The Effect of Ayslum Policy on Social Exclusion in the UK
This essay will discuss what asylum policy is, and how it has
increased levels of social exclusion in the UK, where I will use
specific examples from health and housing. Though, first, one must
understand the term asylum seekers which applies to someone who has
applied for asylum in this country, their application has been
accepted as worthy of consideration and is being processed. In
comparison, a refugee is someone who has been granted asylum or
‘exceptional leave to remain’ here. It is important to distinguish
between two because refugees have more rights than asylum seekers. For
example, a refugee can engage in paid employment.
Again, one must clarify what ‘social exclusion’ is. As defined by
Gordon and Townsend (2000), they believe that ‘social exclusion’ is
not a state but a process. In December 1997, the Social Exclusion Unit
(SEU) was set up for two years in the first instance, based in the
Cabinet Office and reporting to the Prime Minister. The aim of the
Unit is to develop coordinated policies to address social exclusion,
described as joined-up policies for joined-up problems. It has no
spending budget, since its purpose is to make recommendations to the
contributory government departments, with a view to directing existing
funding more effectively. The ‘socially’ excluded are understood to be
a group outside ‘mainsteam society’. Sometimes they are thought as
‘outdide society’ itself. (Gordon and Townsend 2000). Similarly, the
DSS report states that “social exclusion occurs where different
factors combine to trap individuals and areas in a spiral of
disadvantag...
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...ly similar to those of the host population,
although previous poor access to health care may mean that many
conditions have been untreated. Symptoms of psychological distress are
common but do not necessarily signify mental illness. Many refugees
experience difficulties in expressing health needs and in accessing
health care. Poverty and social exclusion have a negative impact on
health. Initially refugees will need help to make contact with health
and social support agencies. Professional interpreters are essential.
Time, patience, and a welcoming approach will break down many
barriers, but some refugees have problems that need specialist help
and support for which there are few resources, especially outside
London. It is crucial that these resources are developed before larger
numbers of asylum seekers are dispersed.
In doing so, we are also blocking out people who have the potential to bring even more cultural diversity into the community. If we honestly believe that we are a generous and multicultural nation, it’s time we show it by empathising with our fellow human beings. In order to improve the conditions in detention centres there must be a change to our unnecessarily harsh system. We need rules to be enforced, such as; a maximum 30 day time limit, and the people that are detained must be let out within this time frame. Within this time, health, character and identity checks must be completed. Shutting down isolating and remote detention centres. Speeding up the processing system. Asylum seekers must be given the opportunity to communicate with the outside world and have full access to legal advice and counselling. This means that telephones, internet and external activities need to be an option. Unaccompanied minors also need to be a priority. It is time that Australia treats our neighbours with all the dignity and respect that they finally
Australia has had a long history of receiving individuals and groups who are seeking asylum as well as unfortunately a long history of turning those away who are perceived as different. (McKay,Thomas & Blood 2011).Even though the white Australia policy was abandoned decades ago it still lives on as a strong resonance in the conservative right of politics (Westoby & Ingamells, 2010). Community fear about Australia’s border seem easily triggered, which has prompted the term ‘paranoid nationalism’ to be used to describe the heightened refugee politics of the Howard years linked to discrimination and maltreatment of asylum seekers which still lives on today (Westoby & Ingamells, 2010). This paper will use the term asylum seeker to identify those who have arrived at Australian shores seeking refuge without a valid visa. I aim to consider throughout this paper this history of how asylum seekers have been constructed as the ‘other’ and to examine the role of public discourse and political, legal and media responses, such as the implementation of detention centres, as creating and reinforcing the position of asylum seekers as different and not belonging. It will be therefore argued that while we have come a long way from the treatment the Howard government gave asylum seekers, we have not come far enough. Two key areas being the use of ‘othering’ and the implementation of detention centres need to be challenged if we are to take the responsibility of providing refuge for asylum seekers seriously.
The Past and Present Treatment of Ethnic Minorities in Britain For this assigment I will be looking at the past and present
As a part of my English communications study I have chosen to explore the various social and political issues regarding asylum seekers in Australia. Firstly I would like to clarify the term asylum seekers, or as they are more commonly referred to: ‘boat people’.
