Migrant Women Research Articles

Pregnant racialised migrants and the ubiquitous border: The hostile environment as a technology of stratified reproduction.

This article explores the impact of the 'hostile environment' on racialised migrant women's experiences of pregnancy and childbirth in England, arguing that the 'hostile environment' functions as a technology of 'stratified reproduction.' First coined by Shellee Colen, the concept of stratified reproduction describes the dynamic by which some individuals and groups may be supported in their reproductive activities, while others are disempowered and discouraged. This paper locates the stratified reproduction produced by the 'hostile environment' as intertwined with wider gendered and racialised discourses around British citizenship which have been 'designed to fail' racialised residents of the UK. Drawing on interviews with racialised migrant mothers in the north of England, this paper analyses how the proliferation and intensification of immigration controls interacts with gender, race, class, and other social regimes to differentially allocate the resources necessary for a safe and healthy pregnancy and childbirth, and how this is experienced materially by pregnant migrants.

Forum theatre practice as lived activism

This article seeks to show that activism for racialised, black and migrant women stems from their embodied lived experiences and the need for creating practices and spaces for these to manifest, be validated and expand on. Forum Theatre practice that includes the racialised body, collective reflection and reparative action can address the neo-colonial and patriarchal encounters, and places of oppression within mainstream activism. This article was discussed, written, and based on the workshops and reflexive conversations regarding the racialised women's experiences of the hostile environment policies. It reflects on the necessity to address and combat these policies through empowering the mind, body and spirit of the women activists in North East of England, part of an AHRC funded knowledge transfer project of using arts based interventions for civic engagement.

Bleeding for life: a perspective of menstruation among slum dwellers of a temple town in coastal Karnataka, India

IntroductionChallenges in the achievement of good menstrual hygiene management in resource poor settings have been well documented and are linked to deleterious effect on women's health. This study was an attempt to assess the vulnerability with regards to menstrual health among the migrant population residing in urban slums in Udupi taluk. MethodsA community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 392 migrant women in reproductive age group using a predesigned 31- item questionnaire.The domains of knowledge, attitude and practice about menstrual hygiene were categorized into poor and adequate knowledge, positive and negative attitude, and poor and good practice by using median as a cut off. ResultsOut of the 392 study subjects who participated in the study 31%,27% and 41% of them had good knowledge, positive attitude and good practice regarding menstrual hygiene respectively. Good knowledge was significantly associated with better standard of living (p < 0.001, OR = 3.612, CI = 2.159–6.042). Attitude was significantly almost five times better in women with more than ten years of schooling as compared to illiterates and school drop outs (p < 0.001, OR = 4.655, CI = 2.360–9.179). With regards to standard of living, adherence to good menstrual hygiene practice was better in women belonging to middle as compared to those of low class. (p = 0.001, OR = 2.730, CI = 1.502–4.962). ConclusionThe findings show an overall poor knowledge, attitude and practice towards menstrual health. This displays an urgent need of conducting health promotional activities to impart appropriate knowledge regarding hygienic practices during menstrual periods and simultaneously address to the misconceptions linked with it.

The Peculiar Consensus and Racial Unconscious in Migration Scholarship on Korea

This paper argues that race must be a central consideration in understanding migration in Korea, where international migrants are rapidly reshaping the national landscape. While migration scholarship on Korea has analyzed various policy trajectories, it has predominantly focused on three aspects—liberal democracy, ethnicity, and gender—largely overlooking the significance of race. First, it assumes that liberal democracy will eventually supersede xenophobia without critically examining its assumptions that are both racialized and teleological in nature. Second, by prioritizing ethnicity, it interprets discrimination against migrants through the notion of uni-ethnicity and a fear of foreignness without delving into Korea’s deeply rooted fixation on race. Third, it overemphasizes gendered migration, regarding Korea’s demographic crisis as a primary reason for accepting migrant women as biological reproducers. This paper contends that all three aspects are intricately connected to race, including Korea’s aspiration for whiteness and abjection of blackness, which significantly shape migration dynamics.

Trauma-informed care for women who are forced migrants: a qualitative study among service providers.

