Battling for Survival, Battling for Moral Clarity: "Illegality" and Illness in the Everyday Struggles of Undocumented HIV+ Women Migrant Workers in Tel Aviv

Undocumented migrant workers living with HIV/AIDS in Israel, like their counterparts elsewhere, are doubly abject due to their lack of legal status on one hand and their ill health on the other. Unlike Israeli citizens living with HIV/AIDS, who can access an array of state funded treatments and support services, undocumented migrant workers living with HIV/AIDS are marginalized both by the state's exclusive immigration regime and by its efforts to shake off responsibility for their health needs. At the same time, HIV treatment and care are generally unavailable in migrants' countries of origin. Despite the state's exclusionary orientation and in contradiction of official policies, certain forms of HIV treatment are available to undocumented migrants through the day‐to‐day efforts of a small array of activist Israeli NGOs, (state‐employed) doctors, and state officials. The tension between these simultaneous, oppositional processes of exclusion and inclusion generate a “gray area”— a zone of competing values, claims and interests‐ in which undocumented migrants living with HIV/AIDS and these other stakeholders search for new options and possibilities while continually taking pains to protect their own varied, and often competing, interests. Actors thus constantly bargain with laws, health policies, and one another in a collective battle not only over migrants' chances of survival, but also over the rationality and the morality underlying the state's “and their own” decisions and choices. Anchored within this complex, indeterminate zone, the present article draws upon ethnographic field research conducted among undocumented HIV+ migrant women in Tel Aviv to explore some of the stakes, mechanisms, and outcomes of these complicated, high stakes negotiation processes.     

State Fragmentation: Toward a Theoretical Understanding of the Territorial Power of the State

In existing theories of revolution, the state is narrowly defined as an administrative entity, and state breakdown simply refers to the disintegration of a given political regime. But this narrow definition cannot deal with this question: Why, in a revolutionary situation, do some states become fragmented and others remain unified? I would therefore argue for the broadening of the concept of state breakdown to include the territorial power of the state and to treat the latter as a key analytical dimension in the study of state fragmentation. The dynamics of territorial state power involve the control of critical territories and valuable resources associated with the spatial position of a given state in the interstate system. A strong territorial state is able to maintain its organizational coerciveness and territorial integrity, whereas a weak territorial state is vulnerable to fragmentation. The overall state crisis derives from the accumulated effects of geopolitical strain by which territorial fragmentation unfolds.     

Comparing Transnational and Communal Diaspora Philanthropies Among Temporary Migrant Workers: The Case of the Filipino Community in Israel

VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations - Diaspora philanthropy, sending donations to the homeland, has evolved with worldwide migration. While scholars have...     

新生代农民工生活压力源及群体差异——以深圳市产业工人为例

对新生代农民工生活压力的研究发现,消极事件、子女教育、经济困难、人际疏离是该群体主要的生活压力来源,其中,经济困难与人际疏离两个维度的压力相对突出。并且,生活压力存在显著的群体差异:男性的子女教育压力小于女性;已婚群体的子女教育压力较大,经济困难压力较小;年龄越大的群体受人际疏离压力的影响越大;受教育程度越高的群体受消极事件与经济困难压力影响越小;个人租房的群体在经济困难方面面临较大的压力;工作职位越高的群体经济困难压力越小,但受人际疏离压力的影响越大。上述研究结果表明,关注多维的生活压力,为新生代农民工提供切合需求的社会服务,有利于破解新生代农民工生活压力难题。     

Governing Migrant Workers at a Distance: Managing the Temporary Status of Guestworkers in Taiwan

This paper explores how a liberal democratic state keeps migrant workers in temporary status by preventing their permanent settlement. Using Taiwan’s guestworker policy as an example, we argue that through expertise discourses and strategies of “governance at a distance” involving private sector, the Taiwan government has formulated policies and implemented measures that effectively kept guestworkers in temporary status. Analyzing Taiwan’s guestworker policy helps us to understand how the state and its collaborators work together to enhance the control capacity over migrants, while at the same time, enabling the state to keep its liberal pretense.     

Corruption,Policing and Migration: Exploring the Interaction Between Migrant Workers and Police in Russia,Ukraine and the UK

The rights of migrant workers and their experiences in host countries have been high on the political agendas of Europe and beyond. This article uses data from 138 semi‐structured interviews conducted with migrant workers in the UK, Russia and Ukraine to study their relationships with the police in host countries. We aim to contribute to the literature on policing and migration by analysing three different host countries, and the experience of temporary migrant workers regarding policing within each country. We suggest that the interplay between the experiences of policing in home and host countries can provide important insights into the practicalities of policing, but should not be considered apart from the context of the ethnic origin of migrant workers.     

