Tenth International Conference on Health, Wellness & Society

Abstract

The spaces of the city and the social relationships fostered therein have been much contested. Rather than instrumental and affective supports being derived locally, other forms of community are well recognized as key to supporting urban social life. However, research that shows that those who are marginalized and minoritized often access fewer networks and live more socially circumscribed lives. Low-income single mothers are one such population group whose circumstances–low income, poor neighborhoods, child care responsibilities–limit their access to non-geographic community. Recent qualitative research on resilience among Canadian low-income single mothers sought to amplify and contest dominant understandings of resilience as a psychological trait. Challenging this conception of resilience, this research explored adversity and the protective factors that might support resilient outcomes. A major finding identified feminist-based non- governmental organizations (NGO’s) as key to supporting single mother participants. The paper theorizes these NGO’s as non-geographic communities bound by social justice values, inclusive and accepting, yet also particular. Offered were both affective and instrumental supports but among these agencies an essential marker was their flexibility and respect for the client and client’s wishes. Part of their value was their serving as a hub for developing relationships with other women with shared history and circumstances. The paper offers two contributions: suggesting that resilient outcomes derive from a broad combination of personal, familial and social/structural supports; and theorizing the role of grassroots, feminist NGOs in creating community, further reflecting on the findings’ implications for neo-liberal driven cuts to social services.