{"id":151943,"date":"2023-03-15T13:38:05","date_gmt":"2023-03-15T12:38:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=151943"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:26:41","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:26:41","slug":"sometimes-sociology-student-elisa-weehuizen-feels-at-home-sometimes-she-doesnt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2023\/03\/15\/sometimes-sociology-student-elisa-weehuizen-feels-at-home-sometimes-she-doesnt\/","title":{"rendered":"Sometimes Sociology student Elisa Weehuizen feels at home, sometimes she doesn\u2019t"},"content":{"rendered":"

Elisa was born in the Netherlands, but her mother is from Nigeria. Because she grew up in this country, speaks the language and regards Dutch culture as her own, she is completely accepted and feels completely at home here \u2013 also on campus. \u201cMost of the time, anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n

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There are times when Elisa does not feel completely at home at the university. \u201cIt\u2019s important that we all take responsibility for remaining critical when it comes to stereotypes.\u201d<\/span><\/p>

\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSanne van der Most<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>

\u201cMy mother had a pretty tough time when she came to Europe from Nigeria. As a result, I\u2019ve known from a young age what it\u2019s like for people who move here from a very different country. Personally, I\u2019ve always lived in the Netherlands, so culturally speaking I simply feel Dutch. That makes a huge difference. Because I\u2019m Dutch and really am regarded that way, Dutch student life didn\u2019t come as a shock to me. When I started studying, I tried out all kinds of different associations: tennis, sailing, investing, you name it. I made a lot of nice friends there and had some great times. That\u2019s the kind of thing that makes me feel at home.<\/p>\n\n\t

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\n\t\t\u2018When we\u2019re taught about great thinkers in philosophy, economics and sociology, it\u2019s very much centred around our part of the world\u2019\n\t<\/blockquote>\n\n\t<\/figure>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n

\u201cHowever, there are also times when I feel less at home. This is a very international university, so you might think it would be a progressive hub. In some ways, it is \u2013 but still not enough. Look at the curriculum, for example; much of the knowledge production is pretty Eurocentric. When we\u2019re taught about great thinkers in philosophy, economics and sociology, it\u2019s very much centred around our part of the world. The further away the students originally come from, the more they notice that. We\u2019re becoming increasingly international, so in the long run this just isn\u2019t sustainable. Decolonising the curriculum would be a sensible idea.<\/p>\n\n\t

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