Riding the Wave: Daily Life and Religion among Brazilian Immigrants to Japan in the Age of COVID-19 Pandemic

In March 2020, the world folded before an imminent pandemic. Community gatherings, events, and rituals quickly moved online. Jobs halted or were conducted remotely. The fear of the COVID-19 pandemic impacted different areas of daily life. In this article, we propose examining and analyzing the experiences and narratives of Brazilian migrants in Japan. With the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act amendment on 8 December 1989, thousands of Japanese descendants born and raised in the Americas migrated to Japan. They are the offspring of Japanese immigrants who established colonies in the Americas in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. Over time, the community of Brazilian immigrants in Japan fluctuated from being a minority to become the fifth-largest ethnic group of immigrants. Our analysis focuses on two areas of concern in times of the COVID-19 pandemic: daily life—including gender, and religion. On the one hand, daily life became cumbersome due to issues related to language and the hardships of accessing health services in a foreign land. On the other hand, we state that in the process of adaptation to the new society, the role of faith communities has been notable in offering support to these immigrants. Religious institutions, in particular, confronted the fact of moving their support and activities online with the consequent difficulties for those who are not tech-savvy or lack reliable connectivity. Both situations impacted Brazilian immigrants in different ways during the COVID-19 pandemic and highlighted the agency they displayed in coping with its consequences.

Occupational mobility of Brazilian immigrants in segmented labour markets

Canada needs immigration in order to maintain economic success, thus Canada accepts approximately 250,000 immigrants from countries around the world. Some of these immigrants find themselves gaining employment in the secondary labour market in the service and construction sectors. This paper aims to identify and analyze the experiences and issues Brazilian immigrants face in segmented labour markets. The study incorporates the knowledge and information gained from interviewing fifteen Brazilians who have recently immigrated to Canada and are employed in either the construction or service sector. After an in depth study, the following research will explore the issues revolving around occupational mobility, barriers to employment, educational credentials, and personal attitudes that Brazilian immigrants face in the labour market.

Occupational mobility of Brazilian immigrants in segmented labour markets

Canada needs immigration in order to maintain economic success, thus Canada accepts approximately 250,000 immigrants from countries around the world. Some of these immigrants find themselves gaining employment in the secondary labour market in the service and construction sectors. This paper aims to identify and analyze the experiences and issues Brazilian immigrants face in segmented labour markets. The study incorporates the knowledge and information gained from interviewing fifteen Brazilians who have recently immigrated to Canada and are employed in either the construction or service sector. After an in depth study, the following research will explore the issues revolving around occupational mobility, barriers to employment, educational credentials, and personal attitudes that Brazilian immigrants face in the labour market.

Becoming White in a White Supremacist State: The Public and Psychological Wages of Whiteness for Undocumented 1.5-Generation Brazilians

This study draws on in-depth and longitudinal interviews with twenty-nine 1.5-generation Brazilian immigrants, all of whom can pass as white and experienced illegality in young adulthood. I argue that they benefit from what W.E.B. Du Bois calls “the public and psychological wages of whiteness”. That is, white and white-passing, undocumented 1.5-generation Brazilian men and women can largely navigate public space without being stopped, questioned, arrested, detained and/or deported. Additionally, they benefit psychologically—as they gain confidence due to perceived whiteness, even as their immigration status would render them vulnerable to exploitation in the labor market and deportation. These public and psychological wages of whiteness can facilitate social and material gains. I argue that there are three mechanisms by which they experience the wages of whiteness. First, whiteness brings assumed innocence. Second, white racial solidarity with other whites facilitates opportunities and protection. Third, some 1.5-generation Brazilians actively construct whiteness to accrue the public and psychological wages. These findings challenge the master status perspective of illegality and underscore the importance of an intersectional framework for understanding immigrants’ varied experiences with illegality, bringing to light the quotidian, gendered practices and identities that sustain the structures of white supremacy.

