Migration Studies Commons^™

"We're Like Ghosts, But We Have To Be." Invisibility & Liminality Among Kentuckiana's Undocumented Population, Sophie Amaya

Undergraduate Theses

The controversial topic of illegal immigration has repeatedly and deeply divided the United States. There has been, in recent years, a spotlight on immigrants from Latin America, and impersonal claims are being spread in news articles everywhere. For this research, survey questionnaires and ethnographic interviews were used to facilitate a sample of undocumented immigrants from the Louisville, Kentucky, and Southern Indiana (An area known as “Kentuckiana”) to provide insight on their experiences. This thesis aims to examine the effects of this uncertain status on the well-being of Latin American immigrants in this region, where not much research is done on …

Identity Formation And The Immigrant Experience, Renne Cabacungan

Undergraduate Research and Scholarship Symposium

Immigration history is an especially prominent aspect of an immigrant’s identity. Immigration creates psychosocial changes which can impact how an individual is viewed by themselves and others. Immigrants develop a dual identity, drawing from both their new country and their country of origin. Navigating this binary lies at the heart of an immigrant’s identity development. The purpose of this study was to investigate the personal processes one undergoes during immigration in forming one’s new identity. Qualitative interviews were conducted with two participants of different nationalities. A life course theory approach structured the two interviews to create a comprehensive timeline of …

The Mother Of Exiles Is Abandoning Her Children: The Systemic Failure To Protect Unaccompanied Minors Arriving At Our Borders, Rosa M. Peterson

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Unaccompanied minors arrive at the United States border every day. Many brought by the hope of finding a life lived without fear, a luxury many United States citizens take for granted. Their truths become the barriers and shackles which keep them in detention centers and unaccompanied minor facilities throughout the United States; children find their very words wielded as weapons against them in immigration court. Words often spoken to therapists in perceived confidence, during counseling sessions. This practice is a systemic failure to protect unaccompanied minors arriving at our borders who are seeking protection and help. The United States …

Managing Illegality On Campus: Undocumented Mismatch Between Students And Staff, Holly E. Reed, Sofya Aptekar, Amy Hsin

Publications and Research

Contributing to the literature on the institutional experiences of undocumented youth, this essay by Holly E. Reed, Sofya Aptekar, and Amy Hsin explores undocumented and “DACAmented” students’ experiences managing their illegality on campus and how college staff and faculty manage that illegality while organizing programs and support. Their analysis of in-depth qualitative interviews conducted with more than a hundred undocumented college students and former students and thirty-five faculty and staff members at the City University of New York identifies multiple points of tension. The “undocumented mismatch” between campus management of illegality and student experiences was evident in the exclusion and …

A Comparative Analysis Of Migrant Health Policies And Practices In The Us And Switzerland, Rebecca Mak

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Migrants compose a large proportion of the population in both the US and Switzerland. The social vulnerability of migrants has been well-established in literature, but few studies have attempted to compare healthcare policies and approaches that most effectively support migrant health using multiple measures.

To fill this gap in the literature, this study will comparatively analyze of the efficacy of US and Switzerland migrant health policies and services by assessing access to and quality of care for migrants in each country. Four main features of healthcare systems were analyzed: insurance policy, healthcare utilization, NCD outcomes, and patient perceptions of care. …

Los Impactos Del Cambio Climático En Las Comunidades Aymaras En Putre, El Valle De Azapa Y Arica, Lindsey Kaufman

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Research Question: How is climate change affecting Aymara communities in Putre, the valley of Azapa, and Putre?

Objectives: To understand the effects of climate on communities by 1) describing which environmental problems exist and their impact on agriculture and ranching, 2) understanding the patterns of migration away from the ancestral land, 3) exploring the connections to the social determinants of health that exist with these change, and 4) analyzing the significance of these changes in the agriculture for the communities’ traditions and connection to the land.

Background: Aymara communities have historically inhabited agricultural and ranching lands in …

Jabaaru Immigré Ak Goor Jaarin: Migration, Marriage, And Emigrants’ Wives In Senegal, Sophia Patterson

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This research studies the community of women in Senegal whose husbands migrate to other countries for work. I examine how migration has impacted their marriages and their understanding of their roles as wives. I aim to answer the following question: How does migration affect women’s relationships with their husbands, their roles and responsibilities as wives, and their standing in society? To answer this question, I interviewed six women whose husbands work abroad. Before interviewing these women, I will arrange an initial conversation so we can get to know one another. This pre-interview also will allow me to determine other potential …

A Displaced People: Documenting The History And Displacement Of The Batwa Tribe In Bundibugyo District, Uganda., Marcos S. Turk

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The Batwa in Bundibugyo are an indigenous minority group that originated in the forest of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Since then, various displacement factors have taken effect that have forced them out of the forest. Currently they live in Bundibugyo District, Uganda. This study aimed at identifying those displacement factors while also investigating Batwa history and culture as they are a relatively undocumented group. The Batwa have various traditions they established while in the forest, such as unique methods for hunting forest animals. Because Uganda forced them out of the forest, many of their cultural practices no longer occur. …

Domesticated: Migrant Domestic Workers In Jordan And Their Place In Jordan’S Law And Homes, Jeromel Dela Rosa Lara

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The purpose of this study is to bring attention to the labor conditions for migrant women domestic workers and what agency they have in the workplace (the home of their employers) and the law in Jordan. Jordan is considered as having a model labor law for migrant workers in the region. Officials from the Ministry of Labor have claimed that this makes the Kafala System––a system of labor that puts migrant workers under the care, standards, and control of the employer––non-existent in the country. This study will look further on the extent that this is reflected to the experiences of …

