EDITOR’S NOTE

/in /by

BEING A LGBTTIQ – MEANINGS THAT SHAPE US

/in /by

This paper analyses certain aspects of everyday life of the LGBT population in Serbia, starting with Gerc’s understanding of culture. Aspects that shape the “identity” of a non-heterosexual person in a predominantly heteronormative and heterosexual environment are a stigma, internalized homophobia, and various strategies of “passing” and connecting with the “gay” community. These elements are an integral part of the lives of LGBT people and based on them we can talk about certain meanings that are common to LGBT population. The first part deals with concepts such as identity, internalized stigma/homophobia, while the second part deals with several case studies of non-heterosexual persons. The experiences such as sexual orientation different from heterosexual and gender identities that are not binary make it possible to speak in Gerc’s sense of a certain “culture” that is familiar to LGBT minority, which is largely not shared by heterosexual women and men in the same society. That culture of the LGBTTIQ population forms part of a hidden and an invisible culture – being in opposition to the heteronormative concepts means exposure to discrimination and violence, which brings a lot of misunderstandings but also means resistance – a certain challenge to the society that is standardized by heterosexual rules and binary gender regimes. The LGBTTIQ “culture” has the power to deconstruct oppositions such as heterosexual/homosexual, men/women, etc.

WHO IS THE HOMELESS

/in /by

This paper offers analysis of the stories told by beneficiaries of the Shelter for Adults and the Elderly in Belgrade, about themselves and others. The goal was to recognize and describe identity hooks for self-presentation. In order to understand our respondents’ narratives, it was necessary to respect the milieu in which the narration took place. This specific context – the institution for care of persons in social need i.e. a shelter for the homeless – is influencing not only the ways of encountering others, but also the version of the truth about oneself. The conceptual framework of the study was found in social constructionism, and the starting assumption is that the process of identity work is interactive in its nature. In other words, we create self-identity negotiating with others and with ourselves. Searching for personal identity points, deep interviews were conducted with five residents of the shelter. In their narratives, important identity hooks are recognized: personal traits, values and significant others, in relation to which they build/defend their identities.

(RE)CONSTRUCTING GENDER (NEO)ORIENTAL DEVIANCE

/in /by

This paper proceeds from an assumption emphasized by the creator of the concept of Orientalism, Edward Said. His standpoint is that the gender aspect of Occidental attitude towards the Orient is very important for the understanding of the whole complex process of reducing and simplifying the perception of Oriental societies. A specific view of the oriental woman which was formed in the 18th and 19th centuries can also be identified in contemporary Western societies. Although the symbols and the iconography are different, the logic of contradicting women’s oriental otherness remains the same. The Muslim women are perceived as submissive, vulnerable and obedient. Western discourses are marked by the need to “rescue” these endangered women. The methods of “salvation” are different and they range from sexist to feminist. The feminist form of Western “salvation” is theoretically more interesting and has been critically responded to by many (Western) authors who disagree with the imperative of adopting Western feminism as the only way to achieve gender equality. In order to clarify the arguments that are in favour of both streams of thought, we have presented various views within the framework of Islamic feminism itself. Without a desire to give the final conclusion, in the end we looked at the possibilities of eclecticism in these theoretical feminist schools of thought that would contribute to the better position of all Muslims in the contemporary context, and especially to the Muslim women. The main goal is to deconstruct images of Muslims as a deviant subculture based on the fact that their customs and beliefs are different.

HIKIKOMORI – A NOTION OF DEVIANT IMMUNITY

/in /by

The issue of social withdrawal among young people has been in focus of Japanese attention since the 1990s. From a western perspective, this complex psychological and social symptom – known as hikikomori, has often been explored and read as inherently Japanese. The rigidness of such conclusions is not just theoretically questionable, but it also generates a discourse on Japan as a place of unique, nationally determined, deviant behaviour. This paper offers a theoretical contextualization of the hikikomori phenomenon and additionally opens a debate on potential “immunity” of such community in the realm of a capitalist system, where productivity is established as an indisputable obligation.

