Intimate partner violence within the Albanian immigrant community in Greece: correlates and challenges

• In Event: Immigration, Violence, and the Significance of Gender

Abstract

Immigration is becoming an increasingly important policy concern both in the U.S. and Greece, and also in many other nations. This paper examines the issues related to intimate partner violence within the Albanian immigrant community in Greece. About 58 percent of all immigrants in Greece originate from Albania. Research shows that immigrant women who are abused face multiple barriers to seeking legal protection from the abuse as a result of their migration status, their positions within family and the host country. This paper explores how the situation in Greek society and the labor market (such as social policies, xenophobic attitudees, job segeragation and the prevailing economic crisis) changed the traditional gender roles and distribution of the power within Albanian families and increased interpersonal violence. We explore how the social integration and mobility of Albanian female immigrants are framed by the social and cultural norms attached to a host country. In addition, this paper draws attention to the need for further research on issues concerning immigrant battered women in Greece.

Authors

• Gabriela Wasileski, Indiana University of Pennsylvania

• Rita Poteyeva, James Madison University