Winds of change: How street-level bureaucrats actively represent minority clients by influencing majority clients—The context of LGB Israeli teachers

The literature dealing with representative bureaucracy emphasizes the role that minority street-level bureaucrats may play when, directly and indirectly, they actively represent clients with whom they share a common identity. My study goes further, contributing to the implementation literature, by examining why and how these street-level bureaucrats use their discretion to shape non-minority clients' attitudes toward minorities. I explore this phenomenon empirically through interviews with 36 Israeli lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) teachers. I analyze the traditional methods they routinely adopt, such as exposing students to information about minorities, encouraging open discussions of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) issues in the classroom, and entrepreneurially developing and introducing innovative learning programs. I illustrate how they respond to ad hoc cases (e.g., protecting LGBTQ+ clients or taking advantage of outside events to promote understanding of relevant issues) and the approach of leading by example.     

Elevated rates of suicidal behavior in gay, lesbian, and bisexual youth

Both clinical and epidemiological literature point to elevated rates of suicidal behaviors in gay, lesbian, and bisexual youth (GLBY). Recent North American and New Zealand studies of large populations (especially the US Youth Risk Behavior Surveys from several states) indicate that gay, lesbian, and bisexual adolescents (males in particular) can have rates of serious suicide attempts at least four times those of apparently heterosexual youth. There are various reasons why this figure is likely to be an underestimate. Reasons for these elevated rates of suicidal behavior include a climate of homophobic persecution in schools, and sometimes in family and community--values and actions that stigmatize homosexuality and that the youth who has not yet "come out" has to endure in silence.     

Public sector employees in a challenging work environment

Public sector employees are expected to perform well in a work environment that is characterized by a variety of challenges. This Symposium aims to shed light on how environmental changes impact the shared identity, attitudes and behaviour of public sector employees; how public sector employees take charge of continuous change and deal with challenges in their work environment; and how organizations can help employees to tackle such work‐related challenges. We identify four specific gaps in literature—some methodological and some more substantive in nature—and explain how this Symposium helps to address these gaps.     

Patriotic history and anti-LGBT rhetoric in Zimbabwean politics

Over the past 20 years, President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe and his political party, Zimbabwe African National Union – Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF), have relied heavily on political rhetoric that demonizes lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons. In this paper, it is argued that the anti-LGBT political rhetoric in Zimbabwe is part of a larger program known as “patriotic history,” which emphasizes a particular kind of Zimbabwean identity to legitimize the continued rule of Mugabe and ZANU-PF. The value of combining patriotic history and political homophobia emerges out of the unique political and economic context which Mugabe’s regime found itself unable to adequately address. To illustrate how and why this has happened, the paper focuses on two key incidents: the 1995 Zimbabwe International Book Fair, and the public conversation over writing a new constitution between 2010 and 2013.     

Twice-hyphenated: transnational identity among second-generation Ethiopian-American professionals in the Washington,DC, metropolitan area

This article examines the dynamics of transnational identity among second-generation Ethiopian-American professionals. Drawing on the experiences of 21 second-generation Ethiopian-American professionals, I analyze how they manage the dual challenges of maintaining Ethiopian identities while embracing American values and aspirations. Study participants indicated how their parents actively encourage them to embrace Ethiopian culture while they expect them to succeed in the US society. They expressed fear that if they become ‘too American’, they will disappoint their parents. Moreover, they find restricting their identity to one group or another too confining. They selectively choose defining ethnic characteristics from the cultural domains in which they operate –their families, social networks, and school environments; media images; popular culture; and the broader dominant culture. Most of them embrace individualism and autonomy in order to negotiate, create, and recreate their own transnational identities. The ethnic characteristics of second-generation Ethiopian-American can certainly be characterized as ‘hybrid identities’.     

