Gendering asylum: the importance of diversity and context
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gendering asylum: the importance of diversity and context Kate Reed Research on the experience of asylum in the UK has traditionally focused on male experiences. As with most research on migrant groups, men become the first focus of research and policy, women’s experiences become secondary. This lack of interest or awareness of women’s experiences can be seen in the responses from statutory bodies. According to information from the refugee women’s resource project, when women claim asylum in the UK there is a lack of awareness by officials of how their gender has shaped their experience of persecution, consequently, genuine claims are at risk of failing (www.asylumaid.org.uk/RWRP/RWRP.htm). In highlighting these omissions, projects such as the refugee women’s resource project (a project providing resources and research in the area), have outlined some of the specific problems faced by women seeking asylum. They have shown that women seeking asylum often face forms of persecution such as rape, sexual violence, forced sterilization, genital mutilation and domestic violence from which they are unable to get state protection. Women are also often caregivers within the family, as such they face further isolation, often becoming situated in poor housing with little opportunity for education and work. In addition, women are also affected badly by recent changes in legislation affecting refugees, for example, by family dispersal and new support arrangements. Research and practice centring on the experiences of women asylum seekers has been invaluable in highlighting the many problems faced by women. However, by focussing specifically on women they are also in danger of marginalizing those experiences within broader debates. As Crawley (2001) argues, women-centred approaches to research and practice are problematic because they tend to see sex as the key factor accounting for the differential experiences of refugee and asylum-seeking women. They fail to acknowledge the ways in which such differences are a product of gender construction
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feminist review 73 2003 c 2003 Feminist Review. 0141-7789/03 $15 www.feminist-review.com (114–165)
in specific geographical, historical and political socio-cultural contexts. She argues that by focussing on women as opposed to gender, forced migration research and practice often replicates and reinforces the marginalization of women’s experiences within the dominant discourses (Crawley, 2001). Drawing on research conducted in East Kent, UK, I want to briefly highlight some of the key issues raised around women and asylum. In drawing on the research I want to emphasize the importance of taking a gendered approach to research, one which recognizes issues of diversity and social context when exploring asylum women’s experiences. Such an approach takes us beyond male or female centric models. Women’s experiences must not be looked at in complete isolation but must be explored in contrast to men’s. From this vantage point we can look at the diversity of experiences between men and women
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