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11. Editor's Note

Publication Date:
05-2015
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Bildhaan: An International Journal of Somali Studies
Institution:
Macalester College
Abstract:
I begin this brief note by wishing all of our readers a new year that brings great blessings to all! The contents of this volume range from an arresting and commemorative essay on the life of one of the most mag- nificent of all Somali fannaaniin , Halimo Khalif (Magool), to women in the diaspora, to specific recommendations for addressing the wor- risome issue of job creation for the many young graduates from the universities in Somaliland—the latter a phenomenon so conspicu- ously observable among the Somali youth in every part of the Horn of Africa.
Political Geography:
Africa and Somalia

12. When Do Rebels Become State-Builders?: A Comparative Case Study of Somaliland, Puntland, and South-Central Somalia

Author:
Andrew Scott Duffield
Publication Date:
01-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Bildhaan: An International Journal of Somali Studies
Institution:
Macalester College
Abstract:
This essay is a contribution to the literature on Somali state formation by reviving Charles Tilly's concepts and insights explaining how warfare impacts state-building. It theorizes, analyzes, and explains how three Somali territories—Somaliland, Puntland, and South-Central Somalia—underwent such different state-building trajectories since the collapse of the Siad Barre regime in 1991. To that end, it demonstrates how Tilly's work may be applied in a modern context, such as to rebel groups, unrecognized states, and regional political systems operating within a state. It recognizes and overcomes gaps in Tilly's literature by incorporating recent scholarship on Limited Access Orders (LAO) by Douglass North. The essay demonstrates how the organization, financing, and use of violence, as well as qualities about the violent actors themselves, influence state-building trajectories.
Political Geography:
Somalia

13. Migration Experiences, Employment Status and Psychological Distress among Somali Immigrants: a Mixed-Method International Study

Author:
Nasir Warfa, Kamaldeep Bhui, Sarah Curtis, Charles Watters, Ken Carswell, and David Ingleby
Publication Date:
01-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Bildhaan: An International Journal of Somali Studies
Institution:
Macalester College
Abstract:
Background: The discourse about mental health problems among migrants and refugees tends to focus on adverse pre-migration experiences; there is less investigation of the environmental conditions in which refugee migrants live, and the contrasts between these situations in different countries. This cross-national study of two samples of Somali refugees living in London (UK) and Minneapolis, Minnesota, (USA) helps to fill a gap in the literature, and is unusual in being able to compare information collected in the same way in two cities in different countries.
Political Geography:
United States, London, and Somalia

14. History, Overview, Trends and Issues in Major Somali Refugee Displacements in the Near Region (Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda and Yemen)

Author:
Laura Hammond
Publication Date:
01-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Bildhaan: An International Journal of Somali Studies
Institution:
Macalester College
Abstract:
This paper was originally prepared for the High Level Panel on Somali Refugees convened by the High Commissioner for Refugees to take place in Geneva on 13 and 14 November 2013. The Panel is part of a Global Initiative the High Commissioner has launched to rally international support for creative, meaningful and transformative solutions for Somali refugees.
Political Geography:
Uganda, Kenya, Yemen, and Ethiopia

15. Contexts of Diaspora Citizenship: Citizenship and Civic Integration of Somalis in Finland and the United States

Author:
Paivi Harinen, Ville-Samuli Haverinen, Marko Kananen, and Jussi Ronkainen
Publication Date:
01-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Bildhaan: An International Journal of Somali Studies
Institution:
Macalester College
Abstract:
With more than one million people scattered around the world, Somalis form a significant part of the world's diaspora population. Although Somalia has recently experienced a certain level of stability and encouraging developments, the diaspora community keeps growing. Due to security threats, drought, and famine, millions of Somalis still live in refugee camps. These problematic conditions imply that the Somali diaspora must remain the focus of transnational migration research generating new perspectives and insights. Furthermore, although return to Somalia might be an option for some of the Somalis living in diaspora, many of them will not return. That is why research should pay attention to their opportunities to live as equal citizens in their new home countries.
Political Geography:
United States and Somalia

16. Stabilization and Common Identity: Reflections on the Islamic Courts Union and Al-Itihaad

Author:
Robrecht Deforche
Publication Date:
01-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Bildhaan: An International Journal of Somali Studies
Institution:
Macalester College
Abstract:
Portrayed as a failed state and characterized by years of conflict and disaster, Somalia has been the center of much research. Issues ranging from scarcity to piracy have been investigated and discussed. In the search for solutions some issues have been highlighted while others have not been adequately addressed. This intervention focuses on the question of identity because this issue negatively impacts the experience of the Somali people. The remarkable transition from clan rivalry toward relative stability under the Islamic Courts Union (ICU) in 2006 should be examined in order to understand whether the emphasis on religious identity (Section VI) could potentially overcome the clan- based conflict. Before elaborating on ethnic and clan identity (Sections IV and V), some theoretical principles are introduced (Section II). Considering the failure of secular nationalism (Section V), the ICU umbrella successfully united the Somali people under the values of their shared religion. Unfortunately, this so-called Golden Age lasted for only six months. Hence, it is hard to say whether or not the common religious identity had gained ground against clan identity. Thus, the creation of a legitimate and representative government will only succeed when the question of identity can be appropriately approached.
Political Geography:
Somalia

