1 De Graeve, Katrien ſɩ0ɨɪƀ ŧFestive gatherings and culturework in Flemish- Ethiopian adoptive familiesŨ. European Journal of Cultural Studies 16 (5) 548- 564. (published online 27 February 2013) Festive gatherings and culture work in Flemish-Ethiopian adoptive families Katrien De Graeve Ghent University, Belgium Abstract Although there has been growing academic interest in the tendency among transnational adoptive parents in the West to incorporate aspects of the child’s so-called ‘birth culture’ into their lives, much less attentionis paid to the role that this culture work plays in families’ quest for full and good citizenship. By drawing on fieldwork among Flemish-Ethiopian adoptive families in a range of different settings, this article frames this practice as conscious and political citizenship work. Although the parenting work can open up possibilities to provide a more dynamic view on identity and citizenship, essentialist views on culture and the tendency to downplay racism and global inequalities create considerable constraints. Keywords Belgium, citizenship, identity, parenting, racism, transnational adoption Introduction Around four o’clock in the afternoon, people begin to enter the large hall decorated with Ethiopian flags. Long tables are arranged in rows in the front of the hall, with big round tables at the back. The visitors have just been greeted at the entrance by a woman dressed in traditional Ethiopian clothes, distributing Christmas cards from the Ethiopian embassy in Brussels. Some little children rush towards the bouncy castles at the back of the hall or towards the stalls with pancakes and pies. Older children are looking around, searching for familiar faces or, together with their parents, browse the stalls filled with Ethiopian jewellery and artefacts and Afro hair and skin products. Parents and grandparents are figuring out how many seats have to be kept for friends and acquaintances that are expected to come. After about an hour, the hall is turned into a buzzing scene of activity. While queuing for drink tickets, parents pass their eyes over the images of traditionally dressed Ethiopian people, breath-taking Ethiopian sceneries and tourist attractions in the small exhibit next to the drink ticket booth. Some let themselves be seduced into buying a picture calendar or a ‘Born in Ethiopia’ t-shirt. Mothers and fathers flock together near the bouncy castles to keep an eye on the children, while chatting with other parents about their kids. The annual celebration of Ethiopian Christmas is the largest event bringing together Flemish-Ethiopian adoptive families in Flanders, Belgium. On this occasion, about 600 to 800 people, mostly white parents and grandparents accompanied by mostly black children, assemble in the large festival hall of Berlare, a village in the Belgian province