Gender and Displaced Migration Governance in Scotland

1. Displacement – the condition experienced by people seeking asylum and refuge from persecution – is a gendered phenomenon. This means that gender norms and gendered systems play a role in determining who is vulnerable to displacement and how they are vulnerable. To treat displacement as a gendered phenomenon is to consider how gender norms impact the experiences of displaced people of all genders. However, it is recognised that people in categories outwith the gender norm, including women, trans, queer and non-binary people are especially vulnerable to conditions of displacement. 2. Integration – the process through which asylum seekers and refugees are supported by public and third sector providers to access services and opportunities related to social citizenship – is also a gendered condition. The gendering of integration begins at the stage at which a claim for asylum or refuge is lodged, determines access to services and support, and influences opportunities for education, employment and citizenship. 3. Despite gender informed approaches to policy and practice in Scotland, there is evidence that gender inequalities are insufficiently addressed across categories associated with the successful ‘integration’ of asylum seekers and refugees, including accommodation, language provision and labour market access.