The aim was to explore service providers' perspectives on trauma-informed care for women who are forced migrants. Service providers (n=32) employed at one of six centres providing trauma-informed care for forced migrants were recruited by way of managers. Audio-recorded and transcribed semi-structured focus group discussions were analysed with systematic text condensation. The analysis revealed exposure to gender-based violence and abuse within patriarchal structures as the main challenges for women. Participants recognised remarkable strength and resilience among women. A range of structural, psychosocial and individual barriers to trauma-informed care were addressed. While trauma-informed care was considered to have the potential to improve the health for many women, participants articulated room for improvement in the competence of service providers and the conditions impacting women's opportunities to access support. Violence, abuse and oppression against forced migrant women severely impact their health and possibilities of accessing support. Services providing trauma-informed care for forced migrants need to empower women, and carefully consider gender-related aspects impacting women's opportunities to access and utilise trauma-informed care. To ensure that women who need support access it, trauma-informed services should work with outreach efforts, ensure competence development among providers, counteract practical barriers and coordinate with health and social services.

Overlooked Realities: Reimagining "Home" and "House" Among Women Domestic Workers in India.

Domestic workers (DWs) are integral to the daily lives of a significant portion of India's urban population, with an estimated 3.9 million individuals employed in domestic roles in urban areas, mostly women. This article explores the perceptions of home, house, and safe spaces among migrant women DWs in Delhi. Through in-depth interviews, it delves into their lived experiences as both breadwinners and survivors of domestic violence, revealing that (a) house and home are differently conceptualized by these workers; (b) their homes are perceived as warzones, reinforcing patriarchy through incidents of domestic violence and gendered subordination; and (c) women DWs navigate the complexities of conflicting identities as breadwinners and survivors within unequal gendered relationships.

‘They see us as an easy target’: discrimination and hate crime against Eastern European women living in the UK

Anti-immigration sentiment, discrimination and hate crime, against Eastern Europeans in the UK, has increased in recent years. Prior to Brexit, European Union (EU) citizens were afforded free movement, including rights to live and work in the UK, but in 2020, those without residency status, were subject to strict immigration laws and restrictions on living and working in the UK. Research shows that punitive immigration policies have a disproportionate impact on migrant women, increasing their risk of discrimination, exploitation, and gender-based violence. However, while in 2022 the UK government ratified the Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence, a treaty otherwise known as the ‘Istanbul Convention’, they opted out of Article 59, which specifically protects migrant women. Existing research into discrimination, exploitation, and gender-based violence against migrant women, in the UK, largely focuses on Black and minority ethnic (BME) women. This article reports on findings from a mixed-methods, descriptive study, on the specific experiences of Eastern European women, living in the UK. Findings explore the intersecting gendered and racial discrimination against Eastern European women, in the UK, providing a descriptive account of the distinct forms of gender-based discrimination and violence which they face.

Unveiling silenced narratives: a scoping review on sexual function challenges in migrant and refugee women.

Of the approximately 281 million international migrants and 35.3 million refugees around the world, almost half are women. These individuals experience significant stress due to language barriers, financial difficulties, poor living and working conditions, and discrimination. Consequently, concerns related to sexuality may receive lower priority despite their significant impact on overall well-being. This scoping review aims to review the sexual function of migrant and refugee women and identify any knowledge gaps in the field. We conducted a scoping review following the PRISMA-ScR guidelines (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses extension for Scoping Reviews). We searched online databases-Medline, Embase, Emcare, PsycINFO, CINAHL, Scopus, Web of Science, and Cochrane-and gray literature, with no restrictions on year of publication, language, or study design. Utilizing Covidence software, 2 authors screened and extracted data from studies based on predetermined eligibility criteria. A thematic analysis was executed, and findings were reported descriptively. Initially, we identified 5615 studies; after screening titles, abstracts, and full texts, we ultimately included 12 studies. The review identified a limited body of research with various unvalidated tools. Moreover, these studies yielded heterogeneous results: migrant women reported less sexual knowledge, experience, and liberal attitudes, resulting in lower rates of desire and arousal as compared with nonmigrants. Some studies showed lower sexual function in migrants, while others found no significant differences between migrants and nonmigrants. The assimilation into Western cultures may influence migrants' sexual attitudes and behaviors. Factors such as education and gender role ideology can also significantly affect sexual function among migrant populations. This review underscores the limitations in previous sexual function research, emphasizing the need for a more inclusive approach. It also offers valuable insights for codesigning programs to address sexual dysfunction among migrant and refugee women, improving their well-being. Future research should prioritize neglected populations and create culturally sensitive interventions to reduce sexual health disparities in migrants.

