Negotiating Survival: Central American Refugee Women in Mexico and the Politics of Deservingness
Autor(a) principal: | |
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Data de Publicação: | 2022 |
Tipo de documento: | Artigo |
Idioma: | eng |
Título da fonte: | Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos) |
Texto Completo: | https://doi.org/10.17645/si.v10i4.5739 |
Resumo: | This article aims to analyse the difficulties Central American refugee women face when applying for refugee protection in Mexico and how they negotiate survival during this process. Claiming refugee protection is an important legal mechanism to ensure survival, but managing this process successfully is difficult, not only because of the bureaucratic complexities but also because of structural and political constraints. Research has addressed the difficulties migrant women face while in transit and in the United States, but there is less analysis on the limitations in accessing refugee protection in transit countries such as Mexico. Therefore, this article examines the main barriers women face by considering the social and spatial specifics of two different reception sites, the southern Mexican city of Tapachula and Mexico City, in the centre of the country. Drawing on ethnographic field research and interviews with refugees and practitioners, this research seeks to understand women’s agency in dealing with adversity in reception contexts. Analysis showed that women need to engage in micro‐level negotiations with gatekeepers in host communities to gain access to humanitarian assistance and social rights. In addition, it has showed that access to scarce resources depends on personal performance in terms of vulnerability and “deservingness.” This demonstrates the complexities refugee women encounter in the local context, but also the role of institutional constraints to humanitarian attention in contrast to an integral understanding of rights. Furthermore, the obstacles faced by refugees and the generation of uncertainty and waiting must be analysed as a political strategy to prevent effective access to asylum in Mexico. |
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Negotiating Survival: Central American Refugee Women in Mexico and the Politics of Deservingnessdeservingness; gender; Mexico; refugee protection; social navigation; social rights; waitingThis article aims to analyse the difficulties Central American refugee women face when applying for refugee protection in Mexico and how they negotiate survival during this process. Claiming refugee protection is an important legal mechanism to ensure survival, but managing this process successfully is difficult, not only because of the bureaucratic complexities but also because of structural and political constraints. Research has addressed the difficulties migrant women face while in transit and in the United States, but there is less analysis on the limitations in accessing refugee protection in transit countries such as Mexico. Therefore, this article examines the main barriers women face by considering the social and spatial specifics of two different reception sites, the southern Mexican city of Tapachula and Mexico City, in the centre of the country. Drawing on ethnographic field research and interviews with refugees and practitioners, this research seeks to understand women’s agency in dealing with adversity in reception contexts. Analysis showed that women need to engage in micro‐level negotiations with gatekeepers in host communities to gain access to humanitarian assistance and social rights. In addition, it has showed that access to scarce resources depends on personal performance in terms of vulnerability and “deservingness.” This demonstrates the complexities refugee women encounter in the local context, but also the role of institutional constraints to humanitarian attention in contrast to an integral understanding of rights. Furthermore, the obstacles faced by refugees and the generation of uncertainty and waiting must be analysed as a political strategy to prevent effective access to asylum in Mexico.Cogitatio2022-12-19info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersioninfo:eu-repo/semantics/articleapplication/pdfhttps://doi.org/10.17645/si.v10i4.5739oai:ojs.cogitatiopress.com:article/5739Social Inclusion; Vol 10, No 4 (2022): Networks and Contested Identities in the Refugee Journey; 233-2432183-2803reponame:Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)instname:Agência para a Sociedade do Conhecimento (UMIC) - FCT - Sociedade da Informaçãoinstacron:RCAAPenghttps://www.cogitatiopress.com/socialinclusion/article/view/5739https://doi.org/10.17645/si.v10i4.5739https://www.cogitatiopress.com/socialinclusion/article/view/5739/5739Copyright (c) 2022 Susanne Willersinfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessWillers, Susanne2022-12-22T13:15:13Zoai:ojs.cogitatiopress.com:article/5739Portal AgregadorONGhttps://www.rcaap.pt/oai/openaireopendoar:71602024-03-19T16:21:25.258039Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos) - Agência para a Sociedade do Conhecimento (UMIC) - FCT - Sociedade da Informaçãofalse |
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv |
