Laurel Borisenko
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- September 2018
- ISBN:
- 9781447337683
- eISBN:
- 9781447337737
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Policy Press
- DOI:
- 10.1332/policypress/9781447337683.003.0004
- Subject:
- Sociology, Social Research and Statistics
This vignette begins with a scene from a reader’s theatre play, written by the author about her research experience. The author’s creative reflection through her own storytelling provides a poignant ...
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This vignette begins with a scene from a reader’s theatre play, written by the author about her research experience. The author’s creative reflection through her own storytelling provides a poignant description of the tensions and complex questions that arise from conducting research that can put both researcher and respondents in a place of insecurity and even violence. The play and following reflection poses questions about vicarious traumatization, resilience, whose voices are heard or suppressed, and what level of insecurity is acceptable to community participants and to researchers.Less
This vignette begins with a scene from a reader’s theatre play, written by the author about her research experience. The author’s creative reflection through her own storytelling provides a poignant description of the tensions and complex questions that arise from conducting research that can put both researcher and respondents in a place of insecurity and even violence. The play and following reflection poses questions about vicarious traumatization, resilience, whose voices are heard or suppressed, and what level of insecurity is acceptable to community participants and to researchers.
Mike Berry
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- January 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780199686506
- eISBN:
- 9780191766374
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199686506.001.0001
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, History of Economic Thought
This book looks at the background to and causes of the global economic crisis that erupted in 2008 and is with us still. It does this by revisiting a classic book of the past, John Kenneth ...
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This book looks at the background to and causes of the global economic crisis that erupted in 2008 and is with us still. It does this by revisiting a classic book of the past, John Kenneth Galbraith’s The Affluent Society. Each chapter takes a major theme of his book, distils Galbraith’s arguments and then discusses to what extent they cast light on current developments, both in the developed economies and in the economics discipline. The themes include: inequality, insecurity, inflation, debt, consumer behaviour, ‘financialisation’, the economic role of government (‘social balance’), the power of ideas, the role of power in the economy and the nature of the good society. These are enduring concerns for citizens, no more than now as governments, businesses and consumers seek to recover from the economic tsunami that washed over the major Western economies (and is yet to fully recede). As such, the book deals with the big current problems of capitalism and the huge challenges facing democratic governments in tackling them. The book argues that orthodox economic models and policy advice failed spectacularly to warn of impending crisis and has subsequently failed to help lift the struggling advanced economies back on the path to sustainable prosperity. It concludes that although much has happened, in the global economy and in the discipline of economics, since Galbraith wrote, many of the themes he raised and answers he provided remain relevant today.Less
This book looks at the background to and causes of the global economic crisis that erupted in 2008 and is with us still. It does this by revisiting a classic book of the past, John Kenneth Galbraith’s The Affluent Society. Each chapter takes a major theme of his book, distils Galbraith’s arguments and then discusses to what extent they cast light on current developments, both in the developed economies and in the economics discipline. The themes include: inequality, insecurity, inflation, debt, consumer behaviour, ‘financialisation’, the economic role of government (‘social balance’), the power of ideas, the role of power in the economy and the nature of the good society. These are enduring concerns for citizens, no more than now as governments, businesses and consumers seek to recover from the economic tsunami that washed over the major Western economies (and is yet to fully recede). As such, the book deals with the big current problems of capitalism and the huge challenges facing democratic governments in tackling them. The book argues that orthodox economic models and policy advice failed spectacularly to warn of impending crisis and has subsequently failed to help lift the struggling advanced economies back on the path to sustainable prosperity. It concludes that although much has happened, in the global economy and in the discipline of economics, since Galbraith wrote, many of the themes he raised and answers he provided remain relevant today.
Mike Berry
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- January 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780199686506
- eISBN:
- 9780191766374
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199686506.003.0005
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, History of Economic Thought
A key plank of Galbraith’s argument concerning the impact of affluence on contemporary society was the claim that the age-old problem of economic insecurity had all but disappeared as a factor in ...
