Refused asylum seekers, destitution, poverty and social networks

2018 ◽  
pp. 233-246
Keyword(s):  
Social Networks ◽  
Asylum Seekers

scholarly journals Use-Values for Inclusion: Mobilizing Resources in Popular Education for Newly Arrived Refugees in Sweden

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 85-95 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nedžad Mešić ◽  
Magnus Dahlstedt ◽  
Andreas Fejes ◽  
Sofia Nyström
Keyword(s):  
Social Networks ◽  
Asylum Seekers ◽  
Popular Education ◽  
The State ◽  
Use Value ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Strong Notion ◽  
Use Values ◽  
Study Circle ◽  
Welfare Model

In times of market reforms and international migration, the Swedish welfare model has been seriously challenged. In the context of the arrival of refugees in 2015–2017, the state turned to civil society in facing up to the challenges. In this article, we direct our attention to the Workers’ Educational Association’s (ABF) state-funded work with refugees, with a specific focus on the activities conducted, the resources making them possible and the use-value of the resources mobilised. The article is based on observations and interviews with study circle leaders, managers and asylum seekers. The analysis illustrates that ABF, in line with its historical legacy, the broader workers’ movement, the strong notion of popular education as ‘free and voluntary’, has, with its well-established connections throughout the country, not solely taken on the task defined by the state. In solidarity, ABF has also responded to the needs of the refugees. As highlighted in the analysis, ABF has mobilized a wide range of resources, not least providing refugees with social networks and help in contacting the authorities. With such mobilization, opportunities were provided for the inclusion of refugees in Sweden.

scholarly journals THE CONCEPT REFUGEE IN THE DISCOURSE OF NEW MEDIA (Case Study of Government Media and Social Networks of Germany)

2020 ◽  
pp. 85-99
Author(s):  
Andrianna Milo
Keyword(s):  
Social Networks ◽  
New Media ◽  
Asylum Seekers ◽  
Communication Strategy ◽  
Government Communication ◽  
Official Position ◽  
The Social ◽  
Media Communications ◽  
Big Data Technology

The article deals with the study of the concept REFUGEE/FLÜCHTLING in the discourse of the new media of Germany in 2015 – the year which was characterized by the highest level of asylum seekers in the country. Based on the results of the content analysis, the positional narratives and thematic groups of lexical markers representing the official position and the position of the civil society (in the social media content) have been defined. The discourse-analysis proved that in the German infosphere there is a “battle of narratives” between the official media which put into action a systemic government policy of friendly treatment of refugees – «Willkommenskultur», and social networks which also manifest an unfavourable attitude towards asylum seekers – from critical to totally negative. It has been established that the concept REFUGEE/FLÜCHTLING has a discourse-forming function in both official and unofficial media in Germany where it has negative connotations, thereby revealing the «battle of narratives» and the «battle of discourses». It has been concluded that there is a single government communication strategy in the issue of refugees and a corresponding system of organization of official new media communications which broadcast the government’s position with a focus on conceptual worldviews of different target audiences of the country. The study was carried out using the Big Data technology, which contributed to obtaining of valid results.

scholarly journals Seeking Asylum in Germany: Do Human and Social Capital Determine the Outcome of Asylum Procedures?

2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (5) ◽  
pp. 663-683
Author(s):  
Yuliya Kosyakova ◽  
Herbert Brücker
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Social Networks ◽  
Socioeconomic Status ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Civil Rights ◽  
Asylum Seekers ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Longitudinal Survey ◽  
Human And Social Capital ◽  
Forms Of Violence

Abstract Although the Refugee Convention and European asylum legislation state that decisions regarding asylum applications should be determined solely based on persecution and other human rights violations, the outcomes of asylum procedures may be subject to socioeconomic selectivity. This article is the first to analyse whether the human and social capital of asylum-seekers affect the results of decisions regarding their asylum applications and the length of asylum procedures based on a comprehensive longitudinal survey of 5,300 refugees in Germany. We find that socioeconomic and social capital resources increase the probability of approval of asylum applications and reduce the length of asylum procedures. Moreover, human capital is particularly rewarding for asylum-seekers from countries subject to severe political and civil rights violations, whereas social networks are more conducive when the case for protection is rather difficult to prove. Finally, asylum-seekers with a higher socioeconomic status before migration seem to be better positioned to efficiently instrumentalize social networks during the asylum process. Throughout the analysis, we control for variables that capture the violation of human rights and other forms of violence, changes in asylum policies and country-of-origin-specific fixed effects. The results are robust to different specifications and are representative for asylum-seekers arriving in Germany between 2013 and 2016. Altogether, similar to other claim-making processes, the asylum process seems to promote social inequality due to socioeconomic and social capital resources.

Social Networks and the Asylum Cycle: The Case of Iranians in the Netherlands

1997 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 591-611 ◽  
Author(s):  
Khalid Koser
Keyword(s):  
Social Networks ◽  
The Netherlands ◽  
Labor Migration ◽  
Asylum Seekers ◽  
Host Society ◽  
Labor Migrants ◽  
The Social

This paper examines the traditional distinction between the migration of refugees and labor migrants in the context of Iranian asylum seekers in the Netherlands. The empirical strategy adopted is to apply a framework designed specifically to explain labor migration to the case of asylum migration, and the social networks approach is identified as the most appropriate. This paper examines the role of social networks through the asylum cycle, focusing on the decision to migrate, the choice of destination, and adaptation in the host society. The key conclusion is that the validity of the distinction between refugee and labor migration varies through the asylum cycle even for the same individual.

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