Click Here for Katya: An Investigation of the International Matchmaking Industry
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Authors
McKnight, Megan
Issue Date
1999
Type
Thesis
Language
en_US
Keywords
Alternative Title
Abstract
This thesis is an examination of the situation of immigrant women. It explores the international matchmaking process and its relationship to the
precarious situation of immigrant women married to abusive U.S. spouses. Although the
experiences described above are not necessarily representative, Christina's story
emphasizes the problems of international matchmaking, while Elina's tale highlights the
positive possibilities. This thesis will include a discussion of the diverse critiques of the
international matchmaking industry. It will culminate with recommendations for United
States policy.
The first chapter of this thesis will describe the practices and procedures of the
international matchmaking industry. International matchmaking agencies operate with
the purpose of uniting men from economically powerful, Western nations with women
from less industrialized, poorer countries for the purported purpose of marriage. It is a
rapidly growing industry, catalyzed by the relative ease of physical movement across
nation-state borders and the fast paced, borderless, communication medium of the
Internet. International matchmaking agencies recruit women to appear in catalogues and
on Internet sites as prospective marital partners of primarily American, Australian,
Canadian and German men looking for foreign wives. This thesis focuses exclusively on
international matchmaking in the U.S. context. Men pay for access to the addresses of
the women they have selected among the photographs on the Internet site or in the
catalogue. The women are often referred to as "mail order brides."
Chapter One is an introduction to international matchmaking. It begins by tracing
the origins of the industry to the practices of 17 century European settlements on the
North American continent. It discusses the methods that contemporary matchmaking
agencies employ to solicit men and women users of their services. Chapter one also
explores the connection between the trafficking of women for the purpose of prostitution
and international matchmaking. This chapter concludes with a description of international
matchmaking in the United States.
Chapter Two is intended to shed light on the motivations of the men and women
"clients" of international matchmaking agencies. Why are tens of thousands of foreign
women, especially Russian and Filipinas, using international matchmaking services?
How do these women personally explain their reasons for resorting to international
matchmaking? Are there structural reasons why women from these two countries are
enticed to use matchmaking agency services? How do U.S. men personally explain their
reasons for using international matchmaking services? Are there structural reasons that
U.S. men use international matchmaking agencies to seek a marital partner? There have
been many critiques of the matchmaking industry, reproaching both its practices and the
ideology driving the development and expansion of this industry. These critiques will be
delineated in the final section of chapter two.
Chapter Three explores the relationship between international matchmaking and
domestic violence. It begins with the anecdotal experiences of several women who
married U.S. men they met through international matchmaking agencies and who became
victims of spousal battery and abuse. These women's stories serve as poignant examples
for discussing the precarious situation of immigrant women who marry abusive spouses
through international matchmaking agencies and are subjected to abuse in the United
States. Their experiences as battered women are affected by the confounding factors of
race, immigration status, cultural differences, linguistic limitations, method of
immigration and misperceptions of law enforcement and the United States legal system.
Law professor Kimberle Williams Crenshaw's "intersectionality" analysis will be
discussed to aid in a theoretical understanding of the constellation of factors that define
battered immigrant women's experiences.
Why are immigrant women, especially those who meet their U.S. husbands
through international matchmaking agencies, particularly vulnerable to domestic
violence? As chapter three explains, immigrant women face significant barriers both
when attempting to leave an abusive relationship and when attempting to access services
and support. Further, the tools an abusive man may use to maintain power and control
are strengthened when the victim is an immigrant "mail order bride."
Chapter Four examines current United States policy with regard to the
international matchmaking industry. Recognizing that international matchmaking "as is"
is plainly unacceptable, Ayuda Inc. has articulated specific policy recommendations with
regard to the international matchmaking industry. This policy statement is presented in
its entirety. Chapter four also includes a discussion of several immigration law reforms
that would ease the plight of battered immigrant women. Implemented together,
regulation of the matchmaking industry and immigration law reform have the ability to
substantially reduce the vulnerability to abuse of foreign-born brides married to U.S. men
they met though international matchmaking, and to lessen the power that batterers
presently have over their immigrant victims.
Description
v, 129 p.
Citation
Publisher
Kalamazoo, Mich. : Kalamazoo College.
License
U.S. copyright laws protect this material. Commercial use or distribution of this material is not permitted without prior written permission of the copyright holder. All rights reserved.