反“台独”的法律武器——《反分裂国家法》

近年来,岛内“台独”势力恶性发展,“台独”恶行步步升级,“台独”既践踏一个中国原则,又危害中国的核心利益。本文描述了《反分裂国家法》出台的背景,分析了它的合理性,阐述了它的意义和作用。《反分裂国家法》必将对打击“台独”的嚣张气焰,促进两岸关系和祖国统一大业的发展,对维护亚太地区的和平与稳定产生积极而深远的影响。     

Openness in adoption: Challenging the narrative of historical progress

One significant change in adoption practice that has occurred over the last four decades is the shift away from an expectation of confidentiality towards an expectation of openness in adoption. Openness is typically conceived in terms of the level of contact between adoptive and birth families following adoption or the extent to which adoption is openly discussed within the adoptive family. While these shifts in practice have generated controversy, they are largely supported by research evidence and have become a feature of contemporary adoptive family life. As a result, the narrative that has emerged in relation to openness in adoption is one of historical progress. In this paper, I argue that the lived reality of adoption is less straightforward than this narrative suggests. An analysis of the social and cultural context in which adoption operates suggests instead that the persistent feature of adoption throughout this historical period of increasing openness can be more accurately described as a state of enduring ambiguity regarding the nature of post‐adoption relationships. The paper highlights the potentially damaging consequences of overlooking this aspect of adoptive family life and comments on the role of policy in shaping openness in adoption.     

Family court ordered “reunification therapy:” junk science in the guise of helping parent/child relationships?

This Commentary addresses the issue of the ethics of mental health professionals recommending or doing what family courts and some others are calling “Reunification Therapy.” This is often being recommended and used across the country, and ordered by family courts, as if it has a scientific basis for successful therapy between an estranged parent and a child who does not wish to re-engage with that parent, often where the child has alleged the parent has abused them physically, sexually, or psychologically. This Commentary challenges the ethics and validity of such approaches and programs.     

Love Without Borders?

Since 2000, Denmark has imposed some of the strictest immigration laws in Europe. Consequently, family reunification has become increasingly difficult for immigrants as well as for Danish citizens. In the fall of 2010, the Danish family reunification laws became subject to criticism and protest by a citizens' initiative called ‘Love without Borders’ (LWB). The article investigates how LWB managed to generate political momentum around love: an affect which seems to promise inclusion, liberation and togetherness for those directly affected by the laws as well as those attempting to change the laws. Yet the idealized version of love promoted by LWB happened to take the form of romantic intimacy predominantly consisting of straight, young and white-brown couples oriented towards reproduction. Our main argument is that despite its good intentions of supporting migration the activist campaign ‘Love without Borders’ ends up supporting whiteness as the body through which love must flow. As an indicator of the racialized discourses informing LWB's activism the article introduces the concept of white transraciality. Thus, to LWB love seems to promise affective ties to the nation, to the future and to the political system in ways that sustain white hegemony. Building mainly on Sara Ahmed's and Laurent Berlant's reflections on love as cultural politics the article analyzes posters, viral videos and newspaper debates in its discussion of the promises and pitfalls of love as an affective political tool.     

Kinship Care and Transnational Parenting: The Intersection of Cultural Values and Practices

This study uses ethnographic research to examine the phenomenon of transnational parenting by migrant mothers from the African Caribbean community and their family who care for the mothers’ children. Twenty women’s narratives demonstrate the complexity of relationships between migrant mothers living and working in New York City and their extended family or kinship caretakers who coparent their children in their countries of origin. The study reveals three main factors that contribute to the success of transnational parenting: (1) informal kinship care-child fostering, (2) remittances, and (3) social networks. Policy and practice implications are explored.     

Spirituality and child welfare reunification: a narrative analysis of successful outcomes

When children are removed from their families because of maltreatment, the child welfare system seeks reunification whenever possible. Despite the importance of this goal, little is known about families who are able to achieve and maintain successful reunification. This qualitative study conducted in‐depth interviews with 15 families who completed their child welfare case plans, were reunited with their children and remained together for at least 1 year post‐reunification. Narrative analysis using a combination of thematic and structural coding was completed to examine the strengths and process families discussed related to their successful child welfare outcomes. This paper discusses one of those strengths, spirituality, in greater depth. Specifically, 12 participants situated the strength of spirituality within their stories as an important narrative element they perceived as critical, leading to important changes. Findings highlight the benefits some families receive from their spiritual beliefs, practices and faith communities when working towards reunification, suggesting child welfare practitioners be prepared to identify and honour this family strength.     

Reunifying Families Affected by Maternal Substance Abuse: Consumer and Service Provider Perspectives on the Obstacles and the Need for Change

ABSTRACT

This paper presents the findings of a qualitative study which examined the views of chemically dependent mothers, child welfare service providers and substance abuse service providers regarding the obstacles to family reunification and recommendations for change. Implications for practice, policy and research are discussed, with special reference to the mandates of the Adoption and Safe Families Act.     

Ambivalences of the emotional logics of migration and family reunification: emotions,experiences and aspirations of Bangladeshi husbands and wives in Italy

This article analyses the relational and emotional logics of migration, separation and reunification of Bangladeshi families in Italy. Migrant husbands are separated from their wives, with whom they have had little family life due to their migration, and seek family reunification. Wives’ migration due to family reunification, however, means separating them from their familiar environments and social networks. For this reason, some wives press for onward migration to the UK, where they hope that a larger Bangladeshi community and more social and cultural opportunities may provide a more fulfilling life compared to what they experienced in Italy. However, this means uprooting their husbands once again. The article observes the emotionally divergent dimensions among men and women as an element that can transform and redefine biographical projects and the migration trajectories in Europe of Bangladeshi families in Italy.     

Emotional Climate in a European Problem Area: East Berlin and West Berlin Three Years After Reunification

In autumn of 1992, three years after the unification of Germany, during a period of violent attacks against foreigners, 120 students from East Berlin and West Berlin and 20 foreign students living in West Berlin answered the Emotional Climate Questionnaire developed by de Rivera and Fernandez-Dols. Foreign respondents expressed a positive attitude toward their government/state and believed in prosocial behavior to a greater extent than respondents from East Berlin and West Berlin. Whereas East Berlin students disagreed only somewhat with statements in favor of selfishness and egoism, West Berlin students strongly disagreed with them. We attribute the differences that were found in the answers of the foreign students to their national values. In addition, we regard the differences between the emotional climates of East Berlin and West Berlin as reflecting a climate of instability among East Berliners. We interpreted selfishness as a kind of polarized behavior indicating a climate of instability. A factor analysis revealed 5 factors of an emotional climate: Nation's Future, Just World, Reactive Egoism, Scepticism, and Basic Egoism. The concept of emotional climate is discussed on the basis of the current data.