'I am a Widow, Mother and Refugee': Narratives of Two Refugee Widows Resettled to Australia

Abstract

The sparse literature on contemporary narratives of widowhood among refugee women as a consequence of conflict situations indicates that this aspect of lived experience is relatively unexplored. While loss is integral to the refugee journey, there is a paucity of analysis of how the sudden loss of a spouse under such circumstances can compound resettlement anxieties, particularly when women raise children alone. By exploring meanings attached to widowhood using examples from the experiences of two younger refugee women resettled in Brisbane, Australia, this article demonstrates how they negotiated lives characterized by community ostracism and stigmatization attached to widowhood and lone parenting. The limited knowledge specifically on young or middle-aged widowhood, the compounded impact on lone parenting, and intra-group tensions among refugee women are highlighted. Such an oversight should be addressed to provide a full understanding of complex wellbeing experiences for refugee widows with children resettled in western nations.

Syrian Refugees Living on the Edge: Policy and Practice Implications for Mental Health and Psychosocial Wellbeing

“…The communal ostracism that may accompany widowhood has been described in other studies (e.g. Lenette, ).…”

Refugees, asylum-seekers and undocumented migrants and the experience of parenthood: a synthesis of the qualitative literature

“…A number of studies examined the parenthood experience broadly [ 20 , 24 , 25 , 34 , 36 , 37 , 41 , 47 , 48 , 50 – 64 ], some were specific to the time around birth [ 65 – 70 ], and some discussed aspects related to identity and meanings of parenthood in the context of migration [ 22 , 34 , 36 , 37 , 47 , 48 , 61 , 64 , 67 , 71 – 79 ]. Some studies focused on parenthood experiences under more challenging circumstances including single parenthood [ 23 , 40 – 42 , 58 ], teenage pregnancy [ 69 , 80 – 83 ], having an undocumented or mixed status family [ 21 , 84 – 96 ], reunification with children who migrated at a later time [ 97 ], and mothering in the context of conjugal violence [ 98 – 100 ].…”

“…Changing roles and relationships due to cultural/linguistic shifts and because of changes in family structures related to migration, was also an experience that emerged across studies [ 19 – 21 , 23 , 24 , 39 , 40 , 42 , 52 , 55 , 62 , 75 , 79 , 93 , 98 , 106 , 110 , 125 , 127 , 130 , 132 , 141 , 142 , 145 , 146 , 148 , 152 – 155 , 157 , 158 ]. Notably single parenthood among refugee mothers was sometimes due to death or missing spouses [ 23 , 40 – 42 , 155 , 158 ].…”

Negotiating motherhood as a refugee: experiences of loss, love, survival and pain in the context of forced migration

“…Given that research of this kind is very limited, this study was necessarily broad and exploratory in nature. This breadth is to some extent likely to have sacrificed the considering any one area in more depth, for example mothers' experiences of spousal bereavement (Lenette, 2014), separation from children and reunification (Rousseau, Rufagari, Bagilishya & Measham, 2004;Suarez-Orozco et al, 2002), or communication of traumatic experiences within families (Montgomery, 2004;Thorup Dalgaard & Montgomery, 2015). These areas may helpfully be followed up via future research endeavours.…”