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A key plank of Galbraith’s argument concerning the impact of affluence on contemporary society was the claim that the age-old problem of economic insecurity had all but disappeared as a factor in most people’s lives, especially in the America of his day. Developments since he wrote – particularly since the 1970s – have fatally undermined this bold position, at both the micro level of household and firm and the macro level of the economy at large. This chapter outlines the Galbraithian argument and then analyses the way recent developments have systematically undermined or reversed the forces he pointed to as driving the change to universal security. This discussion allows us to focus on the genesis and outcomes of the continuing trend to greater insecurity that characterizes the twenty-first century looking forward.Less
A key plank of Galbraith’s argument concerning the impact of affluence on contemporary society was the claim that the age-old problem of economic insecurity had all but disappeared as a factor in most people’s lives, especially in the America of his day. Developments since he wrote – particularly since the 1970s – have fatally undermined this bold position, at both the micro level of household and firm and the macro level of the economy at large. This chapter outlines the Galbraithian argument and then analyses the way recent developments have systematically undermined or reversed the forces he pointed to as driving the change to universal security. This discussion allows us to focus on the genesis and outcomes of the continuing trend to greater insecurity that characterizes the twenty-first century looking forward.
Setha Low
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- September 2019
- ISBN:
- 9781479863013
- eISBN:
- 9781479805778
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- NYU Press
- DOI:
- 10.18574/nyu/9781479863013.003.0007
- Subject:
- Anthropology, Social and Cultural Anthropology
The impact of the U.S. security concerns is not only seen in political and spatial restrictions on public space or inscribed in militarized borders, but also in the increasing penetration of the ...
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The impact of the U.S. security concerns is not only seen in political and spatial restrictions on public space or inscribed in militarized borders, but also in the increasing penetration of the private realm of home. This domestication of security concerns through the architecture, urban design and management of private residential communities addresses homeowners’ sense of social and financial insecurity through socioeconomic segregation, controlled physical environments and racist discourses. These securitization practices, the securityscapes that are a result of architectural and social infrastructures and how they work can be uncovered through an ethnographic analysis of housing regimes and the affective, discursive and bodily practices that make up and regulate home life.Less
The impact of the U.S. security concerns is not only seen in political and spatial restrictions on public space or inscribed in militarized borders, but also in the increasing penetration of the private realm of home. This domestication of security concerns through the architecture, urban design and management of private residential communities addresses homeowners’ sense of social and financial insecurity through socioeconomic segregation, controlled physical environments and racist discourses. These securitization practices, the securityscapes that are a result of architectural and social infrastructures and how they work can be uncovered through an ethnographic analysis of housing regimes and the affective, discursive and bodily practices that make up and regulate home life.
Adrian Sinfield
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- January 2014
- ISBN:
- 9781447312741
- eISBN:
- 9781447312857
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Policy Press
- DOI:
- 10.1332/policypress/9781447312741.003.0011
- Subject:
- Social Work, Social Policy
The section begins with Adrian Sinfield's exploration of ‘what unemployment means’. In 1981, when Sinfield's book of this title was first published, the UK was in the early stages of a massive ...
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The section begins with Adrian Sinfield's exploration of ‘what unemployment means’. In 1981, when Sinfield's book of this title was first published, the UK was in the early stages of a massive political and economic transformation. Three decades and two recessions later, as the chapter demonstrates, we see some differences but many similarities in the patterns and impact of unemployment. The current recession may be regarded as a problem of ‘growth’ rather than industrial restructuring, but, as Sinfield argues, the trend towards insecurity has its roots in the latter and the political project pursued during that formative period. Consequently, most of the social divisions of unemployment apparent in the 1980s endure today: divisions of ethnicity, regional impact, the cumulative effects of limited opportunities to acquire skills and the preponderance of low pay remain obvious. As the chapter concludes, the long-term effects on society of persistent and high unemployment are grave, all the more so when combined with a curtailment of social protection and a politics of division.Less
The section begins with Adrian Sinfield's exploration of ‘what unemployment means’. In 1981, when Sinfield's book of this title was first published, the UK was in the early stages of a massive political and economic transformation. Three decades and two recessions later, as the chapter demonstrates, we see some differences but many similarities in the patterns and impact of unemployment. The current recession may be regarded as a problem of ‘growth’ rather than industrial restructuring, but, as Sinfield argues, the trend towards insecurity has its roots in the latter and the political project pursued during that formative period. Consequently, most of the social divisions of unemployment apparent in the 1980s endure today: divisions of ethnicity, regional impact, the cumulative effects of limited opportunities to acquire skills and the preponderance of low pay remain obvious. As the chapter concludes, the long-term effects on society of persistent and high unemployment are grave, all the more so when combined with a curtailment of social protection and a politics of division.