What words can tell us about social determinants of mental health: A multi-method analysis of sentiment towards migration experiences and community life in Lima, Perú.

To support resilience in contexts of migration, a deeper understanding of the experiences of both receiving communities and migrants is required. Research on the impacts of migration on community life is limited in contexts with high internal migration (i.e., migrating within one's country of origin). Evidence suggests that cultural similarity, community relationships, and access to resources may be protective factors that could be leveraged to support the mental health of internal migrants. The current study uses data drawn from a sample of pregnant Peruvian women (N = 251), 87 of whom reported being internal migrants and 164 of whom reported being from the locale of the study (Lima, Perú). The aim was to better understand the social experience of internal migration for both local and migrant women. Inductive thematic analysis was used to examine migration experience and perceived impact of migration on community life. Internal migrants discussed three themes relative to their experiences: motivations, adjustment, and challenges. Experiences of women in receiving communities consisted of four themes related to migration: positive, negative, neutral, and mixed perceptions. Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC-22) software was also used to assess sentiment towards migration. Across both analytic methods, migration motivations and perceptions were multifaceted and migrants reported a wide range of challenges before, during, and after migration. Findings indicated that attitudes toward migration are broadly positive, and that there is a more positive appraisal of migration's impact on the community life for internal as opposed to international migration.

Perinatal outcomes of preterm births occuring to native-born and migrant mothers in Iceland

The aim of this study was to assess the incidence and perinatal outcomes of preterm births in Iceland during 1997-2018 and compare outcomes of Icelandic and migrant mothers. The population in this historical population-based cohort study was all preterm (p<37 weeks gestation) live-born singletons born in Iceland from January 1, 1997 to December 31, 2018 and their mothers; a total of 3837 births. Data was obtained from the Icelandic Medical Birth Registry. The group of migrant women was defined as women with other citizenship than Icelandic. Migrant women were divided into three groups based on their country of citizenship Human Development Index (HDI). Both descriptive and analytical statistics were used in data processing. The incidence of preterm births in Iceland increased during the study period (3,9% 1998-2001 vs. 4,5% 2012-2018, p<005) and was significantly higher among migrant mothers, especially from countries with the lowest HDI (OR 1,49 (CI 1,21-1,81) p<,001). Infants of mothers from countries with the lowest HDI had a significantly lower prevalence of respiratory distress syndrome compared with infants of Icelandic mothers (4,5% vs. 11,4%, p=0,035) meanwhile infants of mothers from countries with a medium high HDI were more often small for gestational age compared with infants of Icelandic mothers (11,4% vs. 6,9%, p=0,021). Preterm births have become more common in Iceland and the incidence is significantly higher among migrant mothers, however the outcomes of preterm infants are generally good and mostly comparable between Icelandic and migrant mothers.

A Gender-Aware Analysis on the Feminization of Entertainment Industry in Japan

This manuscript reexamines the institutionalization of the feminization of migration industry in the Philippine-Japan migration stream through a gender-aware approach. It interrogates on the reasons why Filipina migrants made their way out of the Philippines, through regular and illicit channels, to a host country like Japan despite its restrictive immigration policies. The study unpacks on the common notion that along with active state facilitation, Filipino women migrants’ mobility or those who are engaged in “nightwork” is basically mediated through the entertainment industry. This research is a product of long engagements with the respondents and various key-informants of NGOs and club owners from 2010 to 2015. The findings reveal that women migrants are able to exploit the migration industry as their personal network in alleviating their precarious status. The researcher agrees that the institutionalization of the migration through the entertainment industry from the Philippines to Japan perpetuates an exploitative woman-dominated migration stream. However, in most instances, Filipina migrants capably exploit their personal or community network formation which could also be found in the nightwork industry.