Negotiating Survival: Central American Refugee Women in Mexico and the Politics of Deservingness |
title |
Negotiating Survival: Central American Refugee Women in Mexico and the Politics of Deservingness |
spellingShingle |
Negotiating Survival: Central American Refugee Women in Mexico and the Politics of Deservingness Willers, Susanne deservingness; gender; Mexico; refugee protection; social navigation; social rights; waiting |
title_short |
Negotiating Survival: Central American Refugee Women in Mexico and the Politics of Deservingness |
title_full |
Negotiating Survival: Central American Refugee Women in Mexico and the Politics of Deservingness |
title_fullStr |
Negotiating Survival: Central American Refugee Women in Mexico and the Politics of Deservingness |
title_full_unstemmed |
Negotiating Survival: Central American Refugee Women in Mexico and the Politics of Deservingness |
title_sort |
Negotiating Survival: Central American Refugee Women in Mexico and the Politics of Deservingness |
author |
Willers, Susanne |
author_facet |
Willers, Susanne |
author_role |
author |
dc.contributor.author.fl_str_mv |
Willers, Susanne |
dc.subject.por.fl_str_mv |
deservingness; gender; Mexico; refugee protection; social navigation; social rights; waiting |
topic |
deservingness; gender; Mexico; refugee protection; social navigation; social rights; waiting |
description |
This article aims to analyse the difficulties Central American refugee women face when applying for refugee protection in Mexico and how they negotiate survival during this process. Claiming refugee protection is an important legal mechanism to ensure survival, but managing this process successfully is difficult, not only because of the bureaucratic complexities but also because of structural and political constraints. Research has addressed the difficulties migrant women face while in transit and in the United States, but there is less analysis on the limitations in accessing refugee protection in transit countries such as Mexico. Therefore, this article examines the main barriers women face by considering the social and spatial specifics of two different reception sites, the southern Mexican city of Tapachula and Mexico City, in the centre of the country. Drawing on ethnographic field research and interviews with refugees and practitioners, this research seeks to understand women’s agency in dealing with adversity in reception contexts. Analysis showed that women need to engage in micro‐level negotiations with gatekeepers in host communities to gain access to humanitarian assistance and social rights. In addition, it has showed that access to scarce resources depends on personal performance in terms of vulnerability and “deservingness.” This demonstrates the complexities refugee women encounter in the local context, but also the role of institutional constraints to humanitarian attention in contrast to an integral understanding of rights. Furthermore, the obstacles faced by refugees and the generation of uncertainty and waiting must be analysed as a political strategy to prevent effective access to asylum in Mexico. |
publishDate |
2022 |
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv |
2022-12-19 |
dc.type.status.fl_str_mv |
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion |
dc.type.driver.fl_str_mv |
info:eu-repo/semantics/article |
format |
article |
status_str |
publishedVersion |
dc.identifier.uri.fl_str_mv |
https://doi.org/10.17645/si.v10i4.5739 oai:ojs.cogitatiopress.com:article/5739 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.17645/si.v10i4.5739 |
identifier_str_mv |
oai:ojs.cogitatiopress.com:article/5739 |
dc.language.iso.fl_str_mv |
eng |
language |
eng |
dc.relation.none.fl_str_mv |
https://www.cogitatiopress.com/socialinclusion/article/view/5739 https://doi.org/10.17645/si.v10i4.5739 https://www.cogitatiopress.com/socialinclusion/article/view/5739/5739 |
dc.rights.driver.fl_str_mv |
Copyright (c) 2022 Susanne Willers info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
rights_invalid_str_mv |
Copyright (c) 2022 Susanne Willers |
eu_rights_str_mv |
openAccess |
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application/pdf |
dc.publisher.none.fl_str_mv |
Cogitatio |
publisher.none.fl_str_mv |
Cogitatio |
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv |
Social Inclusion; Vol 10, No 4 (2022): Networks and Contested Identities in the Refugee Journey; 233-243 2183-2803 reponame:Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos) instname:Agência para a Sociedade do Conhecimento (UMIC) - FCT - Sociedade da Informação instacron:RCAAP |
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Agência para a Sociedade do Conhecimento (UMIC) - FCT - Sociedade da Informação |
instacron_str |
RCAAP |
institution |
RCAAP |
reponame_str |
Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos) |
collection |
Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos) |
repository.name.fl_str_mv |
Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos) - Agência para a Sociedade do Conhecimento (UMIC) - FCT - Sociedade da Informação |
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1799130661137678336 |