Suchergebnisse

For its lessons on the possibilities of collaboration between organized labor and immigrant workers, Organized Labor and Civil Society for Multiculturalism: A Solidarity Success Story from South Korea is of keen interest to practitioners worldwide working within projects dedicated to promoting labor solidarity and multiculturalism.

During the interwar period, California's labor-intensive agriculture transitioned from reliance on diverse immigrants to preference for Mexicans. Political movements to restrict immigration, the Great Depression, and labor unrest compelled farm employers to search for labor that could be used flexibly and deported easily. To achieve this objective, the growers needed a central organization that could foster unity and articulate their collective interest. The formation of the California Farm Bureau Federation and the American Farm Bureau Federation in 1919 and 1920 provided such a political platform. When lawmakers sought to apply the quota provision of the Immigration Act of 1924 to Mexico, the growers' strong presence at congressional hearings demonstrated their rising influence in policy making. Moreover, the clear difference between Filipinos and Mexicans with respect to deportability during the Depression affirmed the flexibility of Mexican labor. Finally, at the height of labor unrest in the 1930s, the American Farm Bureau leadership called for agricultural class consciousness to strengthen unity and maintain dominance over the striking workers. The development of grower organizations in this era set the stage for California agriculture's almost exclusive dependence on flexible Mexican labor in the ensuing decades.

This paper examines the dynamic role of the state, civil society groups and international conventions in expanding the rights of foreigners in South Korea. While recent scholarship on international migration reflects a growing gap between post-national and state-centered theories, the South Korean case illustrates the dynamic interplay of actors involved in major policy developments concerning interethnic marriages, citizenship, and the temporary foreign worker program. Although the challenges of adopting additional UN and ILO Conventions remain, the passage of the Nationality Act and the Employment Permit System reflects a steady expansion of political and labor rights for foreigners. The increasing number of foreigners marrying Koreans and the strong prospect of long-term dependence on foreign workers accentuate even more the significance of these changes. This paper shows that the expansion of foreigner rights depends on the liberal position of the state, the organizational strength of NGOs, and the system of checks-and-balances structurally embedded in the way the state parties and NGOs cooperate in implementing international instruments.

The influx of Russian entertainers and sex workers to South Korea exemplifies complex intersections of cultural and economic factors that fuel international migration of women. This article discusses the role of race and nationalism in constructing the ideal type of Western women that serves as a new commodity frontier.