Self-Categorization of Youth in Discursive Practices of the Russian Speaking Milieu of Lativa

Abstract

The article examines various aspects of self-categorization of the Russian-speaking youth as representatives of ethnic minorities in discursive practices of today’s Latvia. I draw on the materials of a sociological study conducted in 2000 and 2019, which showed the expressed desire of the interviewed Russian students of Riga to perceive Latvia as an ethnopolitical system where ethnic minorities occupy a subordinated position in the ethnic-social stratification and the system of power. Russian respondents believe that the main indicator of this perception is the extremely insignificant role assigned by the legislation to the social functions of the Russian language in the public space (e.g., in the education system, official communications, etc.), as well as the personal experience of social advancement in the field of employment and entrepreneurship.