Suchergebnisse

An examination of antiracism among whites in the US, 1865-1900. It is argued that the rejection of racism by whites is an important aspect of US history & provides powerful ammunition for present-day egalitarian arguments. Evidence of white antiracism is traced from the weekly newspaper Nation, to French scientist A. De Quatrefages's assertion that there is only one species of man in the influential Popular Science Monthly (1972). Also discussed is the antiracist rhetoric & practice of the American Federation of Labor, as well as the antiracist positions of Marxists. It is readily acknowledged that the antiracist movement was primarily an African-American one, but white resistance to racism deserves study. 38 References. M. Greenberg

The evolution & contemporary difficulties facing continental European welfare states are discussed, with a particular focus on the Federal Republic of Germany, France, & Italy. It is argued that the Catholic, conservative, & authoritarian origins of welfare state institutions in continental Europe have established a form of welfare that reinforces the male-breadwinner/female-carer dichotomy & privileges cash transfers over the provision of social services. This system has exacerbated class differentiation & undermined the labor flexibility & responsiveness required in the increasingly global market. Furthermore, this male-centered, family-oriented model is no longer applicable to the diverse forms of family organization emerging in modern nations, & encourages an unnecessary & unproductive trade-off between fertility & employment for women. It is concluded that continental European welfare states must modernize their welfare systems with an emphasis on need- &/or citizenship-based provision of services rather than employment-based cash transfers. 3 Tables, 30 References. T. Sevier

Draws on recent feminist welfare state theory, as well as interviews, archives, & participant observations, to examine the dynamics of welfare state transformation in Hungary. Focus is on varying conceptions of need that reveal a great deal about the relationship between the past & present. Welfare policies/practices related to women are traced, 1948-1968, when women's needs were organized around the household; 1968-1985, when emphasis was on quantity control & the quality of motherhood; & 1985-1996, when the focus became means-tested, income-based programs, completing the movement from familialization, to maternalization, to materialization. How motherhood was embedded in policies during the last 2 decades of state socialism is discussed, noting how conceptions of a "good mother" allowed women to protect themselves by expanding their identities. The replacement of motherhood by social class during the postsocialist regime generated a stigmatization of welfare clients that was strongly resisted by women who were reasserting the old socialist view of entitlement based on motherhood. 2 Tables, 67 References. J. Lindroth

Feminists in Ireland faced a particularly patriarchal state, which has essentially relegated women to the domestic role. Under some pressure from feminists, three state agencies for women have been formed in the last two decades: the Employment Equality Agency in 1977, the Ministry of State for Women's Affairs (MSWA) in 1982, & the Joint Oiteachtas Committee of Women's Rights (JOCWR) in 1983. The origins, organization, activities, role in the policy process, & linkages to women's organizations of the MSWA (1982-1987) & the JOCWR up to 1993 are described. Reports & legislation produced by the MSWA & the JOCWR underline the important role these policy structures have played in Ireland in expediting social change for women. However, major issues such as divorce & abortion remain outside their scope. M. Pflum

Examines the degree of convergence & divergence between social movements in Eastern Europe's former state socialist countries (particularly Russia & Hungary) & in Western capitalist societies. Social movement theory is reviewed briefly, followed by a discussion of local power structure under the previous socialist regimes & in the current transition period, noting trends over time, diversity of focus, & the key relationship of the state. Critical assessment of the literature on Western movements is performed, as is a provisional evaluation of relevant features of their counterparts in the East. Specific social processes are singled out to explain differences & similarities in patterns, eg, the transition of regimes, weak economic growth, diminishing or new political & public spaces, & the connections between dominant elites, private & public enterprises, & political actors. 67 References. C. Mariani

Causes & implications of the contemporary welfare crisis are discussed, with a particular focus on the impact of global economies. The welfare state crisis has been primarily attributed to three sources: (1) incompatibility between welfare & market demands for work, saving, & investment, (2) the long-term effects of population aging on welfare; & (3) global economic competition which punishes welfare strategies lacking economic efficiency. Although these sources have contributed to the welfare crisis, it is argued that their impact is often exaggerated & thereby misleading. Rather, welfare crisis is the product of both market failure (inefficient labor markets that produce unemployment & burden the welfare system) & welfare state failure (lack of coherence between institutionalized welfare policies & current economic & social circumstances). It is suggested that the traditional welfare state is no longer adequate for the demands of new social realities such as global competition, women's entrance into the workforce, population aging, decreased fertility, etc. Although privatization has certain advantages, it is concluded that subjecting welfare concerns to market forces may undermine the noneconomic aspects of welfare such as social integration, eradication of class differences, national identity, & social mobility. 3 Tables, 42 References. T. Sevier

In the context of state-society relations in the US, the establishment, development, organization, & activities of the Women's Bureau (WB) are reviewed. The WB, a permanent agency for women's policy issues housed in the Dept of Labor & established in the 1970s, influenced policy on equal rights for women (1966-1972), pregnancy discrimination (1970-1978), & job training (1975-1992). The WB has not been associated with any particular stream of feminism, but has focused on training for displaced homemakers & women offenders, child care, problems of minority women, & nontraditional jobs for women. Contrary to its mission, the WB has inadequate resources to function as a member of top government policy-making teams for social planning. Organized women's groups must still seek their own way into policy networks in education, welfare, crime, etc. M. Pflum

Of eight states that have experienced above-average Latino population growth, focus here is on MN & AR, as representative of the Midwest & the Sun Belt, examining settlement patterns, social reception, & citizenship status of Latino immigrant workers. Data are from the 1990 Public Use Microdata Sample, 1994 US Census estimates for population by state & by race/ethnicity, & media coverage of the establishment of Latino communities in non-"port of entry" areas. It is contended that the transformation of Midwest & Sun Belt states into industrial economies is primarily responsible for the migration of Latino Americans & immigrants to those areas. Although business leaders have viewed this migration as creating additional market opportunities, native-born citizens are concerned about the effects of Latino workers on the social dynamics of their local communities. The need for local & state officials to take measures to reduce social tension between native-born citizens & Latino workers is stressed. 5 Tables, 36 Figures, 79 References. J. W. Parker

Suggests that the ideas of social control first developed by Americans during the Progressive Era are relevant today for the construction of a European democratic polity. US progressive notions of social control are interpreted as rejecting the notion of the state & linking the notion of social control to a mature democratic form of polity. This notion is found in George Herbert Mead's sociology & social psychology (1964). It is suggested that this democratic turn occurred in the US experience around the New Deal period, but took hold in Europe only after WWII & did not really unfold there until the end of the Cold War. The work of Michel Foucault (1975) is taken as an announcement of this transition in notions of social control in Europe. It is argued that, whereas the question of the state is receding in Europe, the question of democratic social order is becoming more imperative. D. M. Smith

Examines the 1993/94 demonetization of the Russian economy, arguing that it was rooted in basic institutional & political asymmetries between central & local authorities. Analysis focuses on how institutional & political differences between national & local authorities of the electric power & heat sector affected the national drive to move to a money-driven economy. Ethnographic data collected from three regional economies show that the expansion of barter relations was a result of the monetization of the economy. Price liberalization & privatization were followed in 1993 by stabilization involving higher interest rates & taxes that depleted bank accounts, forcing managers to turn to barter relations. It is argued that while barter represented affluence in the socialist state, it now denotes bankruptcy. The political factors involved in the willingness of local authorities to push costs onto the electric power sector are discussed, & the entire process is reexamined in terms of Karl Polanyi's (1965) theory of the "double movement.". 1 Table, 5 Figures, 36 References. J. Lindroth