ABSTRACT Australian regional areas are now receiving migrants from the African region, many for the first time in history. Being physically and culturally different from the predominant Anglo-Saxon community, how African migrants construct their sense of belonging in regional areas are still unknown. This article explores South Sudanese migrants’ experience in conceptualising their sense of belonging in Castlemaine, Victoria. Using focus group discussions with 42 participants, it shows that despite the welcoming atmosphere, South Sudanese migrants are attracted to cities and feel at home. The article argues that cities make strangers un-noticed and make them feel at “home” using theoretical concepts of “the stranger” and “power”. Research findings show how more diverse environments encourage negotiating difference and ease the power imbalance among different groups. The easy commuting distance of Castlemaine to Melbourne and its suburbs is discussed as a factor of reducing the potential ability in constructing a sense of belonging with the local community.

中文翻译：

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通勤设施的扩大和移民在澳大利亚农村小镇中的地位下降

摘要澳大利亚各地区现在正在接受来自非洲地区的移民，这是历史上第一次。与主要的盎格鲁-撒克逊人社区在物质上和文化上都不同，非洲移民如何在区域地区建立归属感仍然未知。本文探讨了南苏丹移民在概念化他们在维多利亚州卡斯梅恩的归属感方面的经验。通过与42位参与者进行的焦点小组讨论，它表明，尽管气氛热烈，但南苏丹移民仍被城市吸引并感到宾至如归。该文章认为，城市利用“陌生人”和“权力”的理论概念使陌生人不被注意，并使他们有“家”的感觉。研究结果表明，更多样化的环境如何促进谈判差异并缓解不同群体之间的权力失衡。讨论了Castlemaine到墨尔本及其郊区的便捷通勤距离，这是降低建立与当地社区归属感的潜在能力的一个因素。