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1. Narayan's article discusses the factors contributing to the increased likelihood of domestic abuse/violence towards women whose immigration status is dependent on their marriage than women who are already citizens. Discuss these factors.
2. How do the cultures these women come from influence their ability to cope with domestic abuse/violence?
3. What are some of the recommendations for change that the "Sex Trafficking of Women in the United States" article makes?
4. What factors promote sex trafficking in the US? What can we do to prevent it?
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ReplyDelete1 & 2. Many factors lead to the disempowering of immigrant women who are dependent on their marriages and on their husbands for legal status. During the limbo period, which can last anywhere from 2 years minimum to however long it takes for the bureaucracy to process their status, these women are completely dependent on the husband and the marriage working out for legal status that they are disempowered to fight abuse because of the eminent threat of deportation.
ReplyDelete"The director of Everywoman'sS helter in Los Angeles ... points out that in many Asian communities saving the honor of the family from shame is a priority that deters immigrant women from reporting domestic violence (Rimonte 1991), Kimberle Crenshaw remarks, 'Unfortunately, this priority tends to be interpreted as obliging women not to scream rather than obliging men not to hit.'" page 106
So on top of the deportation threat, there are cultural pressures not to report abuse and to attempt to just cope. I think that the cultural and, really, familial pressures to just make the marriage work may give the illusion of strength and purpose to these women who are stuck in abusive relationships, but in reality the pressures only add to the oppression of these women. The cultural pressures can drag on the abusive relationship longer than it should ever go.
1 & 2. Narayan repeatedly mentions that immigrant women who are dependent on their husbands' status are generally "mail-order brides." These women are usually called "ordered" by "older, politically conservative, college-educated white man, with higher than average income, who has had bitter experiences with divorce or breakups." By marrying an Asian woman, not only does the man have control over her immigration status, the woman is also very submissive to male hierarchy due to the culture she was brought up with.
ReplyDeleteGenerally speaking, these women do not seek jobs outside of homes as they are neither fluent in English nor have legal documentations to allow her to work. In a sense the women became slaves at their husbands' households as well as emotional outlet for their husbands. Due to their cultural nature, Asian women would not report domestic violence for fear of shaming their family honors--they would rather keep the pain inside and not fuss about the issues with their family members. If a woman does indeed manage to leave an abusive marriage, the consequences are not ideal in that social stigma often results for the woman and her family. It would also be difficult for her to re-marry due the woman's history of divorcing her previous husband.
In contrast, economically vulnerable women from African countries are not in high demand in the "mail-order birde" business. The African culture usually do not stress upon a woman's submissiveness to husband or the concept of male hierarchy.
I agree with mainly everyones comments above regarding 1 and 2. Just to add onto that, many Asian cultures involve the ideas of saving face as well ad ye notions of superiority and obedience. Most Asian women are brought up to not speak out for themselves, especially in regards to that of an employee employer situation. As we saw in chain of love, it is often upto outside organizations to educate these women about the agency and sense of control they should hve over their own lives in the US.
ReplyDeleteFurthermore, we must remember that many of the women who do become picture brides are fully aware of the fact that their main duty will involve serving the husband. However at the same time, many picture brides leave their home country to escape the lack of agency and independence in their home country. The irony in this is interesting as well. These picture brides, like the mail order brides, often end up feeling stuck in their situation as their culture does not encourage them to speak up.