Social Workers Can e-Learn: Evaluation of a Pilot Post-Qualifying e-Learning Course in Research Methods and Critical Appraisal Skills for Social Workers

Social workers are increasingly encouraged to become research minded and integrate research findings into their practice. However, there is a paucity of high-quality accessible training for social workers in research methods and critical appraisal skills. We developed an e-learning version of an MSc degree module to widen access to this kind of training and this paper presents the findings of an evaluation of a pilot of this e-learning course. To test the effectiveness of the e-learning environment in delivering research methods and critical appraisal skills training to social workers in comparison with a classroom group, we adopted a mixed methods approach which comprised concept mapping exercises, semi-structured interviews and evaluation questionnaires administered to the e-learners (n = 3) and a classroom comparison group (n = 12). Our analysis of the students' concept maps revealed no conspicuous differences in the quality of student knowledge changes that were a consequence of the mode of teaching delivery. The e-learners met the learning outcomes of the module to the same extent as the classroom group and were highly satisfied with the mode of delivery. Although this was a small pilot, it provided tentative evidence that social workers can use e-learning to develop evidence-based practice skills.     

Financial Knowledge and Behaviors of Chinese Migrant Workers: An International Perspective on a Financially Vulnerable Population

ABSTRACT

Making informed financial decisions is crucial to the wellbeing of Chinese migrant workers. Using interview survey data (N = 329), this study examined financial knowledge and behaviors of migrant workers in China. Results showed that participants demonstrated low levels of financial knowledge (51.4%) and beneficial financial behaviors (51.0%). Multivariate results indicated that a modest proportion of the variance in financial behaviors was explained by financial knowledge, attitudes, and socio-demographic characteristics (e.g., marital status and income). Findings underscore the importance of disseminating culturally-relevant educational interventions to financially at-risk, low-paid migrant workers in China.     

Critical Perspectives on Crime and Social Harm: Toward a Criminology of Human Rights

Using Sutherland’s conceptualization of white‐collar crime as a significant point of departure, this article explores recent attempts to theorize crime and social harm from a critical criminological perspective. Arguing that the development of this approach is inextricably linked to theoretical and methodological concerns that strike at the very foundation of criminology as a discipline of study, I show how advances in state and corporate crime literature have advanced the field of criminology. Ultimately I argue that contemporary mainstream criminology, which tends to focus solely on the analysis of traditional ‘street’ crime, has failed to bring within its criminological purview those actions which have the greatest potential for causing significant human suffering.     

Predictors of aggression among Palestinians in Israel and Gaza: Happiness,need to belong,and self-control

The present study examined a strong need for belonging (sensitivity to social rejection) as a risk factor and happiness and self-control skills as protective factors in predicting peer-directed aggression among 292 Israeli Palestinian Arab adolescents and 398 Gazan Palestinian Arab adolescents of similar ages (mean ~ 14 years). Findings demonstrated that the two Palestinian groups showed similar aggression rates, but Israeli Palestinians revealed higher self-control, higher happiness, and higher need for belonging than their Gazan peers. Moreover, each of the three predictors, separately, was significantly linked to aggression for the Israelis but not for the Gazans. Possible explanations are discussed related to sex, cultural differences, and life conditions.     

Toward a reconciliation of "assimilation" and "pluralism": the interplay of acculturation and ethnic retention

"The reconciliation between ?assimilation' and ?pluralism' is sought to help prevent further polarization among immigration researchers and is based mainly on two arguments. First, if assimilation and acculturation are distinguished, acculturation has proceeded more quickly than assimilation in both ?old' and ?new' immigrations. This reconciles traditional assimilationist theory with current pluralist--or ethnic retention--theory, which admits that acculturation (and accommodation) are occurring but without assimilation. Second, the reconciliation can also be advanced by the recognition that the researchers of the old and new immigrations have studied different generations of newcomers and have approached their research with ?outsider' and ?insider' values, respectively." The geographical focus is on the United States.     

新国家与旧工人:1952年上海私营工厂的民主改革运动

本文通过对上海市各级档案馆所藏档案文献的梳理,详细考察了在1952年上海私营工厂的民主改革运动中,新政权如何通过诉苦、交待、典型示范等动员技术,对旧工人进行思想和组织上的改造,从而为自上而下地重塑一支新的工人阶级队伍奠定基础。对旧工人的改造,不仅是社会主义工业化的需要,也构成了新国家对城市基层社会进行整合的一个方面。     

Perception of alcoholism among Jewish, Moslem and Christian teachers in Israel.

This article describes a survey which investigated perception of alcoholism among Jewish, Moslem and Christian teachers in the north of Israel during the spring of 1991. Data were obtained from a sample of 553 teachers. The teachers were asked to agree or disagree with items associated with the disease concept or with the moral concept of alcoholism. The findings indicate differences in the perception of alcoholism among teachers of different religions, education levels, gender, and drinking practices. No differences were found among teachers of different ages or among those working in different types of schools.     

