Upward climb or downward slide? Religion and mediating social capital in the Haitian immigrant communities of Miami, Montreal and Paris

This project seeks to answer two central questions: (1) How do religious institutions (in particular the Catholic Church) generate social capital---understood as access to valuable resources attained by virtue of membership in social networks---for Haitian migrants in Miami, Montreal and Paris? (2) Which elements of national politics and culture influence how religion has an impact on immigrant adaptation?;I argue that social capital should be examined as a good that must be constructed; thus, scholars should pay greater attention to the cultural schemas and resources necessary for social capital to emerge. The social closure and social norms promoted by religious communities are necessary to form strong social ties that make social capital possible among Haitian immigrants.;Although Haitians in all three sites have formed similar sources of social capital within their local-level religious communities, these in-group social ties are not sufficient to overcome structural barriers Haitians face, such as discriminatory government policy. In Miami, the Catholic Church has provided mediating social capital for Haitians through its political advocacy and social services. Although leaders of the Catholic Church in Montreal and Paris have attempted to provide similar support for Haitians' adaptation, less government for faith-based initiatives has limited their ability to provide mediating social capital for Haitians. Therefore, although local-level social capital is important for migrants' initial settlement, religious institutions are most effective at promoting immigrant adaptation when they provide bridges between individual immigrants, state agencies and civil society.;I suggest modifications to the dominant theoretical perspective on immigrant assimilation today, segmented assimilation, in order to include the potential role of religious beliefs and religious institutions to generate greater opportunities for upward mobility. The cross-national comparative approach, which is overlooked in most studies of immigration and religion, demonstrates that the same religious institution with a theological orientation toward social justice encounters different resources and constraints in varying political contexts.