Framing the Ghanaian LGBT rights debate: competing decolonisation and human rights frames

This paper investigates how lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights movements in Ghana, both anti and pro, framed the debate that captured media attention in 2006 and 2011. Decolonisation and human rights frames were appropriated, challenged, and dominated by opponents of LGBT rights, making it difficult for LGBT activists to use them. The opponents' corruption frame overpowered the LGBT activists' preservation frame. When LGBT activists used a human rights frame (comparing sexual minorities to racial minorities and to persons with disabilities), the countermovement appropriated it in a way that excluded same-sex relations by comparing sexual minorities to “deviants”, persons with mental illnesses, and animals. The interaction between the decolonisation and human rights frames was also problematic: the corruption frame not only rendered the LGBT activists' preservation frame nearly useless, but it also made their use of the human rights frame appear to be cultural imperialism and problematised the help they received from international LGBT organisations.     

Gender,Sexuality and the Latin American Left: testing the transformation

This article examines the extent of change under Latin American left governments by assessing their actions on women's and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) rights. To provide a historical context, it first offers an overview of the relationship between feminist movements and the left. It then employs a four-country comparison of Brazil, Bolivia, Chile and Venezuela on women's socioeconomic status; feminist state–society relations; women's representation in national decision-making positions; legislation on violence against women; reproductive rights; and sexual rights. It concludes that standard political and economic divisions among the cases do not explain their response to the demands of feminists and LGBT activists. While governments have improved women's status and inclusion, the transformation of gender and sexual power relations remains unfinished.     

Civil Society, ‘Traditional Values’ and LGBT Resistance to Heteronormative Rights Hegemony: Analysis of the UN Universal Periodic Review in the Russian Federation

Abstract

This study of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights in the Russian Federation uses frame analysis of civil society input into the UN Universal Periodic Review. It reveals a stark state–civil society ‘disconnect’ reflecting oppressive government practices, including Law No. 135-FZ on ‘non-traditional sexual relations’. This raises wider questions about the efficacy of the review system, not least because issues of performativity and legitimation can be seen to facilitate authoritarian resilience. This allows the ruling elite to continue to dissemble by espousing universal rights yet strategically framing them as heteronormative, integral to the protection of ‘traditional values’ and inimical to identity-based rights claims.     

Diversity in Daugavpils: Unpacking Identity and Cultural Engagement among Minority School Youth in Eastern Latvia

Abstract

Studies of minority ‘integration’ often focus heavily on group boundaries of ethnicity, language and identity. This essay challenges these conventional approaches in Latvia by examining individuals’ quotidian, lived experiences and how these transcend common analytical boundaries. Using the Daugavpils region as a case study, I explore Russian speaker and Latvian participation in events explicitly linked with ‘ethnic’ Latvian cultural identity. I argue, by adopting multifaceted analytical measures of identities, ethnicity and belonging, new perspectives on banal integration and minority engagement within national culture emerge. Individuals engage with each other and with ‘national’ identity and culture in complex ways. Young ‘Russian speakers’ are often more integrated with their ethnic Latvian peers than the extant literature suggests, both civically and in Latvia’s cultural sphere, as consumers and producers of Latvian ‘national’ identity.     

After Apartheid: Consensus, Contention, and Gender in South Africa’s Public Sphere

The South African transition from apartheid to democracy is one of the iconic developments of the late twentieth century coming soon after the fall of the Berlin Wall. The country, led by a universally admired Nelson Mandela, seemed to embody the world’s hopes for peace and democracy. In the aftermath of the first inclusive elections in 1994, South Africans adopted one of the world’s finest constitutions and set up a modern and representative system of governance. However, the euphoria was not sustained. Economic inequality rose; poverty appears intractable, and an increasingly angry citizenry seems less willing to adhere to the liberal norms of tolerance and respect for difference. This article lays out some dimensions of the new conflicts detailing the intolerance for outsiders and violence against women and gay and lesbian people. I argue that the quality of democracy is not measured by its formal institutions important they may be. Rather, it is in the interactions between citizens in the public sphere that we are able to ascertain the extent to which democratic values have become normalized. Viewed from this perspective, it is evident that the legacies of distrust and antagonism continue to shape the possibilities of democratic deliberation in the public sphere.     