Mehran Kamrava
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- January 2019
- ISBN:
- 9781501720352
- eISBN:
- 9781501720369
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Cornell University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7591/cornell/9781501720352.003.0006
- Subject:
- Political Science, Middle Eastern Politics
Since the early years of the twentieth century, the Persian Gulf has been viewed as a strategically vital waterway, both for the global economy in general and for the continued prosperity of advanced ...
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Since the early years of the twentieth century, the Persian Gulf has been viewed as a strategically vital waterway, both for the global economy in general and for the continued prosperity of advanced economies in particular. In the process, the region has become an arena for the emergence of multiple and often overlapping security challenges, many of them indigenous to the area and many imported from abroad. Up until the 2011 Arab uprisings, most of these security challenges revolved around territorial, political, and military competitions and conflicts within and between actors from the region itself and from the outside. While threats and challenges to human security were also present, they were often overshadowed by more immediate and more tangible threats to territorial sovereignty and those posed by various forms of political and military competition between state actors.Less
Since the early years of the twentieth century, the Persian Gulf has been viewed as a strategically vital waterway, both for the global economy in general and for the continued prosperity of advanced economies in particular. In the process, the region has become an arena for the emergence of multiple and often overlapping security challenges, many of them indigenous to the area and many imported from abroad. Up until the 2011 Arab uprisings, most of these security challenges revolved around territorial, political, and military competitions and conflicts within and between actors from the region itself and from the outside. While threats and challenges to human security were also present, they were often overshadowed by more immediate and more tangible threats to territorial sovereignty and those posed by various forms of political and military competition between state actors.
M. Cristina Alcalde
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- January 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780252041846
- eISBN:
- 9780252050510
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Illinois Press
- DOI:
- 10.5622/illinois/9780252041846.003.0005
- Subject:
- Sociology, Migration Studies (including Refugee Studies)
This chapter focuses on quotidian technologies of exclusion against migrants who identify as gay, lesbian, and bisexual. Drawing on interviews, newspapers, ordinances and bills, novels, and field ...
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This chapter focuses on quotidian technologies of exclusion against migrants who identify as gay, lesbian, and bisexual. Drawing on interviews, newspapers, ordinances and bills, novels, and field notes, the chapter underscore how forms of exclusion, violence, and insecurity can undergird and even define belonging in the context of return. I also examine how Peruvian migrant groups outside Peru may reinforce exclusionary practices. I suggest that LGB individuals may find themselves in the difficult position of accepting violence against them--homophobic practices, jokes, and discrimination--in order to be at home with their families, in their homeland, and within immigrant communities, which leads to exclusion and rightlessness in everyday life.Less
This chapter focuses on quotidian technologies of exclusion against migrants who identify as gay, lesbian, and bisexual. Drawing on interviews, newspapers, ordinances and bills, novels, and field notes, the chapter underscore how forms of exclusion, violence, and insecurity can undergird and even define belonging in the context of return. I also examine how Peruvian migrant groups outside Peru may reinforce exclusionary practices. I suggest that LGB individuals may find themselves in the difficult position of accepting violence against them--homophobic practices, jokes, and discrimination--in order to be at home with their families, in their homeland, and within immigrant communities, which leads to exclusion and rightlessness in everyday life.
