnic Chinese, which concludes that they feel that mainstream Dutch society does not quite accept them as Dutch, on account of their look.

Although some of my colleagues feel that there might be some trick here (this newspaper is seen as having a generally anti-immigrant slant, so this might be a way of compensating?), and the usual laments about simplification apply, it is fantastic to see anthropology masters students’ research influencing the widest possible arena of public debate. Congratulations, Lilly.