17. Editor's Note

Publication Date:
01-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Bildhaan: An International Journal of Somali Studies
Institution:
Macalester College
Abstract:
I begin this briefest of notes to express my profoundest apology to all subscribers and the larger readers of Bildhaan. As many of you already know or will see now, this volume is for 2013. The reasons for the delay are a few but two stand out. The first concerns my own availability as the editor-in-chief. Some of you will remember that I have been on sabbatical leave for two years, until the autumn of 2013. During that period, I was fully engaged in either the political campaign for running for the presidency of Somalia or pre-occupied with the aftermath—the latter including my resignation of my parliamentary seat, the preparations to find a replacement, and my journeys to Somaliland. The second reason was due to the late arrival of some submissions and the extraordinary time it took to review and then communicate with the authors. Here, I want to send particular gratitude to the authors whose work now appears in the pages of the volume. Their patience has been exceptional.

18. Editor's Note

Publication Date:
09-2012
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Macalester International
Institution:
Macalester College
Abstract:
At its inception, Macalester College had a dual dream: on the one hand, to encourage students to cultivate their growth through rigorous study and critical self-reflection; on the other, to educate students for a condition of freedom, civic action, and a vocation of leadership. The pioneering works and lives of Edward Duffield Neill and James Wallace, two of the College's most significant founders and builders, captured this dream. Thus, in its Institute for Global Citizenship, Macalester keeps faith with the dream by creating with and for students, contexts conducive to a distinctive synthesis of intellectual intensity, self-monitoring, and preparation for public usefulness in a multi-civilizational global milieu.

19. Creating a Civic National Identity: Integration Through Immigrant Political Participation

Author:
Maars Beltrandy y Rudquist
Publication Date:
09-2012
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Macalester International
Institution:
Macalester College
Abstract:
State citizenship grants the citizen many rights, but the rights most fundamental to a democracy are the right to vote and the right to run for elected office. In the traditional formulations of the nation-state, it has been clear who possesses these rights, but over the last half-century, widespread international migration has complicated the definition of the citizen and has called into question the perceived unity between the nation and the state, between citizenship and nationality, and between civic participation and national identity. In this study, I will examine these complications in the specific case of the Netherlands, a country particularly well known for its recent history of cosmopolitanism. I will examine the effect of these debates on citizenship, and national identity on the ability of migrants to become involved in the Dutch political system as well as the nature of their civic participation. From the basis of this research, I will argue that immigrant political participation is a useful measure of civic integration and that the civic integration that comes with this participation can lead to an increased tolerance of difference within society, which can help to create a new civically, rather than culturally, based national identity. Furthermore, the presence of immigrants and ethnic minorities in local and national politics helps to maintain the relevance of the Dutch state to its population in today's globalized world. For this reason, research on the subject of immigrant political integration is important for understanding both the present and future situations of countries receiving immigrants.
Political Geography:
Netherlands and Dutch

20. Trapped by Narcissism: A Disillusioned Dutch Society

Author:
Anna-Kay Brown
Publication Date:
09-2012
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Macalester International
Institution:
Macalester College
Abstract:
The arrival of the well-celebrated and revered Sinterklaas on November 21, 2011, was marked by the brutal and cruel beating of a black man, Quinsy Gario of Curacao, who was forcefully dragged and thrown into the streets by the Dutch police for protesting the racist connotations of Black Pete. The man wore a stencilled T-shirt with the words “Zwarte Piet is racism” and, according to Dutch and Antillean newspapers and other media reports, he yelled “Zwarte Piet is racism” as the group of Black Petes passed by. The beating, videoed by a bystander and posted on YouTube, was both stomach turning and heart wrenching. It shows the police dragging Gario along the road, with the knees of two policemen pressed into his body. He cries, “It is my right to protest,” while “autochthones” Dutch stand by and watch. After all, it was they who had called the police in disgust at the protest of their beloved tradition. This image stands in stark contrast to the image of a liberal and cosmopolitan Netherlands. In particular, in the words of the director of Antidiscriminatie, Johan Dinjens, it depicts “a society in confusion,” and which I will also contend is a disillusioned society.
Political Geography:
Netherlands, Dutch, and Antilles