Violence against women is prevalent around the world, and takes place most often in intimate relationships. Given the link between physical and sexual violence and the risk of HIV infection, the issue of intimate partner violence (IPV) is of concern particularly in Africa where the prevalence of HIV/AIDS is high. Yet, few studies have examined the prevalence of IPV in Africa using population-based survey data. Drawing on the 2003 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey data, this study attempted to identify factors associated with (1) women's experience of IPV in the last 12 months by type of violence and (2) their zero-tolerance of wife beating, among 4091 ever-married women aged 15-49. Logistic regression model was used to identify factors associated with each of the outcome. The risk of IPV was consistently high, across all three types of violence, among women of Luhya or Luo ethnic background, among women with four or more sons and daughters living at home, and among women, whose partners misused substance frequently. Residing in areas with a high concentration of men who agreed that a husband had the right to express anger if she refused to have sex with him had a significant and positive association with women's risk of physical violence in the last 12 months. On the other hand, having attained secondary or higher education protected women from the experience of both emotional and physical IPV. Women's zero-tolerance of wife beating saw positive associations with their achievement of secondary or higher education and with engaging in paid work in the last 12 months. Violence prevention programs may be more effective by empowering women through promoting higher education, collaborating with substance abuse prevention programs, and discouraging norms that justify husbands' right to express anger to control women / acase@tulane.edu

This project is an examination of the novels O Mulato (Aluisio Azevedo, 1889) and Cecilia Valdes (Cirilo Villaverde, 1882) and their call for social reform and a re-examination of the place of blacks in the emerging republics of Brazil and Cuba. Both novels question and criticize social constructs of race while pressing for an improved treatment of both free and enslaved blacks This project provides an intellectual history of eighteenth and nineteenth century rac(ial)ist theories that exerted a pronounced influence on Azevedo and Villaverde. Specifically, this section examines physiognomy, phrenology, and craniometry in addition to sociological and anthropological approaches to racial hybridism, the evolutionary theories of Darwin and Spencer, and the geographical determinism of Buckle. Finally, the chapter provides a close reading of Comte's positivism and its reception by the intelligentsia in Cuba and Brazil Azevedo's O Mulato purports to discredit racial discrimination by white society and the destructive influence of the Catholic clergy in Brazil's northern province of Maranhao during the 1870s by deploying the metaphor of an unsuccessful, interracial relationship involving a wealthy and educated mulatto and his white, aristocratic cousin. Although Azevedo endeavored to illustrate the problematic nature of racial discrimination and the social compartmentalization of blacks in Brazil---both relics of Portuguese colonialism---he nevertheless succumbed to the racialist ideologies of the nineteenth century and imbued his protagonist with stereotypical characteristics. Although blacks were rising socially via education and the military, Azevedo nevertheless envisioned a future, positivistic republic necessarily led by a white elite In Cecilia Valdes, Villaverde deploys an unsuccessful, interracial relationship involving a poor but beautiful, nearly-white mulatta and her aristocratic, half-brother as agents of the policy of whitening. As in O Mulato, the metaphor of an unsuccessful, interracial relationship reveals the difficulty in crossing racial and social castes and thus uniting different socio-economic sectors of the imagined community. Only one intraracial romance involving whites proves to be successful in the novel. This relationship serves as a metaphor indicating that only enlightened whites are capable of leading Cuba out of colonialism and into independence / acase@tulane.edu

The purpose of this study was to investigate the behavior and perceptions of a group of adults in culturally and structurally diverse families concerning their role in their children's learning. Five women of color, four African American, and one East Indian immigrant, participated in the study. Ethnographic interviews and story-telling were the keynote methodologies used in this participatory study. / The women's narratives provide a rich perspective on education in the intimate context of a family as well as the wider community. Parents' stories reveal the impact of historical, political, economic and cultural factors on their roles, what they feel is important for their children to learn as well as ways in which they promote this learning. Their stories offer lessons to adult educators about learning processes, strategies, and networks in the minority community. / The results of the study broaden our notion of "family" and "parent". They suggest that adult educators need to reexamine their theoretical and methodological frameworks in order to give more effective support to parents like those portrayed in participants' stories. The results of the study should thus help to inform educational reform efforts aimed at improving family-school relations. The methodology used should also be helpful in future studies of other aspects of parenting and adult development, especially among minority groups. In addition, the study should help to inform the stance of public agencies toward culturally and structurally diverse families. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 53-03, Section: A, page: 0690. / Major Professor: Peter Easton. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1992.

<p>At the heart of "American Realities, Diasporic Dreams" lies the following question: How and why do people generate longings for diasporic experience, and what might this have to do with nationally-specific affective and political economies of race, gender, and age? This dissertation focuses on the women of Girlfriend Tours International (GFT), a regionally and socio-economically diverse group of Americans, who are also members of the virtual community at www.Jamaicans.com. By completing online research in their web-community, and multi-sited ethnographic research in multiple cities throughout the U.S. and Jamaica, I investigate how this group of African-American women makes sense of the paradoxical nature of their hyphenated-identities, as they explore the contentious relationship between "Blackness" and "Americanness." </p><p>This dissertation examines how these African-American women use travel and the Internet to cope with their experiences of racism and sexism in the United States, while pursuing "happiness" and social belonging within (virtual and territorial) diasporic relationships. Ironically, the "success" of their diasporic dreams and travels is predicated on how well they leverage their national privilege as (African) American citizens in Jamaica. Therefore, I argue that these African-American women establish a complex concept of happiness, one that can only be fulfilled by moving--both virtually and actually--across national borders. In other words, these women require American economic, national, and social capital in order to travel to Jamaica, but simultaneously need the spiritual connection to Jamaica and its people in order to remain hopeful and happy within the national borders of the U.S. Their pursuit of happiness, therefore, raises critical questions that encourage scholars to rethink how we ethnographically document diasporic longings, and how we imagine their relationships to early 21st century notions of the "American Dream."</p> / Dissertation

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Indiana University, Dept. of French & Italian, 2007. / Title from dissertation home page (viewed Sept. 25, 2008). Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 69-02, Section: A, page: 0592. Adviser: Albert Valdman.

