As I’ve been working to start Loving the Stranger’s YouTube channel, I’ve realized what an amazing (and free!) resource YouTube is to anyone who is wanting to up their CQ (cultural intelligence) in general or in reference to a particular immigrant community.

Falling down a YouTube rabbit hole can sometimes be a waste of time, but not in this case. I’d suggest searching for “growing up Ethiopian American,” for example, substituting whatever culture you’re interested in for the “Ethiopian.”

You will find channel after channel of young people humorously and accurately recounting their struggles and triumphs as second generation immigrants growing up and living between two worlds.

(By the way, I am realizing that some children of immigrants refer to themselves as “first generation” and some refer to themselves as “second generation.” I have chosen to use “second generation” to mean the children of those who have immigrated, who have mostly grown up in their host culture.)

I’m convinced that in the coming years, the most important people to listen to when trying to interact crossculturally with immigrants are second generation immigrant kids. They are the people who “get” both the culture of their homeland (because they are growing up in their parents’ household) and the host culture (because their youth enables them to adapt quickly).

There are more and more nonfiction books and novels being written by second generation immigrants, and I highly recommend those, but let’s go a different direction today and talk about some YouTube videos (many of them done by immigrant kids) talking about crosscultural interaction:

“10 Best Things About Being Raised By Immigrant Parents”

“Most Embarrassing Things About Being Raised by Immigrant Parents”

“6 Things All Immigrant Kids Experience”

…and remember to search “growing up [ ___ ] American” to learn more about a particular immigrant group’s experience in the USA.

Feel free to comment: What YouTube channels have you found most helpful as you try to improve your CQ?