The 2002 Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act abandoned the dispersal policy and voucher scheme and introduced warehousing accommodation in the form of a camp that’s like a prison to house asylum seekers with a separate education and healthcare provision, these finally excludes them from normal community life (Bochel et al, 2009:388). This was highly criticized by NGOs, refugee council, refugee organization and several charitable organizations for refugee and this sometimes led to riots in the detention centre. The 2004-2006 Act further tightens the asylum system and speeded detention and removal by the withdrawal of legal rights (Bochel et al, 2009:388). The home office insist the dispersal policy is going on well whereas on the ground opinion is mixed (Guardian, 27 June 2001) this came up due to the case of some 14 asylum seekers on hunger strike in protest against the poor living condition in the privately run Liverpool tower block. The refugee council has serious concern over the dispersal policy especially as unaccompanied minors are being dispersed alongside adults with no proper resources and support service put in place. Chief executive Nick Hardwick mentioned that for dispersal policy to work government department need to develop proper support services for asylum seekers in dispersing areas and that dumping asylum seekers on poor estate blocks where they cannot access basic services like healthcare and education is leaving them abandoned and vulnerable (Guardian, 27 June 2001). In some situation asylum seekers refused to be dispersed and decide to
Throughout this assignment a variety of terminology will be used, first it is appropriate to define what the term ‘Social Policy’ means. Social policy can be defined in different ways and ‘there is no established or agreed definition of social policy’ (Baldock et, al., 1999:21). From reading different books on social policy, the author’s understanding of social policy is it provides guidelines to deal with social problems . Social problems are matters which direct...
In this essay, I will be talking about social work problems faced in the UK and how they are addressed. I will be focusing on asylum seekers particularly Unaccompanied asylum seeking children (UASC). These are children who are under 18yrs of age and applying for asylum in their own rights. I aim to highlight key areas in understanding the needs of these children while recognising that these are by no means homogenous, and therefore explain how these needs are addressed by social policies, legislature and social workers.
Segregation is often a term overlooked by many in recent years, but still can have a detrimental effect on a country’s economy. Segregation often leads to poverty, which in turn, also has a negative effect on the economy, leading to a disadvantage in countries, particularly the United States and South Africa. Racial segregation is apparent in the United States and affects many cities, depending on the number of segments there are within a particular city. The effects of segregation cannot lie in the hands of one person, rather all the people that make an economy. In 1944, Gunnar Myrdal refers to racial segregation as “a basic term that has its influence in an indirect and impersonal way” (Massey, 1993). The following examples are how “simple increases in the rate of minority poverty leads to socioeconomic character of communities, which in turn leads to disadvantages caused by racial segregation” (Douglas, 1990).
Social Policy is an analysis of the social services and the welfare state. The welfare state is what gives individuals the chance to bounce back after adversity that may happen in their lives. Social policy is used to develop and deliver services to society to meet the welfare and wellbeing needs of those who may need it (Alcock, 2008, p.2). Social policy focuses on unemployment, people with disabilities, elderly, vulnerable and less-able people, single parent families and how help and support to them can be delivered in the best way possible. Social policy notifies the way in which health services, legislations and policies are conveyed. Over time, governments have either changed or built on existing legislations and policies in response to
The United States government’s continuation of a discriminatory policy poses people to question the extension of freedom in a nation where “all men are created equal” and that boasts about their protected rights. For 17 years, the United States government’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) policy barred homosexuals from openly serving in the armed forces. Military commanders could not ask military personnel about their sexual orientations or begin an investigation except upon the receipt of “credible information” of homosexual conduct. The policy was a compromise between President Bill Clinton, who sought to repeal the military's ban on gay personnel, and the opponents of that repeal
Defining discrimination is not an easy task. Choosing between the competing definitions of discriminations has not only been theoretical implications, but also practical implications, because the definition concludes the scope of observed inquiry and appropriate methods for identification and study of the phenomenon. Reason for that is because discrimination is typically considered something hostile to norms of fair and equal treatment in a democratic market society, there are also significant normative implications to defining discrimination. Most definitions of discrimination knot around 2 related yet distinguishable means of defining the phenomenon: intentional discrimination and dissimilar impact. Pager and Shepherd 2008 and Blank, et al.
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The topic that I have been studying is Refugee’s and Migration. According to the Oxford Dictionary, a refugee is “A person who has been forced to leave their country in order to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster”. In order to keep their families and themselves a refugee migrates to a different country which. This issue is more of a global problem than it is local. I think that there needs to be more awareness on the problems that refugee’s face from day to day so that if a refugee gets sent to the UK then the government can give more help to support them.
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In relation to social transformation I have gathered materials that focusses on programs provided for ‘refugees’ living in New Zealand. The purpose of my findings are based on the societies support for ‘refugees’ in terms of human security and directions of life before settling in their new destination. There are stories about ‘refugees’ that need to be shared and stories that need to be forgotten, because it can produce controversy within the society or the universe. But where can these ‘refugees’ go if the place they call home is unsafe or too risky for the lives of their families and for themselves. It’s hard enough to migrate into a new country, but it is devastating for refugees who have experienced the loss of homes and loved ones.