Log In 
Language Just. Journal of Language Rights & Minorities, Revista de Drets Lingüístics i Minories. 2024. Vol. 3, no. 2
Permanent URI for this collection
Browse
Recent Submissions
- Women’s challenges and gender inequality implications in the UK Home Office’s streamlined asylum process(2024) Giustini, DeborahThis conceptual article scrutinises the challenges faced by women seeking asylum in the UK, focusing on the impact of the Home Office’s streamlined asylum process. Despite mention of gender-based issues in official guidelines, the system exhibits hostility and inadequacy in addressing the unique obstacles women encounter. Through a posthuman, practice-based theoretical framework, the article examines recent gender-based concerns raised about the Home Office’s use of questionnaires, machine translation, and informal linguistic assistance in lieu of interpreted asylum interviews for selected nationalities. It also highlights the implications of technologisation and bureaucratisation on linguistic access, arguing that the revised asylum-seeking process not only reinforces women’s marginalised position but also diminishes crucial resources like interpreting, in turn contributing to gendered power asymmetries between asylum seekers and the justice system. The article contends that this approach transfers the burden of language understanding to women, contributing to a climate of sociomaterial exclusion that curtails the rights of female asylum seekers to be adequately heard.
- Linguistic rights, translation, and State-sponsored violence in Mexican prisons(2024) Ang, Milena; Vázquez, MiguelThis article examines linguistic violence experienced by incarcerated indigenous-language speaking women in Mexico. Drawing from a survey of incarcerated individuals, we demonstrate that, despite constitutional guarantees for language access, non-Spanish speakers often lack access to translation services. This deprivation is a form of linguistic violence. Furthermore, we find that such linguistic violence correlates with predatory behavior from authorities—specifically physical and sexual violence. This predatory behavior is reported more frequently by female indigenous-language speakers than any other group. We propose two reasons why this might be the case: limited Spanish proficiency traps these women in prolonged legal limbo, increasing their interactions with potentially abusive authorities, and the language barrier fosters isolation, hindering their ability to report abuses. This phenomenon illustrates how linguistic violence can lead to physical violence.
- Género y esferas del poder en la traducción e interpretación de lenguas indígenas en México(2024) Córdova-Hernández, Lorena; López Curiel, María Elizabeth; Briseño Mass, María LeticiaEste artículo analiza, desde una perspectiva de género interseccional y de género en la traslación, experiencias de traductoras de lenguas indígenas en los servicios públicos de justicia mexicanos. Se desarrolla un enfoque cualitativo a partir del análisis de narrativas sobre experiencias identitarias, culturales y profesionales de traducción e interpretación de lenguas indígenas extraídas de estudios publicados y recogidas en conversaciones registradas en un diario de campo. La presentación de los resultados se realiza desde la interseccionalidad, retomando la propuesta de Hill Collins y Bilge (2019) sobre las cuatro esferas del poder: a) ámbito interpersonal; b) ámbito disciplinario; c) ámbito cultural, y d) ámbito estructural. Los resultados muestran que, en la intersección de las relaciones de poder y las categorías de grupo etnolingüístico, género y clase social, y frente a las tendencias históricas de discriminación y exclusión de las mujeres y las lenguas indígenas, las traductoras e intérpretes indígenas generan estrategias para revertir las discriminaciones tanto en su cotidianidad como en su práctica profesional desde dos procesos interdependientes: por un lado, a partir del fortalecimiento de su agencia social y política para el fomento y reconocimiento de su profesionalización; por el otro, promoviendo una lucha constante para el cumplimiento de sus demandas étnicas, de género y lingüísticas.
- Lawfare lingüístic contra el llenguatge inclusiu a la trinxera d’X(2024) Daussà, Eva J.; Pera-Ros, RenéeEl llenguatge de gènere neutre (LGN) es proposa com a eina per ajudar a combatre el biaix de gènere codificat en el llenguatge tradicional, representatiu de pràctiques i ideologies socials androcèntriques. Alhora, ofereix l’oportunitat d’expressar identitats més enllà de les limitacions imposades per les estructures rígides dels esquemes binaris i cisheteronormatius. Majoritàriament, però, els discursos oficials s’adhereixen a una agenda conservadora que no se sent interpel·lada per les reivindicacions vinculades a l’LNG. Argüim que, com a resultat, s’afegeix el desapoderament lingüístic a la marginació d’unes poblacions que de per si ja estan socialment força marginades, i s’hi fomenta la confrontació social. Utilitzant la xarxa social d’X com a baròmetre de les ideologies subjacents a les diferents posicions, presentem una anàlisi temàtica reflexiva basada en 150 piulades produïdes l’any 2023 i 2024. Els resultats indiquen que, mentre que hi ha veus que veuen la utilitat de l’LNG per visibilitzar identitats silenciades i expressar el compromís per l’equitat social, altres s’hi resisteixen, fent-se ressò de les posicions oficials sobre la base de nocions d’autenticitat lingüística i legitimitat autoritativa. A més, malgrat la presentació com a debat lingüístic, moltes actituds semblen, en canvi, estar utilitzant l’oficialitat per reforçar pràctiques discriminatòries contra les identitats generitzades.
- Unveiling discrimination(2024) Hardgrove, AnneThis article examines the historical and legal marginalization of the hijra, a third-gender community in South Asia, with a particular focus on the Indian subcontinent. Utilizing a postcolonial theoretical framework, the article analyzes contemporary lawfare dynamics between hijra and transgender activists in India and Pakistan. The study integrates gender and class analysis to explore key legal developments, drawing on examples from both colonial and contemporary legislation in India and Pakistan. The article argues that despite increased legal recognition of transgender rights, hijra remain marginalized as transgender activists seek acceptance as members of the middle class, often at the expense of hijra communities. By exploring legislative interventions and the narratives around activist endeavors, lawfare is analyzed at two levels, legislative and social, demonstrating how transgender activism can perpetuate discrimination against hijras in both Pakistan and India. The analyses underscore the complexity of alliances within genderqueer groups in postcolonial South Asian societies, challenging the assumption that these groups are natural allies. Ultimately, the article reveals the complex intersection of gender, class, and legal strategies, critiquing the role of lawfare in perpetuating social divisions and calling for more inclusive approaches to gender rights.
- Gender and ethnolinguistic lawfare(2024-10-07) Monzó-Nebot, Esther; Wallace, MelissaThis article treats the concept of lawfare in relation to gender and ethnolinguistic identities, examining how legal systems are employed to perpetuate power imbalances and suppress marginalized communities. By focusing on various case studies and theoretical frameworks, the study explores the role of ideologies and how moral panic and moral injury manifest in legal responses to gender nonconforming individuals, women, and ethnolinguistic minorities. The article critiques how the law is weaponized as a tool of oppression, particularizing in areas such as language rights, gender equality, and access to justice. Through an interdisciplinary approach, the authors demonstrate how legal frameworks and institutional actions often reinforce societal norms that exclude vulnerable groups, rather than protecting them. As a framework to the special issue Gender and Ethnolinguistic Lawfare, this article offers a critical perspective on the relationship between law, identity, and power, contributing to a deeper understanding of how the rule of law perpetuates or challenges social hierarchies.