When Battlefields become Marketplaces: Migrant Workers and the Role of Civil Society and NGO Activism in Thailand

The vast majority of migrant workers in Thailand are employed predominantly in low‐paying occupations commonly described as “3‐D jobs” (dangerous, dirty, and difficult). Currently, there are nearly two million documented and undocumented migrant workers, mostly from neighbouring Burma, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, and Cambodia, employed in various industries, including domestic service, throughout the country. While over half a million migrants are officially registered to work in the country, both documented and undocumented migrant workers remain unprotected primarily due to the lack of concrete measures to monitor, implement and enforce laws regarding working and living conditions. Regardless of where they are employed, migrant workers face common problems: low wages; harmful working conditions, poor living conditions; discrimination and harassment, the threat of arrest and deportation; and lack of access to basic resources such as medical care and legal assistance. Based on preliminary research conducted in the summer of 2005, this article looks at the situation of migrant factory and domestic workers in Thailand and explores the ways in which local activists, NGOs, community‐based organisations, and international bodies have been looking to assist and protect migrant workers. Successful migrant workers’ struggles and ongoing efforts of mobilization have been made possible with the help of these support groups, and raise the possibility that union and NGO activity have the potential to improve the situation of migrants in Thailand. This also raises the question of whether advocacy groups should be acting in lieu of the state rather than alongside the state, especially when it appears that they are fulfilling their civic duty as enforcer and monitor of migrant workers’ problems.     

农民工的就业结构对城市定居意愿的影响研究——基于10城市问卷调查的实证分析

农民工在流入地的长期稳定居住,是该群体社会融入的重要标志,也是国家城镇化发展战略的重要组成部分。通过对北京、天津和重庆等10个城市的问卷调查,探讨了农民工的就业结构对城市定居意愿的影响。Logistic回归分析结果表明:农民工的城市定居意愿,与他们的受教育程度、年龄、流动时间、职业类型、社会保障、劳动合同签订、行业类别存在显著相关。因此,政府及企业应该尽量消除制度和政策性歧视,降低城市的就业门槛,同时加大对农民工群体的职业教育,提升城市定居意愿,加快社会融入步伐。     

第二代农民工的市民化:从适应到融入

关于第二代农民工的城市融入与市民化问题正日益成为学界研究热点。他们是否成功融入城市必将在很大程度上影响我国城市化的发展进程。当前第二代农民工市民化现状处于从适应城市社会向融入城市社会的过渡过程,并呈现如下特点:强市民化意愿与弱市民化能力形成反差;主动的经济性适应与社会、心理排斥形成对比;"成年礼"的社会化与人格现代化使其获得市民化的内在精神;双重边缘心理影响第二代农民工的未来道路的选择。研究表明,阻碍第二代农民工市民化的因素主要包括宏观的制度障碍、昂贵的市民化成本、弱势的社会关系网络和有限的个人素质。本文认为,促进第二代农民工市民化的思路主要是:降低第二代农民工市民化的成本;提高第二代农民工市民化能力;为其融入城市生活营造社会环境和支持系统。     

Continuity and Discontinuity of Violent and Nonviolent Behavior: Toward a Classification of Male Adolescent Immigrants from the Former Soviet Union in Israel

Abstract

This article examines the perceptions of male adolescent immigrants to Israel from the former Soviet Union (FSU) and what accounts for their using or refraining from violence. A grounded theoretical classification of four groups relating to continuity and discontinuity of violent and nonviolent behavior is presented and reasons provided for these behaviors in the host country, compared with the country of origin. Each group is described and analyzed by inductive parameters relating to self-perception, immigration, attitudes toward violence, and identification and acceptance of norm differences. Findings are based on semistructured interviews with 40 male adolescents who immigrated from the FSU to Israel. Youth who have immigrated due to ideological reasons, had control over the decision to emigrate, or were able to identify norm differences between the two countries adjusted well and were nonviolent in the receiving country. Youth whose families immigrated due to pragmatic considerations, who had little or no control over the decision to emigrate, had difficulty adjusting, or preferred to live by the norms they were used to in the FSU tended to be involved in violent behavior. The findings are presented in a grounded theoretical model and discussed in the context of theoretical concepts of “uprooting of meaning” for the youth in each of the four groups.     

Bringing in State Regulations,Private Brokers,and Local Employers: A Meso‐Level Analysis of Labor Trafficking in Israel

This article examines the intersection of state policies, private brokers and local employers that fuels trafficking practices and forced labor of legal labor migrants. Focusing on the Israeli case of labor migration, we offer a meso‐level institutional analysis of the modes by which private brokers's actions combine with state regulations and policies in creating labor trafficking. More specifically, we stress the active role official labor migration schemes play in the growth of a private brokerage sector driven by profit considerations and in the privatization of state capacities regarding migration control and management. Our analysis demonstrates how systemic features – and not necessarily or solely criminal activities – catalyze trafficking practices taking place first and foremost within the realm of legal migration.