Minorities In Europe Research Articles

International Developments 2018: Cultural Activities and Facilities, Education and the Media in the Context of European Minorities and from the Perspective of International Law

International Developments 2018: Cultural Activities and Facilities, Education and the Media in the Context of European Minorities and from the Perspective of International Law

International Developments 2018: Economic and Social Life in the Context of European Minority Rights

International Developments 2018: Economic and Social Life in the Context of European Minority Rights

Language Rights of European Minorities in the Administration of Justice, Public Administration and Public Services: International Developments in 2018

Language Rights of European Minorities in the Administration of Justice, Public Administration and Public Services: International Developments in 2018

Do laws shape attitudes? Evidence from same-sex relationship recognition policies in Europe

Understanding whether laws shape or simply reflect citizens’ attitudes is important but empirically difficult. We provide new evidence on this question by studying the relation between legal same-sex relationship recognition policies (SSRRPs) and attitudes toward sexual minorities in Europe. Using data from the European Social Surveys covering 2002–2016 and exploiting variation in the timing of SSRRPs across countries, we show that legal relationship recognition is associated with statistically significant improvements in attitudes toward sexual minorities. These effects are widespread across demographic groups but are consistently larger for more conservative groups in countries with less gender equality. Our results suggest that laws can exert a powerful influence in shaping societal attitudes.

What Determines Voting Behaviors of Muslim Minorities in Europe: Muslim Identity or Left‐Right Ideology?

Voting is key to political integration of immigrant‐background minorities, but what determines their voting preferences remains unclear. Moreover, dual‐citizen minorities can vote differently in their country of residence and origin. Using a representative survey of Turkish‐Muslim minorities in two cities in Belgium (N = 447, M_age = 36.3), we asked whether left‐right ideology or religious identity predicted their voting in their country of residence and origin, besides typical predictors of right‐wing voting (i.e., efficacy, deprivation, and authoritarianism). Authoritarianism, low political efficacy, and high deprivation predicted voting for right‐wing parties in Turkey, whereas the latter two, surprisingly, predicted voting for the left in Belgium. Latent class analyses of their religious practices distinguished “moderate” versus “strict” Muslims. While “strict” Muslims voted for right‐wing parties in Turkey, ideology did not predict their voting. Conversely, in Belgium, while Muslim identity did not predict their voting, ideology did. Analyzing their combined effects, “moderate” Muslims voted based on their ideology—right‐leaning voting for the right, whereas “strict” Muslims voted according to their interests as a disadvantaged minority in Belgium—thus voting for the left—or as a devout Muslim in Turkey—thus voting for the right. Our results elucidate processes underlying the voting behaviors of European‐Muslim minorities.

The effect of social assistance on kin relationships: evidence from Roma communities

ABSTRACT This paper discusses the effects of social assistance on kinship relationships in Roma, a disadvantaged European minority population, and how variation in kin support affects self-reported health and reproductive success. Data were collected in 2016–7 in several rural Roma settlements in central Serbia. The sample consisted of 143 men and 221 women. Demographic information (e.g., age, gender, educational level, marital and reproductive history, level of socioeconomic status and residence pattern), social assistance history, health status, height, and weight were collected, in addition to kinship relationship dynamics. Receiving social assistance was consistently negatively associated with all measures of kin support, more so for Roma males than females while decreased kin support was found to result in poorer self-rated health and decline in reproductive success.

Selbstbestimmungsrecht, innere Selbstbestimmung und Gruppenrechte im Kontext der Minderheitenfrage in Europa

The right of peoples to self-determination propagated by American President Wilson as a principle for the post-war order from 1918 – or at least the reference to it – seems to be more topical than ever in the present day, as evidenced by the recent separatist aspirations in different European countries. A closer look at these individual cases should be just as worthwhile as a comparison with case studies from 1918 onwards; however, such analyses should not be the subject of this article. Rather, it is an abstract, deliberately quite simplistic illumination of the topic of self-determination under international law and, in particular, internal self-determination, in the context of the minorities’ issue. After clarification of the (controversial) question of whether national minorities can be entitled to self-determination, this issue ultimately leads to constitutional law – and to the possibilities offered there for the realisation of the internal self-determination of minorities. The aim behind this sketchy overview is to open up a somewhat different perspective on the European minorities’ issue, to shed light on the topic of group rights and ultimately to develop yardsticks that can be of significance for the understanding, classification and evaluation of the current secessionist and other minority conflicts.