An exploration of citizens' professionalism in coproducing social care services

Citizens' involvement in public service delivery challenges the principles of professionalism as such citizens are amateurs. However, there is little evidence of the (non)integration of these principles by citizen coproducers and how this affects professionalism in public service delivery. This article focuses on two principles of professionalism: expertise and accountability. The theoretical framework further reviews the coproduction literature on what can be expected of citizens with regard to these principles and elaborates on the concept of amateurism. The concepts of professionalism and amateurism form the framework for the analysis of citizen coproducers' identity. Empirically, this paper presents two case studies of social services in the European context. The results show that these citizen coproducers to a certain extent create a professional identity, tend to stay away from integrating accountability, and introduce elements of amateurism. The presence and guidance of public servants in coproduction can ensure accountability and streamline amateurism.     

“Neoliberalism,Class, Gender and Lesbian,Gay, Bisexual,Transgender and Queer Politics in Poland”

While the growth of visibility of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) political struggles in Poland, and illiberal neo-populist reactions to the queer presence in public space and the public sphere since 2004 has spawned much academic debate, there has been less critical discussion of LGBTQ politics in relation to class and neoliberalism. This article seeks to make two key contributions to understandings of the relationships between gender, sexuality and political economy. The first is recognition of the tensions and contradictions inherent within practices of neoliberalisation. It is suggested that neoliberalism can be both generative and hostile towards LGBTQ politics. Processes of neoliberalisation produce queer winners and losers, and it is suggested that if sexually progressive alternatives to neoliberalism are to be developed, they need to recognise the tensions and contradictions inherent within processes of neoliberalism. In so doing, the class dimensions of neoliberal sexualities need to be made visible and examined critically. Secondly, it is argued that discussions of classed sexualities are often framed within specific national contexts, and thereby fail to recognise the transnational dimensions of classed sexualities. Discussions of the sexual politics of neoliberalism are often grounded in Anglo-American contexts and sometimes fail to recognise how neoliberal sexualities are framed outside of the West. These two key objectives are addressed by an examination of the economic and class dimensions of contemporary LGBTQ political struggles in Poland—specifically the organisation of marches for equality and tolerance within Polish cities since 2001.     

An Exploration of Victimization in the Older Lesbian Population

Research on lesbian, gay bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) victimization typically focuses on bias crime and intimate partner violence, with little focus on the experience of victimization more generally in this minority community. Meanwhile, the LGBT population has aged with an increasing number falling in the over 65 years old age group. This older population, however, has been largely sidelined in research on LGBT victimization. The authors aim to fill this gap by exploring the victimization experiences of a sample of older lesbians. The findings suggest that older lesbians have a unique victimization experience including a decreasing experience with bias victimization with age.     

National and ethnic identifications among the Slovak diaspora in Serbia: stranded between state(s) and ethnicity?

Identity has been treated in relevant literature predominantly as a dynamic, fluid, multidimensional, and ongoing process. Currently, identity is viewed as a process, as something achieved, and as a product of social relations. Scholars have acknowledged that members of minorities and diasporas can have very complex multiple identities, which are both dependent on social context and changeable over time. This article explores the national and ethnic identifications of Slovaks living in Serbia. Its main objective is to examine how the members of the Slovak diaspora identify themselves and what kind of national and ethnic awareness and pride they hold. As well, this paper explores their opinions and attitudes on language and cultural identity. This study used a web-based survey and basic statistics. The results of the explorative study indicate that members of the Slovak diaspora living in Serbia have multiple identities that coexist, do not conflict, and vary in their importance for respondents. Distinct national and ethnic identifications are perceived in different ways and have divergent emotional intensities. This study proposes further research on the importance of civic and ethnic values and on different perceptions of identity, citizenship, length of residency, and minority rights for collective identifications of minorities and/or diasporas.     

