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 sarae
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#10291
The question refers to the "refugee status under the social group category as it is described in the passage," which is defined as "persons of similar background, habits, or social status."

Since race and religion are mentioned specifically in the definition of a refugee instead of social group, are choices B & C ruled out?

I know the answer is D, but I'm just curious if that is the correct reasoning for those two answers being incorrect.

Thanks!
-Sara
 Ron Gore
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#10293
Thanks for your question, Sarae.

You are correct that answers (B) and (C), as well as (E), are incorrect because those circumstances would qualify the asylum seeker for refugee status pursuant to a category other than the social-group category, i.e., race, religion, and political opinion, respectively.

Great job, and good luck!

Ron
 sarae
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#10311
Great! Thank you!
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 landphil
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#111185
Can some help me understand why, such as in C, that woman is not being persecuted? If I google the definition of persecution, I get the following: "subject (someone) to hostility and ill-treatment, especially because of their ethnicity, religion, or sexual orientation or their political beliefs."

I do not understand how C does not fulfill this definition of persecution and thus work as the answer.

For D, we do not know for sure that she is facing persecution for being a member of a particular group. Maybe the group is simply "being a member of that country." Whereas, in C, we know that she is facing persecution BECAUSE she is a member of a particular group.
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 Amber Thomas
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#111785
Hi Landphil!

The key distinction here is the matter of "country." Asylum is a matter of national borders, and seeking refugee abroad because of persecution in your home country.

In Answer Choice C, a woman is a part of a religious group, and cannot receive an education because of it. If it were a situation where the ruling religious group of a given country did not allow women to get an education, she could potentially qualify for asylum. If women cannot receive an education because of their own chosen religious sect, that would not qualify them for asylum, because if they were to remain as a part of that religion, the issue would persist even if they were granted asylum to a different country. She may be facing gender-based discrimination in her own religion, but that doesn't qualify her for asylum, because that isn't a circumstance that's confined to national borders.

Answer Choice D illustrates circumstances of a woman who is being persecuted because she is a woman rejecting the societal norms placed onto woman in her country, which aligns with the passage's definition of "social group" when it comes to refugee status. Women in that country are expected to be in arranged marriages, therefore, this is specifically an issue that pertains to women as a social group within this country.

I hope this helps!
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 landphil
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#111808
Hi Amber,

Thank you that helps a lot.

I think part of the problem with me not picking D (besides not thinking about the points you brought up in your excellent reply) was that I started overthinking, which led me to wonder what if the norm in her country concerning arranged marriages was in a country where marriages were arranged only between two men that were a certain social class? In that case she would no longer be getting persecuted on account of gender, but on account of her political beliefs. In this case I am taking the answer choice's use of the word "rejects" to mean that she disapproves not that she refuses to partake. Perhaps that was wrong to do too.
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 Jeff Wren
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#111850
Hi landphil,

According to the passage, "Persecution is the linchpin of the definition of refugee" (line 3), and only Answers D and E specifically mention persecution. While the other answers involve difficult/unfair circumstances, they do not necessarily qualify as persecution (by the government).

Answer E, which involved persecution over a woman's opposition to her government's harsh treatment of political prisoners, would almost certainly fall under the "political opinion" category. It would not fall under the "social group" category because there is no indication that the persecution was based on any group to which the woman belonged. In other words, presumably anyone who showed opposition to the government's harsh treatment of political prisoners might be persecuted regardless of whether or not they belonged to a certain social group.

As for Answer D, while issues related to sex/gender can certainly also be political issues, it is the gender dimension to this issue that makes Answer D better than Answer E. (As an additional note, the test makers would expect everyone taking the LSAT to have some familiarity with marriage as a cultural/historical institution that traditionally assigned certain roles based on gender, and that women were usually not given equal legal rights in marriage throughout most times and cultures.)

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