Hidden behind closed doors: Non‐standard employment, migrant women and gender regimes in Europe

AbstractNon‐standard employment (NSE) is well‐documented in the domestic sector in all European countries. The precariousness and poor working conditions of this sector reflect in a labour force composed by the most vulnerable layers of the labour market, namely, migrant women. This article analyses how and to what extent a macro‐level factor, that is, the gender regime (resulting from the interplay of gender equality and gendered social norms) interacts with micro‐level individual and occupational characteristics to shape the prevalence of NSE in the domestic sector in Europe. We use the 2019 EU‐LFS data and run a set of logistic regression analyses. Our results show that NSE is a defining feature of domestic sector, and that migrant women are at a higher risk of being in this type of employment, especially in destination countries where gender equality is relatively lower and expectations concerning care and family responsibilities are more traditional.

Indonesian Government Policy Regarding Working Hours for Indonesian Female Migrant Workers Abroad in the COVID-19 Pandemic Era

Indonesia has been sending migrant workers since the 1970s and it is mostly dominated by women who work in the informal and low-skilled sectors such as domestic workers, child and elderly caretakers, or factory workers. The economic issue has become the biggest driving factor for these workers to work abroad, in addition to social and cultural factors. During the COVID-19 pandemic, migrant women experienced significant impacts, especially changes to increasingly longer working hours. This research aims to identify COVID-19 on Indonesian female migrant workers and produce policy recommendations that protect women's work rights. This research design is qualitative research with data collection methods through literature study and in-depth interviews with Indonesian female migrant workers abroad. Based on research results, during the pandemic many Indonesian migrant workers worked longer than the applicable standard working hours, approximately more than 15 hours per day. However, there are no clear rules or forms of protection that guarantee the welfare of Indonesian migrant workers by increasing working hours beyond the established standards.

Type 2 diabetes risk after gestational diabetes according to country/region of origin. A nationwide register-based study.

The risk of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) differs between the Danish population and several migrant groups. However, it is unclear if the incidence and timing of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) following GDM vary similarly. To investigate the incidence of T2DM according to migration background based on country/region of origin among women with a previous GDM diagnosis and explore the role of time since GDM diagnosis on the association. Using nationwide registry data, we followed women diagnosed with GDM in Denmark during 2004-2018 to Dec 31, 2020. Poisson regression models were used to estimate incidence rates (IRs) of T2DM according to country/region of origin, adjusted for age, education, and body mass index. The study included 20,873 women with a GDM diagnosis, of whom 22.3% were of migrant background and 77.7% were Danish. The mean follow-up time was 7.3 years, and 10.9% were registered with T2DM during the study period. Generally, migrant women had higher IRs of T2DM compared to Danish women, with substantial variations in risk between migrant groups. Women from Pakistan and Sri Lanka had three-four times higher IRs compared to Danish women. The timing of T2DM onset also varied, with women from Sri Lanka and Pakistan having an earlier onset of T2DM compared to other migrant and Danish women. This study demonstrated that country/region of origin is an important risk factor for T2DM in women with GDM. These findings underscore the importance of prevention programs targeting women with GDM and a high-risk origin.

Migrant sex work beyond slavery and trafficking: Sex work, unfree labour and the crisis of social reproduction in Ghana

This paper examines the working lives of migrant women in the sex sector in Ghana, in light of surging global interest in the governance of “slavery and trafficking”. The paper draws on qualitative data gathered in Ghana in 2021, namely 30 interviews with migrant sex workers. Interview data document wide-ranging and systematic labour exploitation, including some of the worst forms of unfreedom characterised as “modern slavery”. Yet the majority of workers report that they entered into and stay in sex work out of economic necessity (i.e. rather than individualised, extra-economic relations of coercion), typically due to caring responsibilities. To explain this, the paper makes two interrelated arguments: firstly, it shows why the concept of “unfree labour” is more appropriate than “modern slavery” for capturing how extreme exploitation emerges from a continuum of labour unfreedom in the Ghanaian sex sector. Unfreedom is (re)produced through state laws, relations of (re)production, and trajectories of neoliberal economic restructuring, which have given rise to widespread precarisation and informalisation. Secondly, the paper argues that extant studies of unfree labour should pay greater attention to the crisis of social reproduction as a key structural driver of unfree labour. This crisis constitutes the broader material conditions in which migrant women in Ghana enter into and stay in highly exploitative forms of work within the sex sector, as a means of household survival. The paper contextualises this crisis not only in relation to neoliberalism, but to the longue durée of colonial capitalism in Ghana.

