Matching Items (26)
Description
There has been great debate regarding the place of public religious worship in France in recent years. With each new instance of terrorist violence, discussion over France's changing religious landscape rears. Elemental to this conversation is the concept of Laïcité, France's unique version of secularism. Laïcité is often used to support discriminatory bans on hijabs, niqabs, and burqas in public spaces. I argue that French colonial history in the Maghreb region demonstrates that Laïcité is a form of national state-building and opportunism in practice. It is a concept that developed alongside the establishment of colonial empire. An examination of this colonial history explains much of the current tensions in France over Islam, secularism, and public space.
ContributorsGurr, Alexandra (Author) / Sivak, Henry (Thesis director) / Ripley, Charles (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor) / Economics Program in CLAS (Contributor)
Created2022-12
Description
Over the past decade, the United States and the European Union have adopted major changes to asylum policy and enforcement, specifically the increase of deterrence policies contrary to international asylum norms. The goal of this has been to reduce the pull factors towards the US and EU. Deterrence policies have largely been characterized by two main strategies: (1) deterrence at the border through stricter regulations and detention policies, and (2) deterrence through the creation of formal buffer zone countries between the asylum seekers’ countries of origin and the ultimate country of destination. These policies have been instituted in response to the spike in Central American asylum seekers at the US/Mexico border and Syrian asylum seekers at the Greece/Turkey border at the entrance of the EU. This paper compares these two separate geographic areas––the US and EU––due to their roles in the development of international law, their roles in the development and management of these crises, and the similar increase of asylum seekers in 2014-15. This paper also details the severity of the conditions in the asylee-sending areas––Central America and Syria––which are major “push factors” driving the crises. Finally, this paper explores the novel use of Mexico and Turkey as formal buffer zones by the United Staes and the European Union, respectively. The increase of deterrence policies culminating in the creation of formal buffer zones countries violates key principles of international asylum law, namely non-refoulement. These buffer zones must be redesigned proactively to better suit the realities of asylum in the 21st century.
ContributorsDooling, Maria Hana (Author) / Sivak, Henry (Thesis director) / Calleros, Charles (Committee member) / School of Molecular Sciences (Contributor) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor, Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
The purpose of the study was to learn more about the Albanian-American community in Arizona and questioned Albanian-American participants on the reasons for migrating to Arizona, their feelings towards their identity, how they remain connected with their heritage, and how/if they are ensuring that future generations of Albanian-Americans will maintain their culture. The study carried out a qualitative ethnography. I interviewed 15 Albanian-American participants living in Arizona. The term “Albanian-American” was defined as someone who identifies ethnically as an Albanian but lives in the United States. Participants in this study who identified as ethnically Albanian were either born and raised in or have parents who were born and raised in Albania or Kosovo, meaning they were either first-generation Americans or second-generation Americans. The written work is an oral history of these 15 participant’s personal experiences and stories, which also includes photographs to provide imagery to each participant’s account. The study found that the Albanian-American participants came to the United States for either economic, social, or political reasons. It also noted similar patterns and themes that have been separated into chapters on the Albanian value of hard work, the Albanian value of altruism, and the Albanian-American dual identity. The Conclusion summarizes the various ways in which the Albanian-American community in Arizona is ensuring the preservation of the heritage among younger generations who are becoming more Americanized. I conclude with two main ways that the Albanian-American community in Arizona are preserving their heritage: through Albanian language education initiatives, and cultural preservation initiatives and events hosted by the Albanian-American organizations of Arizona.
ContributorsJames, Tatum Lenore (Author) / Brown, Keith (Thesis director) / Sivak, Henry (Committee member) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2020-05
Description
This thesis approaches the concept of nationalism within the context of post-Soviet Estonian and Georgian state-building from a sociological perspective, building upon the work of Émile Durkheim, Bernard Yack, Anthony Smith, and Rogers Brubaker. Taking such a stance identifies nationalism as a social concept whose relationship with geopolitics and political integration comments on the merits of post-Soviet Estonian and Georgian geopolitical conditions and their respective state-building processes, specifically regarding ethnic minority and international integration. I argue that the cases of Estonia and Georgia demonstrate that social solidarity institutionalized in states and expressed through nationalism has significant effects on geopolitics and the integration of ethnic minorities into a broader multi-ethnic state as well as on the integration of a broader multi-ethnic state into the international community. This thesis demonstrates that the different paths that Estonia and Georgia took towards this integration indicate the significance not only of domestic nationalistic circumstances, but also of the larger geopolitical realities and underlying historic foundations in which and from which state-building must occur.
ContributorsLepley, Karissa Renee (Author) / Sivak, Henry (Thesis director) / Pout, Daniel (Committee member) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor, Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2020-12
Description
Considered by colonists as an extension of France, Algeria was subjected to more than 125 years of French control. The Algerian people were thus heavily influenced by the French language and were required to abandon their native language in many aspects of their life such as government and education. This thesis aims to highlight the linguistic power relations established by the French in Colonial Algeria. Language usage and policies leading up to the Algerian War for Independence are critical to understanding the successor government. Analyzing three sections of language in Colonial Algeria- radio, language of instruction, and literature- I find that the language of instruction in education is the most influential in determining and formulating identities and power relations. Ultimately, this thesis concludes that language, power, and identity overlap and influence each other in several ways, producing a complex post-colonial society
ContributorsGriffin, Hanna (Author) / Joslin, Isaac (Thesis director) / Sivak, Henry (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor)
Created2022-05
DescriptionThis thesis explores what factors have hindered the effectiveness of international aid in promoting sustainable development—an approach that focuses on not just immediate responses, but long-term changes that promote the well-being of current and future generations in relation to environmental degradation, social equity, and economic growth—in Haiti.
ContributorsLee, Rachel (Author) / Aggarwal, Rimjhim (Thesis director) / Mueller, Valerie (Committee member) / Sivak, Henry (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Watts College of Public Service & Community Solut (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor)
Created2022-05