Spousal abuse has been a phenomenon that has been explored widely by many disciplines, yet few studies have included adequate samples of African-American people. The purpose of this study was to explore spousal abuse from an African-American female perspective. This ethnographic study was guided by Brofenbrenner's ecological model and Neuman's system model. These models provided a view of the social, political and economic constraints that contribute to spousal abuse as well as a view of the interpersonal and intrapersonal interactions that occur because of the abuse. Narratives of six African-American abused females were transcribed and coded. Then, patterns and themes were abstracted to form domains which described the experience of abuse. The narratives revealed three major findings: (1) five stages of abuse and coping that described a process of abuse; (2) three cultural themes; (3) a holistic view of spousal abuse based on the Brofenbrenner's ecological model and Neuman's system model. The five stages identified in the process of abuse were: stage 1--transference of rules, where the victim learned rules of behavior for intimate relationships from the family of origin; stage 2--beginning abusive period--occurring after the couple start to live together and violence begins; stage 3--rage and reality--when all attempts to stop the abuse have failed and anger is predominant; stage 4--transistion--the victim leaves the relationship and stage 5--stabilization and integration--when the victim stabilizes her life and begins to integrate the abusive experience. Three cultural themes were abstracted from the narratives. Patterns of Independence--the cultural message of the importance of being independent and not relying on anyone was consistent. The Family as a Resource was also a underlying theme among the victims. Although the abuse was kept a secret from the family of origin during the abuse, the family was seen as a source of nurturance and support after the abusive experience. A holistic view of spousal abuse was obtained revealing that the political, social, and economic constraints as well as the intrapersonal and interpersonal factors that victims faced everyday were factors in how they perceived and intervened in the abuse.

No description available.

<p> This thesis seeks to reorient the ideological foundations of restorative justice through feminist epistemologies to explore possibilities of how the movement might more fully actualize its values. The <i>Three Pillars of Restorative Justice,</i> conceptualized by Howard Zehr, offer an alternative process to the punitive recourse of the criminal justice system and serve as the foundation of mainstream restorative practices. However, the praxis and analytical discourse have stalled due to the limited binary of criminal and restorative justice frameworks. My thesis uses methodologies prominent in Black and Native feminisms-- such as critical thinking, contextual intelligence, and imagining futurity-- to complicate assumptions embedded in the criminal/restorative justice relationship. I establish the framework of restorative justice and briefly summarize the essential paradoxes to make clear the parallels and limits of the relationship. I then use feminist methodologies to reinterpret the pillars' values and introduce how some activists have begun to reimagine justice.</p>

<p> Breast cancer is the most prevalent cancer among women (apart from skin cancers). African American (AA) women have lower rates of breast cancer, but higher mortality from the disease. Tertiary prevention may play a role in improving survivorship. Lifestyle changes after diagnosis have been studied, with conflicting evidence on the direction of behavior change, as well as the successful maintenance of outcomes. In this secondary data analysis study, we utilized the Behavior Change data set of The Women's Circle of Health Study (WCHS), with 1599 cases of breast cancer diagnoses among women (both AA and European American (EA) in the New York City metropolitan area and northern New Jersey). Raw data from the `Behavior Change Section'--a survey subset from the WCHS--was converted into scores of `healthy/positive behavior change'. While both groups made positive behavior changes, a significantly greater percentage of AA made positive/healthy dietary (intake of fruits, vegetables, fats, meat) behavior changes compared to EA women (p&lt;0.001). More AA women made positive changes related to tobacco use (p&lt;0.001) and alcohol consumption (p=0.029). The current analysis did not assess an intervention, motivations for change, or health outcomes. Programs promoting decreased tobacco and alcohol consumption and healthy weight management may be an impetus for such change. Future research may focus efforts on AA, with additional attention to health care issues apart from lifestyle--including access to health care-- as this group has higher rates of breast cancer mortality. Characterizing the behaviors before and after diagnosis may be even more useful in determining the course of change for women with breast cancer.</p>

The idea of exploring the topic of the thesis has been promoted by the revival of Islam as a legal system in a number of Islamic nation states, as an assertion and part of their identity. This development is regarded by some as adversely affecting non-Muslim citizens in such states when looked at in the light of international principles. / Sudan, a multireligious state, declared the application of Sharia laws in 1983. The thesis addresses the impact of the application of Sharia law on non-Muslims within the historical, political and legal context of Sudan. This is examined in the light of international principles. / To this end, the thesis uses a comparative methodology, entailing the identification of the areas of inconsistencies between rules of Sharia governing non-Muslim subjects and international norms. Thus, an examination of Sudanese laws based on Sharia having an impact on non-Muslims is made.