Migration and Health: A Framework for 21st Century Policy-Making

In the introductory article to a six-part PLoS Medicine series on Migration & Health, series guest editors Cathy Zimmerman, Mazeda Hossain, and Ligia Kiss outline a migratory process framework that involves five phases: pre-departure, travel, destination, interception, and return

Community activism and empowerment of Turkish-speaking migrant women in London

Post-migration hardship often affects the integration processes of migrants from non-English speaking countries and in particular of migrant women who often come as ‘dependents’ of male migrants. Institutional, social and cultural barriers make integration for migrant women slow and difficult to achieve. Involvement in community self-help and mutual aid is an important strategy for disadvantaged groups in overcoming hardship and building social networks and capital. Community organisations are a bridge for migrants to access welfare rights and benefits, and to communicate with host local communities. This paper discusses the findings of a small-scale study on the community activism of Turkish-speaking women in London. Focus group meetings were conducted with self-help/mutual aid groups run by Turkish-speaking migrant women, using a typology of group political ideology and focus of change. Analysis showed that group participation was an empowering experience and a crucial strategy for integration in the host society. Depending on the type of the group, women acknowledged personal or social benefits from group participation. Implications for promoting service user empowerment and involvement of migrant communities through mutual aid activities are considered

HIV and Sexually Transmitted Infection Risk Behaviors and Beliefs Among Black West Indian Immigrants and US-Born Blacks

Objectives. We compared Black West Indian immigrants' and US-born Blacks' sexual and drug-use risk behaviors and their beliefs related to using condoms and informing partners of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) to identify possible differences in risk