Ethnocentrism among University Students of Post-1991 Ethiopia

Abstract

SeyoumMesfin2AbstractThe purpose of this article is to capture a moment in the histo-ry of inter-ethnic relations among university students in Ethi-opian since 1991. The nature of these relations has shifted in tandem with changes at national level in the role of ethnicity in political ideology. Since 1991, ethnicity has been the dogmat-ic principle of the country’s social and political policies. As a result, this ideology has permeated university campuses, which have become hotbeds of ethnocentrism and inter-ethnic conflict. The article provides a micro-sociological qualitative description and analysis of different sites of student interaction, that is, in curricular activities such as classroom learning, extracurricular activities such as sports, and service delivery in the form of com-mon residential compounds and dining halls. The findings show that interaction between students from different ethnic groups is fraught with intense ethnocentrism, often leading to inter-ethnic conflict in university compounds. This article takes a circum-stantialist approach in demonstrating that ethnicity intensifies in political circumstances that promote its importance and wanes in those that diminish its role