Cohesion, Multi-faithism and the Erosion of Secular Spaces in the UK: Implications for the Human Rights of Minority Women

This article explores the erosion of secular public culture in the UK and its implications for minority women whose bodies have become the battleground for the control of community representation. It argues that struggles for equality and secularism now overlap and have taken on a sense of urgency because it is the human rights of women that are being traded in the various social contracts that are emerging between state and the religious right minority leaderships in the UK. The increasing communalisation (involving religious and community groups mobilising solely around religious identities) of South Asian populations, in particular Muslims, reflects a form of instrumentalisation of religion by the state which has severely constrained the public space available for women to mobilise around a rights?based agenda and has also significantly narrowed the choices of women of faith

Domestic violence and Asian women A collections of reports and briefings

SIGLEAvailable from British Library Document Supply Centre-DSC:99/42682 / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo

Violence against women and girls at home: domestic abuse and the pandemic

Dr Camille Stengel was joined by Justice Studio’s Director Marianne Moore, Southall Black Sisters’ Director Pragna Patel, and a Rebecca Goshawk from Solace Women’s Aid to discuss domestic abuse and the impact the pandemic has had on Gender Based Violence. The speakers will share some research findings from their London-based study conducted over the first 2020 lockdown, and reflect on the larger implications of these findings for their own work

UK initiatives on forced marriage : regulation, dialogue and exit

The literature on feminism and multiculturalism has identified potential conflicts between the recognition of cultural diversity and securing women’s equality. Three broad approaches to this dilemma have emerged in the practices of contemporary states: regulation, working with the communities, and exit. Each of these is apparent in current initiatives regarding forced marriage, but the overwhelming emphasis in the UK has been on enabling individuals to exit from the threat or reality of a forced marriage. In assessing these initiatives, we highlight the limitations of exit and the danger of moving towards immigration regulation as the preferred solution

Forced marriage among men: An unrecognized problem

Forced marriage is generally viewed as a clash between culture and gender and the fact that men are also victims, in a small number of cases, escapes attention of policy makers and activists. While the overall approach to forced marriage has helped men as well they, however, have remained below the radar of public concern. A problem particular to men is their unwillingness to articulate in public forums their predicament as questions of masculinity are then raised. Ultimately men will have to break the silence, organize and mobilize collectively if they wish to see specific policies that target men

‘A specialist refuge space of my own’: black, minority ethnic and refugee women, housing and domestic violence

This paper argues that there is a need for an independent specialist women's refuge sector to address the housing needs of BMER (Black, minority ethnic and refugee) women. It will consider barriers to equal access that BMER women have and how these could be resolved by providing specialist services tailored to their specific needs. Specifically, the paper shows how such services, attuned to concerns of race, class, and gender, could positively help resolve additional barriers confronting BMER women due to housing inequality. The primary research, based on an analysis of questionnaire responses and a focus group with service users, offers a snapshot of the impact that the lack of access to housing provision has for BMER women including increasing their social exclusion and vulnerability if need remains unmet. A case is made for a strengthened independent specialist sector to deal with the housing needs of women fleeing domestic violence. Key recommendations are identified on how housing policies, practices and service provision can be strengthened through the implementation of a specialist sector.</p

Legislating gender inequalities: the nature and patterns of domestic violence experienced by South Asian women with insecure immigration status in the UK

Research on domestic violence documents the particular vulnerability of immigrant women due to reasons including social isolation, language barriers, lack of awareness about services, and racism on the part of services. Based on qualitative interviews with 30 South Asian women with insecure immigration status residing in Yorkshire and Northwest England, this article explores how inequalities created by culture, gender, class, and race intersect with state immigration and welfare policies in the United Kingdom, thereby exacerbating structures of patriarchy within minority communities. It is within these contexts that South Asian women with insecure immigration status experience intensified forms and specific patterns of abuse