Tracy Shildrick, Robert MacDonald, Colin Webster, and Kayleigh Garthwaite
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- May 2013
- ISBN:
- 9781847429117
- eISBN:
- 9781447307907
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Policy Press
- DOI:
- 10.1332/policypress/9781847429117.003.0001
- Subject:
- Sociology, Social Stratification, Inequality, and Mobility
This chapter introduces the book. It begins by repeating the mantra-like statements favoured by British politicians that ‘work is the best route out of poverty’, counter-posing these with brief ...
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This chapter introduces the book. It begins by repeating the mantra-like statements favoured by British politicians that ‘work is the best route out of poverty’, counter-posing these with brief statements from research participants about the realities of ‘in-work poverty’. The first part of the chapter summarises the thrust of the books descriptions and its overall arguments. This is followed by a description of the layout of the book, chapter by chapter, with discussion of the main findings and arguments contained in each. This chapter introduces the book. It begins by repeating the mantra-like statements favoured by British politicians that ‘work is the best route out of poverty’, counter-posing these with brief statements from research participants about the realities of ‘in-work poverty’. The first part of the chapter summarises the thrust of the books descriptions and its overall arguments. This is followed by a description of the layout of the book, chapter by chapter, with discussion of the main findings and arguments contained in each. This chapter introduces the book. It begins by repeating the mantra-like statements favoured by British politicians that ‘work is the best route out of poverty’, counter-posing these with brief statements from research participants about the realities of ‘in-work poverty’. The first part of the chapter summarises the thrust of the books descriptions and its overall arguments. This is followed by a description of the layout of the book, chapter by chapter, with discussion of the main findings and arguments contained in each. This chapter introduces the book. It begins by repeating the mantra-like statements favoured by British politicians that ‘work is the best route out of poverty’, counter-posing these with brief statements from research participants about the realities of ‘in-work poverty’. The first part of the chapter summarises the thrust of the books descriptions and its overall arguments. This is followed by a description of the layout of the book, chapter by chapter, with discussion of the main findings and arguments contained in each.Less
This chapter introduces the book. It begins by repeating the mantra-like statements favoured by British politicians that ‘work is the best route out of poverty’, counter-posing these with brief statements from research participants about the realities of ‘in-work poverty’. The first part of the chapter summarises the thrust of the books descriptions and its overall arguments. This is followed by a description of the layout of the book, chapter by chapter, with discussion of the main findings and arguments contained in each. This chapter introduces the book. It begins by repeating the mantra-like statements favoured by British politicians that ‘work is the best route out of poverty’, counter-posing these with brief statements from research participants about the realities of ‘in-work poverty’. The first part of the chapter summarises the thrust of the books descriptions and its overall arguments. This is followed by a description of the layout of the book, chapter by chapter, with discussion of the main findings and arguments contained in each. This chapter introduces the book. It begins by repeating the mantra-like statements favoured by British politicians that ‘work is the best route out of poverty’, counter-posing these with brief statements from research participants about the realities of ‘in-work poverty’. The first part of the chapter summarises the thrust of the books descriptions and its overall arguments. This is followed by a description of the layout of the book, chapter by chapter, with discussion of the main findings and arguments contained in each. This chapter introduces the book. It begins by repeating the mantra-like statements favoured by British politicians that ‘work is the best route out of poverty’, counter-posing these with brief statements from research participants about the realities of ‘in-work poverty’. The first part of the chapter summarises the thrust of the books descriptions and its overall arguments. This is followed by a description of the layout of the book, chapter by chapter, with discussion of the main findings and arguments contained in each.
Tracy Shildrick, Robert MacDonald, Colin Webster, and Kayleigh Garthwaite
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- May 2013
- ISBN:
- 9781847429117
- eISBN:
- 9781447307907
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Policy Press
- DOI:
- 10.1332/policypress/9781847429117.003.0002
- Subject:
- Sociology, Social Stratification, Inequality, and Mobility
This chapter sets out the general theoretical and empirical terrain of the book, drawing attention to continuities and discontinuities both in the provision of welfare as an attempt to tackle or at ...