The Canadian experience from the perspective of Brazilian immigrant entrepreneurship in Toronto

Objective: The study aims at analyzing the socio-demographic profile of Brazilian immigrant entrepreneurship in Toronto, its entrepreneurial behavioral traits, in addition to their business profiles. Methodology/approach: This research is multi-method, with qualitative predominance, being exploratory-descriptive. For data-collection it was conducted a survey and further deepening with face-to-face interviews and field observations. Main results: The majority declared themselves to be from the Brazilian Southeast, white, 35 to 49 years old, married, with children, high academic and professional background. The influence of the state of social malaise in Brazil and the official Canadian discourse, seem to act as factors of "expulsion-attraction" to migration. The job condition of unemployment upon immigrants’ arrival can “push” them into necessity-driven entrepreneurship, although there are also ventures that have identified opportunities. Most of the businesses are small and operate in the service sector, concentrated on the West End of Toronto. In many businesses, there was a strong search for identification with the ethnic community itself, which suggests the formation of 'enclave economy', but in some cases, the main market for local consumers was targeted. Theoretical/methodological contributions: The article highlights the importance of conducting a multi-method research to understand possible entrepreneurial configurations by Brazilian immigrants. Relevance / originality: the article has academic relevance given the scarce work on the theme of Brazilian immigrant entrepreneurship overseas. Truly little is known about this phenomenon in Canada. Social and management contributions: The entrepreneurial trajectories described minimize risks for future immigrants; in addition, the discussion about the social capital of the ethnic community allows comparisons with the business of Brazilians in other countries.

Postcolonial social drama: The case of Brazilian dentists in Portugal

By the late 1990s, when I was conducting ethnographic fieldwork research in Lisbon, the ‘dentists’ case’ had become a familiar trope for the presence of Brazilian immigrants in Portugal. Although it involved a small group of Brazilian and Portuguese professionals, it gained visibility in the media of both countries, escalating into a political and diplomatic quarrel, and culminating in the amendment of the 1966 Cultural Accord. I use Victor Turner’s concept of social drama to address the case as a chapter in the cyclical pattern of connection and disconnection of postcolonial Luso-Brazilian relationships. Drawing from a recent discussion on the concept of cosmopolitanism in migration studies, I employ the idea of postcolonial sociabilities to help explore the seemingly inherent ambiguities in the relationship between Brazilians and Portuguese.

Empirical study of Brazilian diaspora religious practice in Spain

Globalisation is inextricably linked to capitalism. One reality of an increasingly globalised world is that cultural diversity and differences are at the forefront of governmental policy in countries around the world. This places renewed emphasis on the concept of 'other' and creates disharmony within society. However, the future of humankind depends on appreciating and accepting diversity and forging connections. For Masanobu Yamada, Department of Area Studies, Faculty of International Studies, Tenri University, Japan, such connections can be achieved through religion, which can provide security, a sense of belonging and cultural connections. Yamada is interested in religious studies and is investigating how religion can transcend national borders and create a sense of community. Key to Yamada's research is religions that were formed in Japan and later expanded into Latin America, and religions that were disseminated by Brazilian immigrants in Japan and Europe, with cultural activities propagating from the region of origin and moving across global borders. Yamada has also discovered instances where the beliefs being propagated by people on the move have also been promoted by people remaining in their home country. He is interested in unravelling institutional-level dynamism and believer-led dynamics. He is keen to explore the transformations experienced by people who emigrated abroad and their family and friends who remained in Brazil, with a focus on connections through religious values and how this contributed to the creation of a new culture.

The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Brazilian Immigrant Community in the U.S: Results from a Qualitative Study

While an increasing body of data suggests that marginalized groups have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19, little has been published about the specific impact on Brazilian immigrants in the U.S. We conducted 15 key informant interviews, one of which included two participants (n = 16), with representatives from social service agencies, healthcare, and faith-based organizations serving Brazilian immigrants. Key informants were asked about the community’s experiences with COVID-19 testing and treatment, responses to CDC (Centers for Disease Control) guidelines, perceptions about the virus, and the pandemic’s impact on physical and mental health. Results suggest that COVID-19 has profoundly impacted Brazilian immigrants’ mental and physical health. Key informants perceived that community members faced higher risk of COVID-19 infection due to overcrowded living conditions and over-representation in public-facing and informal (e.g., housecleaning) jobs. They reported barriers to COVID-19-related healthcare services including language, immigration status, and fear of deportation. Brazilian cultural norms surrounding hygiene practices, social distancing, and information distribution have shaped the community’s pandemic response. The Brazilian community has faced extensive social, economic, and health ramifications due to the pandemic. While not unique to this community, pre-existing concerns about social disadvantage suggest a particular vulnerability of this population to the virus.