‘We are this hybrid’: Members’ search for organizational identity in an institutionalized public–private partnership

There has been significant scholarly interest in organizational hybridity, the combination of multiple institutional logics in one entity. However, the extant research has mainly studied the implications for organizations and individuals, neglecting the challenges for organizational members as a collective. To mitigate, this article examines how members of a British institutionalized public–private partnership grapple with the question of what their organization may be, highlighting the confusion they are experiencing and their attempts to overcome it. Drawing on the concept of organizational identity (theorized as the outcome of collective sensemaking), the analysis identifies two mechanisms that recursively connect the organization and its members. Relational positioning draws on possible configurations of institutional logics and associated identity resources while discursive framing captures members’ hopes and expectations. The main contribution of this article is a better understanding of collective sensemaking in hybrid organizations in the light of institutional complexity.     

Expanding the Definition of Asian Diasporic Studies

Abstract

Korean and other Asian adoptees are increasingly becoming a part of the racial landscape in the United States, although their presence is omitted or minimally addressed in Asian diasporic studies. In 1999, after 45 years of “feeling shame and a sense of guilt” (Lee, 1999, para. 3) First Lady Hee-Ho Lee marked the South Korean government's official recognition of adoptees as overseas Koreans. As involuntary immigrants, this population has both shared and unique experiences with other Korean immigrants. Current literature on Asian American acculturation, assimilation, and identity does not capture the experiences of Asian adoptees (McDonald&Balgopal, 1998; Min&Kim, 2000; Oyserman&Sakamoto, 1997; Phinney et al., 2000; Tse, 1999). This article presents quantitative research that considered the constructs of ethnic and racial identity for Korean adoptees, their relationship to each other, and to the process of acculturation.

This study of adoptees (N = 69), ranging in age from early-adolescence to young adulthood, explored the relationships between racial identity, ethnic identity, and acculturation in transracial Korean adoptees. The research was exploratory in nature and entailed a quantitative design comprised of three objective instruments measuring racial identity, ethnic identity, and acculturation. Findings indicated that the group was characterized as embracing both their Korean heritage and white middle-class upbringing with a somewhat greater need for assimilation or inclusion into the Korean community than differentiation from it. While adoptees are highly acculturated into the mainstream, they seem to journey, as do other immigrants, through a process of defining what ethnicity and race means to them.     

Civil Service Reform in Ethiopia: Issues,Lessons, and Future Directions

This article provides an in-depth review of the successes and challenges of public sector reform efforts in Ethiopia with a view to help other developing countries, particularly African countries, learn from Ethiopia's experiences in this regard so that they can improve the content of and approach to their public sector reforms. It also identifies the gaps in the existing literature and puts forward implications for further research in the area. The public sector reform program of Ethiopia has shown successes particularly in the areas of service delivery to citizens. However, the reform program is entangled with challenges such as lack of accountability and transparency on the part of implementing institutions, inadequate material and moral incentive to employees thus crippling the capacity to manage the implementation process, and participation from the side of different stakeholders.     

Manufacturing and Migration in Eurasia

Abstract

This article investigates the social foundations of apparel manufacturing in Kyrgyzstan. Drawing upon interviews and a survey of Bishkek-based workshop owners, a bottom-up analysis finds that many are family businesses that started producing clothing after the country’s independence in 1991. I discuss here how they acquired the capital and knowledge necessary for this business, and how they mobilised a variety of migration-related experiences and relationships—often related to bazaar work—to compete in the sector. The findings contribute to a growing literature on how migration can facilitate family-based manufacturing in the post-Soviet region, although not without significant costs and challenges.     

Displacement and Testimony: Recent History and the Study of Exile and Post-exile

This article analyzes the testimonial literature of Latin American exile within the wider framework of studies of exile and post-exile. It claims that testimonies have an important role in providing access to the multiple and reflexive voices of exiles and expatriates, which are relevant to the reconstruction of the recent history of Latin America. Their relevance lies in enabling analysis to move beyond the heroic, Byronic vision of exile towards a less idealistic yet more intimate understanding of the gains and losses of territorial displacement, as well as the tensions, ambiguities, and conflicts developing within the communities of exiles, as they face new challenges. Exile testimonies also allow research to trace the development of a broader sense of identity extending beyond territorial borders and expressed in the awareness of being part of national Diasporas and, for many, also a Latin American transnational consciousness.