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This chapter sets out the general theoretical and empirical terrain of the book, drawing attention to continuities and discontinuities both in the provision of welfare as an attempt to tackle or at least contain poverty and in the shape and nature of employment in the UK. It defines some of the key terms we use in this book. The chapter highlights the recent turn in research to understanding the dynamics of poverty and it also explains the broader research programme in which the study was located. The chapter also contends with some important, contemporary myths about the demand for and supply of labour. The chapter highlights the broad landscape of changing employment and welfare conditions. The chapters which follow, in the middle of the book, paint a finer portrait of the consequences and reality of these changes as they are lived by people in low-pay, no-pay Britain.Less
This chapter sets out the general theoretical and empirical terrain of the book, drawing attention to continuities and discontinuities both in the provision of welfare as an attempt to tackle or at least contain poverty and in the shape and nature of employment in the UK. It defines some of the key terms we use in this book. The chapter highlights the recent turn in research to understanding the dynamics of poverty and it also explains the broader research programme in which the study was located. The chapter also contends with some important, contemporary myths about the demand for and supply of labour. The chapter highlights the broad landscape of changing employment and welfare conditions. The chapters which follow, in the middle of the book, paint a finer portrait of the consequences and reality of these changes as they are lived by people in low-pay, no-pay Britain.
Joanna Mack
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- May 2018
- ISBN:
- 9781447334224
- eISBN:
- 9781447334309
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Policy Press
- DOI:
- 10.1332/policypress/9781447334224.003.0002
- Subject:
- Sociology, Social Stratification, Inequality, and Mobility
This chapter examines fifty years of poverty measurement, in particular the development of deprivation-based measures from Townsend’s definition of being ‘excluded from ordinary patterns’ of ...
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This chapter examines fifty years of poverty measurement, in particular the development of deprivation-based measures from Townsend’s definition of being ‘excluded from ordinary patterns’ of behaviour through Mack and Lansley’s idea of ‘socially-perceived necessities’ to wider frameworks based around Sen’s concept of ‘capabilities’. It argues that these developments have contributed to a widespread acceptance that poverty is relative, with what is seen as inadequate living standards changing as society changes. The chapter charts trends in deprivation and income poverty, and their growing divergence. While both measures reflected the sharp rise income inequality in the 1980s, in this millennium deprivation-based measures have continued to rise while relative income poverty has stabilised. This indicates that deprivation measures better reflect the adverse impact of stagnating wages, rising insecurity and declining public provision. The chapter concludes that poverty research needs to be firmly positioned within wider debates about growing economic and social inequalities.
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This chapter examines fifty years of poverty measurement, in particular the development of deprivation-based measures from Townsend’s definition of being ‘excluded from ordinary patterns’ of behaviour through Mack and Lansley’s idea of ‘socially-perceived necessities’ to wider frameworks based around Sen’s concept of ‘capabilities’. It argues that these developments have contributed to a widespread acceptance that poverty is relative, with what is seen as inadequate living standards changing as society changes. The chapter charts trends in deprivation and income poverty, and their growing divergence. While both measures reflected the sharp rise income inequality in the 1980s, in this millennium deprivation-based measures have continued to rise while relative income poverty has stabilised. This indicates that deprivation measures better reflect the adverse impact of stagnating wages, rising insecurity and declining public provision. The chapter concludes that poverty research needs to be firmly positioned within wider debates about growing economic and social inequalities.
Loïc Wacquant
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9781447300014
- eISBN:
- 9781447307587
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Policy Press
- DOI:
- 10.1332/policypress/9781447300014.003.0012
- Subject:
- Social Work, Crime and Justice
Loic Wacquant responds to the various contributions earlier in the book reiterating the central aspects of his argument regarding the shift from punitive welfare, to workfare to prisonfare in the USA ...