Ran’s Diary : Sexually Suggestive Protest and Counterpublic Discourse Staged by Asian Others in South Korea

Abstract: This article examines how theatres of migration in the professional sphere intervene in contemporary social issues around Asian immigrants in multicultural South Korea. Of those from other Asian countries , Ranui ilgi (Ran’s Diary, 2011) concerns female marriage migrants, confronting its non-migrant South Korean spectators with an uncomfortable and neglected reality of the migrant women’s cross-border marriages with ethnic South Korean men. Along with a specific focus on the group of marginalized Asian others in the country, the sexually suggestive mise-en-scène particularly calls the attention of the audience. In this article, I first offer a brief overview of the societal backgrounds and effects of an unprecedented influx of Asian brides into South Korea, a country with a long-held fetish for ethnic homogeneity. Then, I analyze Ran’s Diary in terms of the play’s critical perspective on inter-Asian marriages, its strategic focus on and staging of a sexually victimized female Asian migrant character, and the authentic as well as culturally conscious representation of lived experiences of those immigrants in the host country. In my conclusion, I argue that this sexually-charged performance functions as a protest against the dominant public, generating a counterpublic discourse .

The actual state of life in Korea for married Japanese migrant women -Based on the results of a life satisfaction survey-

The actual state of life in Korea for married Japanese migrant women -Based on the results of a life satisfaction survey-

Lives and sustenance of migrant Indian women in Indenture and COVID-19

In the early nineteenth century, several indentured laborers and their descendants were exposed to political, social, and cultural shifts and instabilities that perpetuated over the decades. Simultaneously, in the pandemic era of COVID-19 and the colonial period, women workers had to overcome numerous hurdles, as they migrated without proper sustenance. The main objective of this study was to examine the working conditions, physical and psychological conditions, and sustenance of contracted laborers, especially migrant women, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some of them are inequality in the labor markets, domestic workloads and workspaces, sexual abuse, mobility crises, child abuse, xenophobic attitudes, and sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV). By adopting a qualitative approach and critical examination, it is observed that the vulnerabilities of low-skilled women, the exploitation of migrant labor, as a matrix of identities, behaviors and power relationships are discernible in capitalist expansion, and the disparities that they induce while taking into account how the market mimics the prevalent sexual division of labor.

Innocence and danger at the border: migrants, “Bad” mothers, and the nation’s protectors

Media and political discourse in the USA often depict migration as an invasion and people who cross borders as criminals dangerous to the nation. Through ethnographic fieldwork conducted in two places on the USA-Mexico Southern border, we want to analyze how invasion narratives influence practices on-the-ground. We first explore how these narratives inform the views of a border militia who see themselves as protectors of the nation and understand people who cross borders as threats. We then argue that migrant women’s presence in areas where the militia operates disrupts the dominant narrative that defines migrants as dangerous, as militia members come to understand migrant women as victims of the Cartel. Despite their innocence, to maintain the narrative’s consistency, militia members still consider migrant women criminals for crossing the border “illegally.” Finally, we move on to explore the materiality of these xenophobic discourses by examining how migrant women are mistreated at a family immigration detention center. Using the militias as an example, we highlight why political narratives circulate and have meaning for individuals and how discourses have material consequences.

Labor Force Participation of Central American Migrant Women in Mexico

Central Americans living in Mexico remain a small group (100 thousand) relative to the size of the Mexican population. However, they experienced accelerated growth between 2000 and 2020, with Guatemalans as the largest group and Hondurans as the most dynamic one. The previous literature has found a positive and significant, albeit decreasing, income advantage of Central American workers in Mexico. Meanwhile, the percentage of migrant women reported as spouses has gone down and the female labor force has increased. The paper uses information from the 2000, 2010, and 2020 Mexican censuses as well as the 2015 Intercensal Survey to compare access to the labor market for men and women from Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras residing in Mexico. We compare marital status, female labor force participation, main economic sectors, human capital, and income levels of the men and women of each of the three nationalities considered, seeking to identify from a gender perspective the differentiated labor performance of each nationality.