Brazilian-Centered Organizations in the Bay Area of San Francisco Caroline Rehill University of San Francisco, [email protected]
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The University of San Francisco USF Scholarship: a digital repository @ Gleeson Library | Geschke Center Master's Theses Theses, Dissertations, Capstones and Projects 5-10-2012 Nonprofit onC tinuum: Brazilian-centered Organizations in the Bay Area of San Francisco Caroline Rehill University of San Francisco, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.usfca.edu/thes Part of the Latin American Studies Commons, and the Quantitative, Qualitative, Comparative, and Historical Methodologies Commons Recommended Citation Rehill, Caroline, "Nonprofit onC tinuum: Brazilian-centered Organizations in the Bay Area of San Francisco" (2012). Master's Theses. 25. https://repository.usfca.edu/thes/25 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses, Dissertations, Capstones and Projects at USF Scholarship: a digital repository @ Gleeson Library | Geschke Center. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of USF Scholarship: a digital repository @ Gleeson Library | Geschke Center. For more information, please contact [email protected]. University of San Francisco Nonprofit continuum: Brazilian-centered organizations in the Bay Area of San Francisco A Thesis Presented to The Faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences Master’s Program in International Studies In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts in International Studies by Caroline Rehill April 2012 Nonprofit continuum: Brazilian-centered organizations in the Bay Area of San Francisco In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree MASTER OF ARTS in INTERNATIONAL STUDIES by Caroline Rehill May 2012 UNIVERSITY OF SAN FRANCISCO Under the guidance and approval of the committee, and approval by all the members, this thesis has been accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree. Approved: ________________________________ _____________ Advisor: Dr. Cecília MacDowell Santos Date ________________________________ _____________ Academic Director: Dr. Anne Bartlett Date ________________________________ _____________ Dean of Arts and Sciences: Dr. Marcelo Camperi Date ii Nonprofit continuum: Brazilian-centered organizations in the Bay Area of San Francisco Table of Contents Acknowledgement ................................................................................................................................................... iv Abstract ......................................................................................................................................................................... v Chapter one: Nonprofit Continuum .................................................................................................................. 6 Introduction to Brazilian-centered Nonprofit Continuum in the Bay Area of San Francisco ................................................................................................................................................................. 6 Background ............................................................................................................................................................... 9 Theoretical Framework ...................................................................................................................................... 13 Objectives of this work ...................................................................................................................................... 16 Chapter two: Literature Review ...................................................................................................................... 21 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................................ 21 Nonprofit Organizations and Immigrant Nonprofit Organizations ..................................................... 24 Who are the Brazilian Immigrants in the United States? ....................................................................... 27 Why do Brazilians come to the United States? .......................................................................................... 30 Brazilian-centered Nonprofit Organizations in the Literature .............................................................. 35 The Brazilian Government and Brazilian-centered Nonprofit Organizations in the host society .................................................................................................................................................................................... 40 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................................. 45 Chapter three: Research Methods .................................................................................................................. 46 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................................ 46 Methodology ......................................................................................................................................................... 50 Chapter four: Data and Discussion of Findings ......................................................................................... 61 Categorization ....................................................................................................................................................... 61 Brazilian-centered Groups and Organizations: The Nonprofit Continuum ..................................... 68 Brazilian Alliance and the challenges facing the Nonprofit Continuum ........................................ 111 Conclusion .......................................................................................................................................................... 122 Chapter five: The Brazilian Government .................................................................................................. 128 Relationships and limitations ........................................................................................................................ 128 Chapter six: Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 141 Reflections and recommendations .............................................................................................................. 141 Appendices ............................................................................................................................................................ 148 Bibliography .......................................................................................................................................................... 156 Endnotes ................................................................................................................................................................. 159 iii Acknowledgement All of us have many important moments in our lives. Moments that will be forever remembered or remarkable, and moments that will change our lives or that simply mean a lot. Writing this project was certainly one of these important moments. Writing this thesis was challenging and fulfilling. All of its qualities and many flaws are part of a learning process. If I ever thought that I knew myself, I was wrong. I learned more about myself as a woman, a student, and about my ethnic identity as a Brazilian and as an immigrant than I ever thought I would. And it’s just the beginning. I wish I could portray with more detail the richness of all the experiences and interviews, and all the lessons I have learned from the people who opened their doors and shared their experiences with me. This study is not a book however long; therefore all the registered memories will perhaps turn into a continuation of this work in the future. I would like to thank all people who provided me with the means to complete this work, especially Brazilian Alliance volunteers, who taught me several things and supported me throughout the whole process. I am very lucky to have had their support as well as that of many others whose names are not included, though I think of them dearly. Among these amazing people are three very special ones. They are my husband Philip Rehill, my advisor Cecilia Santos, and my mother Dalva Silva. For without the three of them, for different reasons in different moments of my life, I would not have accomplished anything I have ever attempted. Thank you so very much for helping and supporting me. With love, Caroline Rehill iv Abstract Brazil has always been a country of immigration. Since the mid 1980s, Brazil has also become a country of emigration. Brazilians have migrated to the United States in large numbers throughout the past decades. In the host country, Brazilians experience the same issues inherent in any immigrant community, such as immigration status, education, health, and socio-economic issues. To address these issues and ease immigrants’ stay in the host country, nonprofit organizations and community groups are created. This thesis project examines, identifies, categorizes, and contextualizes the Brazilian-centered nonprofit organizations in the Bay Area of San Francisco. Contrary to existing research on Brazilian immigrants in the United States, this study has found that, in the past