CULTURAL FACTORS OF KAROSHI AND KARO-JISATSU

/in /by

In this paper, cultural factors of overwork death in Japan are examined. The frequency of karoshi (death from overwork) and karo-jisatsu (suicide from overwork) tends to increase. Although these phenomena are somewhat present in other countries, they are the most frequent in Japan, which, for the purpose of explanation, imposes a need for examining its specificities. In literature, these phenomena are most often explained by economic factors. Although the cultural specificities of Japan may also represent important factors of these phenomena, their significance is not recognized. Therefore, some characteristics of the Japanese culture which may be important for overwork death are examined. In this sense, maintaining harmonious relationships with others (within the company) and loyalty (to the company) represent some of the key values of the Japanese (work) culture.

THE CRIME AND ETHOS OF AFRICAN AMERICAN GANGS IN THE URBAN LOS ANGELES AREA

/in /by

Ever since the Chicago School and the rise of ecological theory, gangs have drawn attention of researchers as a unique phenomenon caused by a high level of urbanization and social disorganization. In their works, correlations were first established between the level of poverty, urban environment and the crime rates. In this paper, criminality is defined as a totality of criminal phenomena caused by various criminogenic factors, while ethos is regarded as a manifestation of basic values inherent in a particular person or group – in this case a criminal gang. Primary goal is to determine how criminogenic factors lead to specific forms of crime. Assumption is that factors such as unemployment, economic and systemic deprivation, racism and suburbanization affect young Afro-Americans in a manner that is reflected by a specific criminal subculture. Los Angeles has for decades been considered as the world capital of gangs, which is also confirmed by the city police reports that show there are about 450 active gangs in Los Angeles area. This topic is relevant both in the field of criminology and in the field of urban sociology because gangs have become a unique expression of coping with deprivation and difficult existential conditions in urban environments.

CULTURE AND CRIME

/in /by

The relationship between culture and crime is illustrated by analysing two topics: the first is the influence of culture on determining the circle of incriminated behaviour as well as the way in which society reacts to crime; the second relates to the effect of certain cultural factors on the genesis of criminal behavior. In this paper, the author analyses the most important contributions of European social thought from the end of the 19th and early 20th centuries, to the Chicago School and its followers and, finally, the British cultural criminology. When it comes to the applicability of the above-mentioned criminological schools to the case of Serbia, it is a real detriment that the tectonic changes that have taken place over the past 100 years (two unsuccessful attempts to create a multinational and multireligious society: both in the Second World War and in the civil war in which Yugoslavia was dissolved; intensive industrialization and urbanization that in the middle of the 20th century led to mass migration from the village to the city; the departure of workers into developed countries and their problems of adapting to a different culture; the collapse of the socialist model and the transformation into capitalism through “robbery privatization” which has led to an alarming stratification of the society…) almost failed to encourage scientists to examine how the related changes in the sphere of culture reflected on the state of crime. The latest wave of refugees from the Near and Middle East who went through the territory of the Republic of Serbia (some of them remaining here permanently) opens up new opportunities for such studies; the same is true for the cultural adaptation of tens of thousands of refugees from the territory of the former Yugoslavia and internally displaced persons from Kosovo and Metohija; here we need to mention the subculture of young people, football hooligans, cultural patterns of the so-called ’turbo folk’ and other youth subcultures. Criminologists in Serbia have, therefore, a multitude of possible subjects of research they should explore.

NEW CULTURE OF ALCOHOL CONSUMPTION: BINGE DRINKING – CONSUMPTION INSTEAD OF COMMUNICATION

/in /by

This paper studies new patterns of alcohol consumption among adolescents and young adults – binge drinking. It regards this type of gathering and socializing as a culture (subculture) that emerged in Serbia at the end of the 20th and the beginning of the 21st century. A question is posed whether this model of drinking is related to the need to belong to a group or whether the group instead only presents a necessary context for the fulfilment of individual needs. It is also noted that the new drinking culture significantly challenges the existing gender stereotypes (both in terms of the model and the intensity of drinking). Besides presenting a number of studies on binge drinking and the cultural and social risk factors, two narratives are also analysed, of a male and a female respondent. Findings show that the new culture of drinking significantly differs from the traditional one, not only in regard to the manner of consumption but also to the context, spatial and social, as well as the motivations behind it. The former “socialization” paradigm is now being replaced by the individual motive, hence a new term “consumption instead of communication” is added to the old term of “controlled loss of control”.