Multiple Forms Of Discrimination Research Articles

Bogart et al. Respond

We appreciate the opportunity to respond to Nathan’s insightful questions and to elucidate several aspects of our research. Nathan asks about the implications of grouping together all discrimination sources. As she notes, Greene et al. suggest that discrimination source plays a role in health outcomes, with peer discrimination more highly related to mental health than adult discrimination.1 However, the Healthy Passages fifth-grade survey did not ask separate questions about discrimination by adults and discrimination by peers. Measuring and analyzing the distinct effects of different discrimination sources on health disparities in this age group would be an important contribution to the field. Nathan also asks the extent to which perceived discrimination results from socioeconomic status (SES) disparities. We controlled for SES and still found robust effects. It may also be useful to jointly examine effects of SES- and race-based discrimination. Some research has done so; one study found that SES-related discrimination had significant effects on mental health whereas racial discrimination did not,2 and two studies found similar effects on physical and mental health for the two discrimination types.3,4 Additional studies are needed among youths to further examine the effects of multiple forms of discrimination. Finally, we would like to clarify our study’s implications for intervention. We believe that there is potential benefit from structural-level interventions (e.g., policies to decrease racial residential segregation and improve resources in lower-SES communities; school programs to encourage reporting of discrimination) and individual-level interventions for all racial/ethnic groups. Therapeutic interventions for Black and Latino youths could help to validate their experiences by acknowledging the extent of societal discrimination in their lives and the toll it takes and could foster adaptive coping responses to the stress of discrimination (such as support-seeking). For Whites, individual-level interventions could focus first on raising awareness about the harmful effects of discrimination and the ways in which stigma unconsciously influences behaviors (even among individuals who do not see themselves as prejudiced)5 and second on employing social-psychological stigma-reduction strategies such as facilitating positive contact among racial/ethnic groups via anti-discrimination school policies.6 A comprehensive strategy of intervening at both the individual and community levels and addressing the experiences and behaviors of both perceivers and targets offers a promising approach for reducing discrimination.

Remarks by Akiko Ito

My name is Akiko Ito, and I am Chief of the Secretariat for the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities at the United Nations Department for Economic and Social Affairs (also known as DESA). DESA works to support the development pillars of the United Nations--peace and security, and human rights. BACKGROUND Our starting point is the commitment of the United Nations to the advancement of the rights of women and of persons with disabilities. This commitment is deeply rooted in the UN Charter, which calls for progress in economic and social development, and promotion of human rights for a peaceful and prosperous world. (1) Over the past decades, we have seen great advances through global movements of women and persons with disabilities. Perhaps I do not need to mention to this audience the history of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), (2) or of the world conferences on women held in Beijing, Copenhagen, Mexico, and Nairobi. I believe that we all share the history of the global women's rights movement as an integral part of our movement toward gender equality and women's empowerment. Over the past decades, we have also seen great advances brought about with the advocacy of movements and organizations of persons with disabilities. As a result, we have today the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), adopted in 2006, (3) which is the first human rights treaty setting out a comprehensive normative framework for the protection and promotion of the rights of persons with disabilities in all aspects of society and development. The drafting process for the CRPD, which benefited from substantial participation and leadership of persons with disabilities, was indeed about interpreting from the disability perspective the universal human rights enshrined in existing conventions and other norms and standards. It was an extraordinary opportunity for learning from and for all stakeholders, and is recorded as one of the most successful treaty conclusions in the history of the United Nations. The Convention has enjoyed great support. There are today 111 states parties to the CRPD, sixty-three of which have also ratified its Optional Protocol. WOMEN WITH DISABILITIES The CRPD specifically stipulates the rights of women and girls with disabilities. In spite of this, women with disabilities often remain excluded from their communities due to multiple forms of discrimination and lack of access to political, economic, and social structures and decisionmaking processes. Woman with disabilities may face additional layers of discrimination based on other aspects of their identity, such as being a member of a racial minority or their indigenous status. In this regard, it is worth noting that the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, adopted by the General Assembly in 2007, (4) also specifically addresses the rights of indigenous peoples, including women and girls, with disabilities. The theme of our panel today is of critical importance because evidence suggests that women with disabilities experience disproportionately high rates of violence. In his 2006 In-Depth Study on All Forms of Violence Against Women, for example, the Secretary-General observed that surveys conducted in Europe, North America, and Australia have shown that over half of women with disabilities have experienced physical abuse, compared to one-third of non-disabled women. (5) The question I'd like to address today is about the role of the United Nations in promoting the human rights of women with disabilities, and in combating violence against women with disabilities. THE WORK OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL AFFAIRS In accordance with a series of resolutions adopted by the General Assembly, (6) DESA, through the work of the Secretariat for the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities of the Division for Social Policy and Development, has prioritized the mainstreaming of disability in the United Nations agenda, and within its multi-dimensional efforts, DESA strives to include the perspective of women with disabilities. …

‘Flower by flower, we make a garden’: Palestinian women organising for economic justice

This article illustrates a unique experience of social-movement building, initiated by Sawt el-Amel, a grassroots organisation of Arab workers in Israel. The process started in 2005, with the establishment of an activist forum for women on social welfare in Nazareth. Gradually, this is transforming into a union for Arab women all across Israel. The initiative can teach valuable lessons about organising for economic justice, and has also developed an innovative approach to addressing gender issues within the context of a national minority community with conservative structures, where women face multiple forms of discrimination based on gender, race, and socio-economic status.