Was ist Selbstbestimmung? Eine Wohlstandsquelle, aber zu wenig genutzt Hundert Jahre kollektive Selbstbestimmung 1918–2018

During the last century, the significance of self-determination has undergone a remarkable change, but through erroneous equalization with the right of secession, self-determination turned oftentimes also into a myth misused or instrumentalised for political purposes. Numerous conflicts of secession are proving this. However, there is no right to secession, neither in international law nor in state practice, except in the case of consent of all parties concerned. At the most, exclusively if a people’s identity or existence is endangered by serious human rights violations, the mode of external self-determination without the consent of all parties concerned, i. e. a secession, could be legitimised on the base of human rights. Therefore, the real importance of the principles of equal rights and self-determination of peoples lies in the mode of internal self-determination, implemented through instruments like autonomy or federalism, which doesn’t violate the territorial integrity of states. In this mode, the principle of self-determination is currently of the utmost importance for the maintenance of peace, security and stability, but also for the protection of minorities in Europe, and even for regional development. Both instruments, autonomy and federalism, in fact also have a macro-economic component and are capable of transforming potential for conflict into cultural and socio-economic added value. Finally, it becomes apparent that the internal self-determination as a particular mode of division of governmental, legislative and administrative responsibilities between states and autonomous regions proves to be a remarkable source of prosperity, but unfortunately this possibility is still underutilised.

Race and the Geographies of Education: Markets, White Tone, and Racial Neoliberalism

Geographical concepts have been widely and effectively employed to understand the imposition of market principles on schooling systems. This article brings this literature into tension with critical race theory and specifically David Goldberg’s analysis of “racial neoliberalism” that foregrounds the constitutive role of race in marketization. It begins by surveying and mapping 350 publications in the field of the “geographies of education.” Although rich and varied, and offering new insights into race, existing literature tends to develop theory from case studies located in the Global North rather than the Global South. The article then turns to South Africa, one of many postcolonies where a European minority established racially segregated schools and where private and semiprivate schools have a long history. Drawing on the work of Bourdieu and Gramsci, and considering the period from the 1950s to the present, it shows the shift from a modernist project of racial segregation to marketization and racial-cultural hierarchies it calls white tone. By outlining how schools’ competition for prestige leads to the valuing of “white” phenotypic traits and cultural practices, the article demonstrates the centrality of race to market formation and thereby helps to provincialize the concept of neoliberalism. Key Words: geographies of education, postcolonial, racial neoliberalism, South Africa.

European Roma groups show complex West Eurasian admixture footprints and a common South Asian genetic origin

The Roma population is the largest transnational ethnic minority in Europe, characterized by a linguistic, cultural and historical heterogeneity. Comparative linguistics and genetic studies have placed the origin of European Roma in the Northwest of India. After their migration across Persia, they entered into the Balkan Peninsula, from where they spread into Europe, arriving in the Iberian Peninsula in the 15th century. Their particular demographic history has genetic implications linked to rare and common diseases. However, the South Asian source of the proto-Roma remains still untargeted and the West Eurasian Roma component has not been yet deeply characterized. Here, in order to describe both the South Asian and West Eurasian ancestries, we analyze previously published genome-wide data of 152 European Roma and 34 new Iberian Roma samples at a fine-scale and haplotype-based level, with special focus on the Iberian Roma genetic substructure. Our results suggest that the putative origin of the proto-Roma involves a Punjabi group with low levels of West Eurasian ancestry. In addition, we have identified a complex West Eurasian component (around 65%) in the Roma, as a result of the admixture events occurred with non-proto-Roma populations between 1270–1580. Particularly, we have detected the Balkan genetic footprint in all European Roma, and the Baltic and Iberian components in the Northern and Western Roma groups, respectively. Finally, our results show genetic substructure within the Iberian Roma, with different levels of West Eurasian admixture, as a result of the complex historical events occurred in the Peninsula.

