Foreigners and Refugees Behind Bars
How Flemish Prisons Tackle Linguistic Barriers
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 3971282 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Emmanuelle Gallez (0000-0002-9266-233X, Faculty of Arts, Catholic University of Leuven (KUL), Rue Montagne aux Herbes Potagères 26, 1000 Brussels, Belgium, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2018 |
| Volume | 23 |
| Issue | 7-8 |
| Pages | 738-756 |
| Publication date | 2018-11-17 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | The European Legacy (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1084-8770 • E-ISSN: 1470-1316 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/10848770.2018.1492809 |
| OpenAlex | W2850068195 |
| Language | DE |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 10 |
As a result of intensive mobility and migration over the last twenty-five years, multiculturalism and multilingualism have become a reality in European prisons. This “superdiversity” poses a serious challenge to the various stakeholders who need efficient and reliable communication. Yet this topic has been underresearched. According to statistics for the year 2014 issued by the Council of Europe, Belgium has a high rate of foreign inmates (41%). Against this background, the aim of this exploratory research is to describe how the Flemish penitentiary system tackles this linguistic challenge. Data were gathered through qualitative research methods such as desktop research and in-depth interviews with 8 stakeholders (prison directors, prison staff, social workers, and interpreters). Due to the scarcity of financial resources and the presence of organizational hurdles, the Ministry of Justice rarely assigns jobs in prison to interpreters; instead, they are replaced by cheaper and immediately available alternatives. The results suggest that linguistic isolation of foreign detainees leads to social isolation and may jeopardize their release and social reintegration
Criminology · Flemish · Linguistics · Political science · Refugee · Sociology · European Criminal Justice and Data Protection · Law · Linguistics, Language Diversity, and Identity · Multilingual Education and Policy · Philosophy
| Citations per year | 0.75 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2022 - 2025 (4) |
| Highly cited | No |