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Loic Wacquant responds to the various contributions earlier in the book reiterating the central aspects of his argument regarding the shift from punitive welfare, to workfare to prisonfare in the USA – a process he is also able to detect in aspects of European public policy. He also poses a question about a seeming lack of dialogue between social welfare policy researchers and criminologists given that disciplinary social welfare and the penalisation of insecurity are core aspects of the ‘neo-liberal turn’.Less
Loic Wacquant responds to the various contributions earlier in the book reiterating the central aspects of his argument regarding the shift from punitive welfare, to workfare to prisonfare in the USA – a process he is also able to detect in aspects of European public policy. He also poses a question about a seeming lack of dialogue between social welfare policy researchers and criminologists given that disciplinary social welfare and the penalisation of insecurity are core aspects of the ‘neo-liberal turn’.
Lee Jarvis and Michael Lister
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- January 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780719091599
- eISBN:
- 9781781708316
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9780719091599.003.0003
- Subject:
- Political Science, Conflict Politics and Policy
This chapter explores contemporary debate around security and citizenship, situating our understanding of each within these. It argues that both are, fundamentally, experiences rooted in everyday ...
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This chapter explores contemporary debate around security and citizenship, situating our understanding of each within these. It argues that both are, fundamentally, experiences rooted in everyday life, rather than abstract or formal statuses or conditions. The chapter concludes by discussing the methodology underpinning the book’s empirical research.Less
This chapter explores contemporary debate around security and citizenship, situating our understanding of each within these. It argues that both are, fundamentally, experiences rooted in everyday life, rather than abstract or formal statuses or conditions. The chapter concludes by discussing the methodology underpinning the book’s empirical research.
Lee Jarvis and Michael Lister
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- January 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780719091599
- eISBN:
- 9781781708316
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9780719091599.003.0006
- Subject:
- Political Science, Conflict Politics and Policy
This chapter analyses the impact of anti-terrorism powers on public experiences of security within the UK. The chapter begins by reiterating the widespread public scepticism toward these powers ...
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This chapter analyses the impact of anti-terrorism powers on public experiences of security within the UK. The chapter begins by reiterating the widespread public scepticism toward these powers identified in Chapter 3. A major factor within this scepticism, it argues, was the pervasive view that security has not been enhanced by recent initiatives in this area. Indeed, some individuals – primarily from ethnic minority communities – believed that their security has been directly diminished by the introduction of new anti-terrorism powers. To fully understand this scepticism, however, requires a deeper engagement with public understandings of security, and differences between these. To do this, the chapter begins by exploring public articulations of security threats before introducing six distinct ways that participants in this research discussed the concept of security. Here, security was linked to notions of survival, belonging, hospitality, equality, freedom and insecurity, respectively.Less
This chapter analyses the impact of anti-terrorism powers on public experiences of security within the UK. The chapter begins by reiterating the widespread public scepticism toward these powers identified in Chapter 3. A major factor within this scepticism, it argues, was the pervasive view that security has not been enhanced by recent initiatives in this area. Indeed, some individuals – primarily from ethnic minority communities – believed that their security has been directly diminished by the introduction of new anti-terrorism powers. To fully understand this scepticism, however, requires a deeper engagement with public understandings of security, and differences between these. To do this, the chapter begins by exploring public articulations of security threats before introducing six distinct ways that participants in this research discussed the concept of security. Here, security was linked to notions of survival, belonging, hospitality, equality, freedom and insecurity, respectively.
Jessica Ziparo
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- May 2018
- ISBN:
- 9781469635972
- eISBN:
- 9781469635989
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of North Carolina Press
- DOI:
- 10.5149/northcarolina/9781469635972.003.0007
- Subject:
- History, American History: Civil War
Chapter 6 addresses female employees’ struggles to keep their positions with the federal government. The number and percentage of women in the federal labor force grew fairly steadily throughout the ...