Advancing Science Through Diversity and Inclusion in the Editorial Process: A Case Study

Abstract Objective In the U.S., women and culturally/linguistically diverse persons are underrepresented in research and editorial boards. This case study details how one journal, The Clinical Neuropsychologist (TCN), created and implemented a strategic plan to advance diversity and inclusion in its editorial board and process. Case Description In 2015, Dr. Yana Suchy became TCN’s first female Editor-in-Chief; and in 2016, she created the Culture and Gender in Neuropsychology Department (CGND). The CGND’s Editors are Drs. Rivera Mindt and Hilsabeck, and their mission is to diversify science and empirically-based practice within neuropsychology by (1) increasing representation of editors/reviewers from diverse backgrounds; (2) soliciting articles related to gender/culture; (3) providing resources addressing diversity issues; and (4) demonstrating editorial leadership via editorial content. Diagnostic Impressions and Outcomes In 2015, only 23% of TCN editors were women and only 2% were from diverse backgrounds. By 2018, representation of these groups increased to 50% and 13%, respectively. Also, in 2018 TCN published its first special issue on gender, numerous articles on culturally diverse populations, and the first guideline for evaluation of transgender persons. An upcoming special issue will focus on normative data for Spanish-speakers. Resources available include a Publication Guidelines Checklist, formal presentations, and informal communications (social media) to educate and engage stakeholders and consultors. These accomplishments were recently highlighted in the inaugural CGND editorial (2018). Discussion Over the last three years, TCN has taken steps to increase representation of gender- and culturally/linguistically-relevant content, editorial leadership, and professional development; thereby demonstrating that this is a tangible goal. This case study serves as a call to action for other journals to follow suit and further diversify science. References Rivera Mindt, M., Hilsabeck, R. C., Olsen, J. P., Savin, M. J., Crook, C. L., & Suchy, Y. Advancing science through diversity and inclusion in the editorial process: A case study. Science Editor, 41(3), 93-96. Rivera Mindt, M. & Hilsabeck, R. C. (2018) TCN culture and gender in Neuropsychology Department: inaugural editorial. The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 32(8), 1353-1355, DOI: 10.1080/13854046.2018.1525110. Hilsabeck, R. C. (2018) Editorial: Raising awareness about gender bias and disparity in clinical neuropsychology and a call to action. ClinNeuropsychol, 32,183–185. https://doi.org/10.1080/13854046.2018.1525110. Fujii, D. E. M. (2018) Developing a cultural context for conducting a neuropsychological evaluation with a culturally diverse client: The ECLECTIC framework. The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 32(8), 1356-1392, DOI: 10.1080/13854046.2018.1435826. Trittschuh, E. H., Parmenter, B. A., Clausell, E. R., Mariano, M. J. & Reger, M. A. (2018) Conducting neuropsychological assessment with transgender individuals. The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 32(8), 1393-1410, DOI: 10.1080/13854046.2018.1440632. Nielsen, T. R., Segers, K., Vanderaspoilden, V., Bekkhus-Wetterberg, P., Minthon, L., Pissiota, A., Bjørkløf, G. H., Beinhoff, U., Tsolaki, M., Gkioka, M., & Waldemar G. (2018) Performance of middle-aged and elderly European minority and majority populations on a Cross-Cultural Neuropsychological Test Battery (CNTB). The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 32(8), 1411-1430, DOI: 10.1080/13854046.2018.1430256. Suhr J. A., Ready R., Rosen W. G., Hilsabeck, R. C., & Ploetz, D. M. The changing face of neuropsychology: gender disparities and strategies for addressing them. CE workshop presented at the 37th annual conference of the National Academy of Neuropsychology, Boston, MA, 2017. Hilsabeck, R. C., Sweet J., Forrest B., Sachs B., & Kubu, C. Gender and the profession of neuropsychology: where we’ve been and where we need to go. CE workshop presented at the 15th Annual Conference of the American Academy of Clinical Neuropsychology, Boston, MA, 2017. Rivera Mindt, M. 2018. The Clinical Neuropsychologist: increasing diversity & inclusion. Council of Science Editors, TechnicaEditorial Services Webinar: The Peer Review Ecosystem: Where Does Diversity & Inclusion Fit In? [accessed 2018 Oct 9]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7cixedlVR0o&feature=youtu.be.

