Refugee resettlement: models in action

"A model of refugee resettlement containing two axes is proposed: volume of refugee intake and emphasis on economic or cultural adaptation." The refugee resettlement practices of Canada, France, and the United States are then described. The author notes that France and Canada favor a moderate intake of refugees with emphasis on economic adaptation, although the emphasis in Quebec is on cultural adaptation. In contrast, the United States accepts a large volume of refugees, with a similar emphasis on economic adaptation.     

Fifty Years of Refugee Studies: From Theory to Policy

This article reviews the growth of the field of refugee studies, focusing on its links with, and impact on, refugee policy. The last fifty years, and especially the last two decades, have witnessed both a dramatic increase in academic work on refugees and significant institutional development in the field. It is argued that these institutions have developed strong links with policymakers, although this has often failed to translate into significant policy impacts. Areas in which future policy‐orientated work might be developed are considered.     

Domestic Violence Within Refugee Families: Intersecting Patriarchal Culture and the Refugee Experience

This article examines the stages of the refugee journey and the intersections of domestic violence with culture, trauma, resettlement and masculinity. Arguing that therapists must challenge aspects of culture that promote violations of women's human rights while understanding the unique situation of refugee families, the article concludes by identifying principles for therapeutic and community based interventions.     

Rights Spaces: An Exploration of Feminist Approaches to Refugee Law

The exigent needs of refugee women necessitate feminist attempts to use legal mechanisms, however imperfect, to their benefit. However, the temptation to overestimate the importance of feminist gains in this realm must be avoided due to current constraints within the international refugee regime. Most forcibly displaced persons never reach the borders of western countries to claim asylum. Moreover, western 'refugee-receiving' countries are effectively closing their borders to migration claimed on strictly humanitarian grounds. Therefore, while feminists have successfully claimed a place for refugee women within protective rights mechanisms, they have been granted only a small portion of what is already extremely finite territory. Given this troubling state of affairs, I suggest that although proven avenues within refugee law must not be abandoned, the time is right for the sustained exploration of new and creative modes of engagement within refugee rights discourse. In this vein, the second half of the paper draws extensively upon the work of feminist legal theorist Jennifer Nedelsky to suggestively consider some possible alternatives for feminist theory and praxis.     

Refugee research in Africa: problems and possibilities

The author discusses the magnitude of the refugee problem in selected countries of Africa, with a focus on the "conceptual, methodological and practical problems faced by refugee researchers in Africa." (SUMMARY IN FRE AND SPA)     

Paraprofessionals in Refugee Resettlement

The increased demands of refugee resettlement have directed attention to the role and function of indigenous paraprofessionals, who share a common background experience with the client population. With training and supervision, such paraprofessionals can bridge cultural and linguistic barriers, and serve as role models. This article examines this topic from the experience of the recent Soviet Jewish refugee resettlement program in Boston.