ABSTRACT

Diaspora mobilization to influence homeland conflicts has been explored extensively. What has been considered less is the role diasporas play as ‘long distance human rights advocates’ in mobilization for political prisoners. Adding to the increased attention on diasporas as human rights advocates, this inquiry conceptualizes and compares the mobilization of the American Jewish and Vietnamese diasporas during the Cold War to release political prisoners in the Soviet Union and in Vietnam. Jewish and Vietnamese diasporas created influential, special purpose human rights organizations, employed successful framing strategies and mobilized grassroots members through contentious action. The Jewish diaspora further utilized transnational advocacy coalitions and symbolic politics to great effect. This inquiry argues that diaspora human rights NGOs provide critical advantages to human rights advocacy, including through the provision of information about political prisoners, considerable resources for grassroots mobilization and by acting as legitimizing agents for external interventions.

摘要

已经广泛探讨了动员侨民来影响本土冲突。较少被考虑的是侨民作为“长途人权倡导者”在动员政治犯方面所扮演的角色。除了对作为人权倡导者的侨民的日益关注之外，本调查概念化并比较了冷战期间美国犹太人和越南侨民在苏联和越南释放政治犯的动员情况。犹太人和越南侨民创建了有影响力的、特殊目的的人权组织，采用了成功的框架策略，并通过有争议的行动动员了基层成员。犹太侨民进一步利用跨国倡导联盟和象征性政治产生了巨大影响。