Irregular Migration In Morocco: A Case For Constructionism, Mourad Khalil

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Separated by only 14 kilometers of water from Spain, Morocco has become a common destination for many sub-Saharan irregular migrants trying to reach Europe. With a large population of these migrants, Morocco has had to make important decisions on how to manage its irregular migrant population. However, the terrible conditions and regular violations of human rights that irregular migrants in Morocco are subject to lead one to ponder the role that international relations has and the extent to which human rights is a consideration in the policymaking of irregular migration. Applied to the three primary theories of international relations, liberalism, …

Denmark And Sweden: The Collision Between Welfare State Politics And Immigration, Amy Elizabeth Cantrell

Student Publications

The Scandinavian welfare states of Denmark and Sweden have famously similar socio-political and cultural systems, ones which have advanced the common perception of these nations as united in a common humanitarian and progressive global position. However there exists a significant divergence within either nation’s approach to immigration, asylum and integration policy, one indicative of the deeply ingrained deviations in popular understandings of national belonging and perspectives on greater European and global integration. By contextualizing the historical progressions of either nation and juxtaposing their individual responses to both the 2015 European refugee crisis and the contemporary Ukrainian conflict and resulting refugee …

Žene Iz Ukrajine: Žrtve Putinovog Rata I Predatora Seks-Industrije, Dona M. Hjuz

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

No abstract provided.

The Role Of The Network Of Scholars On Mixed Migration In North Africa/ دور شبكة الخبراء المعنية بالهجرة المختلطة في شمال أفريقيا/ Le Rôle Du Réseau Des Savants Sur Les Migrations Mixtes En Afrique Du Nord, Sara Sadek

Faculty Journal Articles

No abstract provided.

Vedantic Basis And Praxis Of The Integral Advaita Of Sri Aurobindo, Debashish Banerji

Monsoon: South Asian Studies Association Journal

The integral nondualism of Sri Aurobindo can be traced to the great pronouncements (mahāvākya) of the Upanishads and later commentaries. This study examines teachings on the Supermind (vijñāna) and the other four kinds of consciousness that define human reality: Matter (annaṃ), Life (prāṇaḥ), Mind (manaḥ), and Bliss (ānanda). Through Yoga and Tantra, one learns and embodies the pathway to the divine.

Digital And Spatial Humanities Mapping: Eurasia-Pacific Early Trade And Belief Linkages, Igor Sitnikov, David Blundell

Monsoon: South Asian Studies Association Journal

The Eurasia-Pacific is a dynamic region of rapid economic growth, cultural awareness, natural resource exploration, and military buildup. The concept of the region is relatively new, featuring contested vast areas of geo-resource space of numerous cultures and languages. The current findings in anthropology and archaeology and even its more specific subfields such as folklore are important contribution to the understanding of periodic environmental changes and technical innovations were the main forces of transformations in social structures that have determined the mechanisms and levels of cross-cultural trade activity across the region. We have traced early trade and belief linkages across Eurasia-Pacific …

Tusha Hiti: The Origin And Significance Of The Name, Deepak Shimkhada

Monsoon: South Asian Studies Association Journal

In this article, the author examines the royal bath called Tushā Hiti located in Sūndari Chowk (Beautiful Courtyard) of Pātan Durbar Square, using six different methods of investigation. The question: What is in a name? started the ball of investigation rolling and along the way were added more supporting blocks such as history, iconography, function and purpose, notion of purity and impurity, and finally the hiti in popular culture to get a complete picture of the subject in question.

Ganges In Indian Sculpture And Literature: Mythology And Personification, Nalini Rao

Monsoon: South Asian Studies Association Journal

The river Ganges is a symbol of wealth, purity and eternity, and its sacred waters have inspired sages, philosophers, and artists in India who have immortalized its divine imagery. However, it has rarely been understood from a historical point of view, as to how it became so sacred and to view it from a multi-dimensional and interdisciplinary perspective with an accumulation of layers of historical thought and practices, provides a rationale for the living practices around the river. The paper explores the evolution of the concept of sacredness and eternity of River Ganges through art- historical and archaeological evidence. It …

Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion: Perspectives From Contemporary India And 6th Century Jain Yoga, Christopher Key Chapple

Monsoon: South Asian Studies Association Journal

Times New Roman

Exploring The Absence Of A Black Lives Matter Movement In Egypt, Farah Dewedar

The Undergraduate Research Journal

Movements combating racial segregation have existed for centuries, persisting even through tough circumstances such as a global pandemic. The process of examining calls for racial equality throughout history, such as the remarkable 1960s American Civil Rights and the 21st century BLM movements, can unravel the fundamental elements behind the success of a movement. The presence of audible black voices, massive media coverage and social awareness have proven to be essential in the upheaval of a movement. The fact that Egypt lacks black celebrities, uncensored media and any affiliation to dark-skinned individuals and/or Africans, helps to perpetuate the injustice suffered by …

Lee Isaac Chung, Minari (2020): Having An Amerikorean Life, Nagehan Uzuner

Markets, Globalization & Development Review

Minari by Lee Isaac Chung is a drama which chronicles the life of a Korean family who moves to the USA during 1980s in pursuit for a better life. The acculturation process is experienced differently by family members. Children are mostly bored with their new life in the rural area of Arkansas while their mother, Monica, is terrified of living in a mobile home which is made of a truck trailer in the middle of nowhere. Meanwhile, the grandmother joins the family from Korea to take care of the kids with a more positive approach dealing with their struggles. The …