The Construction of Pious Children in Serial Salman Dan Hamzah

Children’s literature is often used as a medium for teaching values, for example
 religious values, in order to shape children’s character based on the understanding or
 ideology of certain groups. Through religious-based children’s literature, the figure of
 a religious ideal child was created and called a pious child. This example is applied by
 Salafi Islamic groups in Indonesia. The group that bases its teachings from the Salaf
 creates Islamic children’s book genre called ”Sunna children’s book”. The method
 used in this article is library-based qualitative research. Studies of pious character
 in European minority Muslim children’s literature have been widely carried out by
 Green-Oldendorf (2011), Shavit (2016) and Janson (2017), while studies of pious children
 in Indonesian contexts have only been done little, including this article. Textual study on
 the construction of pious children character is carried out according to the concept of
 ideal child in children’s literature by Purbani (2009), children book illustration and visual
 by Nodelman (2004), and pious Muslim child and childhood by research approach
 (Hendra-Priadi, 2019 and Scourfield et. al., 2013). The result of the research shows
 that pious children are represented through the main character who is very diligent
 in worshiping, behaving well, and obedient to parents. In addition, the construction of
 pious children in Serial Salman dan Hamzah is based on Salafi ideology concept of
 tarbiyah (education) that textually refers to the Quran and Hadith.

"L'assalto alla diligenza": la penetrazione del fascismo nella comunità italiana di Tunisia negli anni Venti

This article provides a detailed analysis of the onset of Fascism in Tunisia’s Italian community, which constituted a European minority in a French protectorate, between the end of World War I and 1929. So far, historians of Italian migration in the Mediterranean and in colonial contexts have examined this topic, but they have mostly focused on the regime’s strategies, neglecting the reactions of the local community. This article adopts a different perspective, and focuses on Tunisia’s Italian community, which was faced with Fascism’s political and cultural initiatives. In order to achieve this goal, the author considers a wide range of sources, and relates Fascist documents with those of the local community (associations, newspapers, and private letters). The article highlights the complex relations that existed between the center and the periphery, the importance of the local context in redefining Fascism’s strategies of consensus, as well as the social actors involved in the process of Fascistization.

Framing education policies and transitions of Roma students in Europe

ABSTRACTThe aim of this article is to identify the contexts and conditions that allow for successful education transitions and opportunities for the Roma minority in Europe. Thus far, transnational and national policies have failed to ensure Roma inclusion and education equality, even though some progress is visible. Using a combination of policy analysis and interviews with NGO and European Union actors, University academics and Roma students, the article examines the key contexts that frame education policies and create the necessary conditions for education transitions. It identifies the problems and challenges within the contemporary EU education policy frameworks and highlights the tensions between political rhetoric and policy commitments that are visible at national, transnational, and local levels. In addition, through a focus on individual student experiences, the article captures the lived reality of Roma students who have managed their education transitions with success.

The economic advancement of European minority immigrants to the USA

ABSTRACTThis study highlights the recent changes in the composition of the Western European immigrant population to the United States. This research examines the growing diversity of this migratory stream, investigating seven groups of immigrants from Western Europe to the USA. Findings show that individuals who were born in Western Europe but whose families have origins outside of Western Europe have been settling in the US in growing numbers. In addition, immigrants from Western Europe of non-European descents carry a higher ethnic penalty when they come to the USA, but most of them advance faster economically than immigrants of Western European descents, besides Sub-Saharan Africans who remain disadvantaged. Three plausible explanations for this phenomenon are tested, and findings show that the gap between the level of discrimination experienced by a given ethnic group in the origin country and the level of discrimination experienced by the same ethnic group in the destination country is the most influential determinant.

Participation, Citizenship and Transfrontier Exchanges—2017

This article provides an update on the protection of minorities in Europe during 2017, in the areas of participation, citizenship and transfrontier exchanges. It will summarize developments at the United Nations level as well as regional information from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the Council of Europe (CoE) and the European Union (EU) and identify trends.

Language Rights of Minorities in the Areas of Education, the Administration of Justice and Public Administration: European Developments in 2017

This section overviews the 2017 situation of the language rights of European minorities in the fields of education, the administration of justice and public administration. The author presents the relevant legal developments in the activities of the major international organizations, i.e. the United Nations, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the European Union, and the Council of Europe including the case law of the European Court of Human Rights, and the implementation of the European Charter for Regional and Minority Languages as well as the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. In the concluding remarks, tendencies and common patterns are emphasized.

