ABSTRACT
This chapter provides the theoretical backdrop and context to the book. It argues that despite the established body of work in sociology illustrating the diversity of the youth experience, there are gaps in the literature about young black people’s experiences. This highlights the extent to which these young people go unrecognised in youth transition discourses. The chapter addresses a central issue for sociology youth research, namely the importance of the intersection of ‘race’, ethnicity, gender and social class. These related issues need to be collectively theorised if we are to understand young people’s identities and transitions. The chapter begins by outlining the theoretical issues and debates relating to youth which we utilise in the exploration of young black people’s transitions. We illustrate how this theorisation within the context of black feminist theorists, postcolonial theorists and critical race theorists focuses specifically on social networks, community capital, social capital and transformation (see for example Yosso, 2005) in understanding youth transitions. It focuses on the British black diaspora.