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Chapter 6 addresses female employees’ struggles to keep their positions with the federal government. The number and percentage of women in the federal labor force grew fairly steadily throughout the 1860s, but insecurity and volatility characterized the federal civil service. During the Civil War and immediate postwar period, departments coped with unpredictable workloads through unsystematic, non-uniform, rapid expansions and contractions of their workforces resulting in short employment periods. At the same time, the press of new applicants was unrelenting. Because much of the basic work women did could be adequately done with relatively little training, some supervisors saw female employees as interchangeable. This atmosphere of uncertainty discouraged collective action and forced female federal employees to utilize aggressive strategies to retain and regain the positions they had become reliant upon. In their attempts to remain employed, women demonstrated strength and self-confidence that seemed to have been gained through their federal employment.Less
Chapter 6 addresses female employees’ struggles to keep their positions with the federal government. The number and percentage of women in the federal labor force grew fairly steadily throughout the 1860s, but insecurity and volatility characterized the federal civil service. During the Civil War and immediate postwar period, departments coped with unpredictable workloads through unsystematic, non-uniform, rapid expansions and contractions of their workforces resulting in short employment periods. At the same time, the press of new applicants was unrelenting. Because much of the basic work women did could be adequately done with relatively little training, some supervisors saw female employees as interchangeable. This atmosphere of uncertainty discouraged collective action and forced female federal employees to utilize aggressive strategies to retain and regain the positions they had become reliant upon. In their attempts to remain employed, women demonstrated strength and self-confidence that seemed to have been gained through their federal employment.
Françoise Carré and James Heintz
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- September 2013
- ISBN:
- 9781447308942
- eISBN:
- 9781447310822
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Policy Press
- DOI:
- 10.1332/policypress/9781447308942.003.0005
- Subject:
- Sociology, Social Stratification, Inequality, and Mobility
This chapter discusses the rise of non-standard forms of employment since the 1980s. The authors describe how non-standard employment produces economic vulnerability in a variety of ways: low and ...
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This chapter discusses the rise of non-standard forms of employment since the 1980s. The authors describe how non-standard employment produces economic vulnerability in a variety of ways: low and irregular earnings, underemployment, frequent unemployment or unstable labour market participation. They note that non-standard arrangements particularly affect women workers as a whole and also disproportionately touch racial/ethnic minorities, primarily African-American workers and Hispanics. The authors emphasise the importance of a rights-based approach to employment to combat these trends.Less
This chapter discusses the rise of non-standard forms of employment since the 1980s. The authors describe how non-standard employment produces economic vulnerability in a variety of ways: low and irregular earnings, underemployment, frequent unemployment or unstable labour market participation. They note that non-standard arrangements particularly affect women workers as a whole and also disproportionately touch racial/ethnic minorities, primarily African-American workers and Hispanics. The authors emphasise the importance of a rights-based approach to employment to combat these trends.
Wendy A. Vogt
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- May 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780520298545
- eISBN:
- 9780520970625
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520298545.003.0007
- Subject:
- Anthropology, Social and Cultural Anthropology
This chapter explores some of the complexities around economies of compassion and the politics of security in local spaces. On one hand, the emergence of migrant shelters demonstrates the ways local ...
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This chapter explores some of the complexities around economies of compassion and the politics of security in local spaces. On one hand, the emergence of migrant shelters demonstrates the ways local actors challenge the state and advocate for migrant rights through the creation of spaces of refuge. Yet at the same time, humanitarian aid shelters become points of contestation in local communities where migrants are feared as racialized and gendered others. The dynamics between priests, shelter workers, and local residents put into relief the ways moral imaginaries of charity, inclusion and justice are shaped by everyday economic and social realities of safety and security.Less
This chapter explores some of the complexities around economies of compassion and the politics of security in local spaces. On one hand, the emergence of migrant shelters demonstrates the ways local actors challenge the state and advocate for migrant rights through the creation of spaces of refuge. Yet at the same time, humanitarian aid shelters become points of contestation in local communities where migrants are feared as racialized and gendered others. The dynamics between priests, shelter workers, and local residents put into relief the ways moral imaginaries of charity, inclusion and justice are shaped by everyday economic and social realities of safety and security.
