“You lose trust in the system”

Third generation Flemish people with immigrant roots are not much different from people without foreign origins. This is evident in the survey conducted by the Flemish government every five years. The gap in terms of education and high-level employment is closing, although the third generation has less and less trust in their fellow human beings.

2.2% of the Flemish people belong to the so-called third generation. Their grandparents immigrated to Belgium and had children here. As the group grows in the future, the local management agency organizes a large-scale survey every five years to map their experiences. The latest poll now shows they have more in common with their compatriots without a migration background than some politicians suggest.

In a single generation, the groups have grown strongly together in several areas. For example, only 15% of first generation immigrants from a non-EU country are not religious, while this figure is 51% of their descendants. The group includes slightly more liberal Flemish people of Belgian origin (45 percent). In addition, the level of education has risen significantly: from 33% of low-skilled people among the first generation of non-EU origin to 8% among the third generation. These are better results than for people without a migration background (14% of low-skilled).

The worst students in Europe

“In general, we can say that the third generation is in a better position in terms of employment, income, and knowledge of the Dutch language compared to the second generation and especially the first generation,” the report says. For example, the younger group performs at the same level as the group of Belgian origin, although the survey of 4,683 Flemish and Brussels residents also shows less rosy trends.

For example, the employment rate of the third generation from an EU country (75%) is close to the employment rate of Flemish people with no immigrant roots (79%). For descendants of immigrants from countries outside the European Union, this figure remains at 66%.

It’s progress compared to their predecessors, but the result is still very poor. “In terms of work participation for people with non-EU nationality, we are the worst students in the whole of Europe,” says Kathleen van den Daele of LEVL, which succeeded the Minority Forum.

The third generation’s results are also worse in some areas than its predecessors. For example, the younger group has less trust in others, and the feeling of local solidarity also decreases. This means that they feel a less strong connection to the city or municipality in which they live. “You can do it all, and at the same time get the signal that it’s not enough,” says van den Diel. “If that feeling of appreciation is not there, it will affect your mental health and you will leave the system more quickly. Third generation people can then feel it is better to leave.”

Participants’ responses do indicate that there are reasons for concern in this area. 65% of Flemish people who do not have foreign grandparents feel a sense of belonging, while this percentage does not exceed 56% among the third generation from outside the EU.

A deep-rooted problem

The results of the study can be identified by Asli Dink (30 years old), whose grandparents moved from Turkey to Belgium. She has a master’s degree and works at a large technology company, but still finds it difficult to fully fit in. When others at a party ask her if she drinks alcohol as a Muslim or compliment her on her Dutch, it’s as if she’s been reduced to her immigrant background. All of these comments are not meant to be hurtful, but they do have an impact.

“When I was a kid, I thought bad reactions would come if I mispronounced something. The more I tried to get into the job market, the more I noticed it was a deep-rooted problem,” says Dink. “It’s not a language problem, because I speak Dutch fluently. It’s not about my education, because I have a master’s degree. If you do everything the right way and you still feel like you don’t belong, you lose trust in the system. She notes that she also feels she hears and reads racist comments on social media all too often.

Government research shows that the third generation remains internally divided. For example, there is no significant difference in terms of domestic attachment among descendants of immigrants from a non-EU country compared to the group of Belgian origin. In addition, people from those non-EU countries experience much more discrimination than other immigrants.

“There are outliers, especially among people of Congolese and sub-Saharan origin, but this does not translate into policy,” says van den Daele. According to her, more research is needed into the reasons why a sense of connection is still often lost and what can be done to change that. “Especially since this is just the tip of the iceberg. The range of people with a migration background is much broader than the third generation, but these experiences are often shared between generations.