Sociocultural Rights and the Media: International Developments 2017

This article provides an overview of international developments in the area of the sociocultural and economic rights of European minorities, including access to and portrayal in the media, throughout 2017. The year brought several significant advancements in these areas. The adoption of the 2017 UNESCO Declaration of Ethical Principles in Relation to Climate Change acknowledged the role of indigenous knowledge in counteracting the challenge of climate change. Protection and integration of Roma was addressed in the activities of the human rights organizations and bodies at the level of the UN, the Council of Europe, the OSCE and the EU. The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) delivered a series of significant judgments specifying the factors that would allow a court to classify an act as a hate crime. The ECtHR also instituted procedural rules protecting people from violence based on ethnic and racial motives.

Fighting for “Justice”, Engaging the Other: Shi’a Muslim Activism on the British University Campus

While Shi’a Muslims remain in the minority in Europe, including within universities, the past decade has witnessed the growing profile of Shi’ism on university campuses, especially in Britain. In particular, there has been an emphasis on campaigns that prioritise notions of justice, equality, and human rights. Drawing on interviews and ethnographic fieldwork conducted amongst Twelver Shi’a students in Britain between 2013–2018, this paper examines the forms of Shi’a activism currently being articulated on university campuses, especially those that explicitly seek to engage non-Muslims and spread awareness about Shi’a Islam. On the one hand, such practices constitute a form of self-representation for Shi’a students who would otherwise feel marginalised within the university space; while on the other, they promote a particular version of Shi’a Islam that both frames it within the European context and that also contributes to the sectarianisation of the contemporary Shi’a subject. While the forms and resonance of Shi’a student activism arguably only have meaning within the context of contemporary Europe, we argue that the discursive contours underpinning such activism ultimately transcend such national and cultural boundaries and contribute to a reinterpretation and reimagining of Shi’a sectarian identity for the modern age.

Europe and the Ummah: A Legal Inquiry on the Condition of the Muslim Community in a Transforming Continent

This paper is divided into two sections. I. The first is a picture of the reality, and describes the condition of blatant discrimination of many Muslim Communities in Europe, presenting the emblematic example of the places of worship in Italy. The case study looks at some recent decisions of the Italian Constitutional Court. The Court declared unconstitutional certain norms of two regional laws approved by the Lombardy region (2/2015) and by the Veneto region (12/2016) which provided for very strict conditions for the opening, approval and use of mosques. In particular, the Court declared unconstitutional norms where – for the building of places of worship – they introduced certain conditions for groups with an agreement with the State and different conditions for those without. Moreover, the Court declared unconstitutional the principle of using only Italian for all those activities of common interest for religious services. The basic assumption of the first section is that the current discrimination is the result of antimigration sentiments and prejudices as well as the consequence of the cultural function of religious freedom in the European nation-state. II. The second section is a “should-be” analysis, and explores the potential of contextualizing the Islamic legal culture in the European institutional environment. This experiment, that must be directed by scholars and experts, and is necessary for three reasons. 1. The first is a matter of fact: Muslims are today a relatively small minority in Europe, making up roughly 5% of the population. Yet, the Muslim share of Europe’s total population has been increasing steadily and will continue to grow in the coming decades. 2. The second is a legal argument: in the spirit of pluralism the “European Union”, as a new international entity, was built. “United in diversity” is the motto of the European Union, first came into use in 2000, and it should signify how Europeans have come together, in the form of the EU, to work for peace and prosperity, while at the same time being enriched by the continent’s many different cultures, traditions, languages, and religions. This paradigm is the frame where the accommodation of the Ummah, with her special characteristics, must take place. 3. The third is the address, political and cosmopolitan by nature, of generating a “virtuous circle” in the European legal jurisprudence melting the asset of the Islamic law with the European pluralist and democratic (?) spirit. The basic assumption of the second section is that the current situation of discrimination and marginalization of the Ummah in Europe should improve with a better understanding of the pluralistic vein of the Islamic law, when implemented by the pervasive and pragmatic function of the European theory of pluralism.