Male Asylum Applicants Who Fear Becoming the Victims of Honor Killings: The Case for Gender Equality

Abstract

INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233 I. HONOR KILLINGS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236 A. The Cultural Significance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236 B. Male Victims of Honor Killings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238 C. Honor Killings versus Domestic Violence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240 II. ASYLUM CLAIMS BASED ON THE THREAT OF AN HONOR KILLING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242 A. The Elements of an Asylum Claim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242 B. Case Survey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243 i. Showing Membership in a Particular Social Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245 ii. Showing that the Government Is Unwilling or Unable to Prevent the Harm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248 iii. Showing an Inability to Relocate . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253 C. Honor Killing Asylum Claims Brought by Men . . . . . . . 254 III. ANALYZING HONOR KILLING ASYLUM CLAIMS IN GENDER-NEUTRAL TERMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257 A. The Responsibility of Asylum Courts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258 B. The Responsibility of Federal Agencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260 CONCLUSION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262