S Hackett

Foreigners, minorities and integration : the Muslim immigrant experience in Britain and Germany

This book is a study of two post-war Muslim ethnic minority communities that have been overwhelmingly neglected in the academic literature and public debate on migration to Britain and Germany: those of Newcastle upon Tyne and Bremen. In what is the first work to offer a comparative assessment of Muslim migrant populations at a local level between these two countries, it provides an examination of everyday immigrant experiences and a reassessment of ethnic minority integration on a European scale. It traces the development of Muslim migrants from their arrival to and settlement in these post-industrial societies through to their emergence as fixed attributes on their cities’ landscapes. Through its focus on the employment, housing and education sectors, this study exposes the role played by ethnic minority aspirations and self-determination. Other themes that run throughout include the long-term effects of Britain and Germany’s overarching post-war immigration frameworks; the convergence between local policies and Muslim ethnic minority behaviour in both cities; and the extent to which Islam, the size of migrant communities, and regional identity influence the integration process. The arguments and debates addressed are not only pertinent to Newcastle and Bremen, but have a nation- and Europe-wide relevance, with the conclusions transgressing the immediate field of historical studies. This book is essential reading for academics and students alike with an interest in migration studies, modern Britain and Germany, and the place of Islam in contemporary Europe.

The Asian of the North: Immigrant Experiences and the Importance of Regional Identity in Newcastle upon Tyne during the 1980s

Abstract This paper examines the North-Easts regional identity and places it in the context of Asian immigrant experiences in Newcastle upon Tyne during the 1980s. It begins by providing an account of north-eastern regionalism and details how it has been claimed that this regional patriotism has historically propelled the region into being a welcoming host to foreigners. This paper goes on to challenge that notion by examining the performance of Newcastles Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi communities in the employment, housing and education sectors during the 1980s. It is argued that Newcastle, like other north-eastern cities and towns, has not been any type of exception as it did not deviate from general trends, but rather succumbed to national mandate like other British cities. Not only did Newcastles Asian immigrants have experiences and confront problems similar to those in other cities, but also the local authority either contemplated or implemented measures and policies that demonstrated a conformity to national measures.

The ‘local turn’ in historical perspective: two city case studies in Britain and Germany

This article addresses the ‘local turn’ of migration and integration policies in historical perspective in Newcastle upon Tyne and Bremen. It draws upon a wide range of government documentation and offers a comparative assessment of both cities’ policies from the 1960s onwards. It discusses the vertical dimension of policymaking though an exploration of the local governance of migrant integration in relation to the national level. Although Britain and Germanys post-war immigration histories and political structures have often been perceived as contrasting, this article reveals a convergence in these cities’ governments’ approaches to their own local diverse societies. These case studies question the long-term impact of overarching national constitutional structures on city-level migration policies. Findings are framed within the local governance and multi-level governance MLG debates. Points for practitioners European cities are increasingly being recognized for the role they play in devising and implementing their own migration and integration policies. Yet very little is known about the relationship between this ‘local turn’ and multi-level governance (MLG). Practitioners can learn more about cities’ policymaking processes and the extent to which these have been influenced by national agendas, as well as about how research of a historical and cross-country and cross-city nature can inform the on-going policy debate.

A Learning Curve: The Education of Immigrants in Newcastle-upon-Tyne and Bremen from the 1960s to the 1980s

This paper will provide a voice to those cities previously neglected in the literature through a historical comparative analysis addressing the education of immigrants in Newcastle-upon-Tyne and Bremen from the 1960s to the 1980s. It will highlight the holistic ramifications of Britain and West Germany’s two different immigration processes through an investigation of the correlation between national immigration legislation and local education policy. Its comparative nature will uncover the consequences of organic and artificial immigration in the long duree, and the benefits and disadvantages of centralised and federal administrations. The manner in which these immigrants became the recipients of changing policies will be conveyed, as well as two cities’ attempts to address the cultural and social differences in the process of learning.

‘Breaking Point’?: Brexit, the Burkini Ban, and Debates on Immigration and Minorities in Britain and France

This article uses the Brexit vote and the burkini ban to assess and explore debates on immigration and minority communities in Britain and France. Drawing upon both the historical context, and recent and contemporary developments, it discusses perceptions regarding there being ‘too many’ immigrants, and Islam and Muslims specifically, as well as the character and tone of the political and public deliberations on these topics in both countries. In doing so, it offers an insight into two of the most contentious episodes of Europe’s 2016 debate on immigration and minorities.

Continuity and change in local immigrant policies in times of austerity

European cities are increasingly being recognised for the role they play in devising and implementing their own migration, integration and diversity policies. Yet very little is known about the local dimension of immigrant policymaking in crisis contexts. This introductory piece offers a rationale for analysing city-level immigrant policies in times of crisis and the salience of using crisis as a metaphor for the state of things, and outlines key scholarly works, debates, concepts and theories. It provides a range of historical and contemporary examples and considerations, and introduces an empirical city case study that is published as part of this mini-symposium. It argues that a crisis lens leads to a systematic understanding of local-level immigrant policymaking in recent and contemporary Western Europe. The mini-symposium’s focus and findings should be relevant to both on-going academic and policy debates.

Settling in on both sides of the Atlantic

balanced and humanized by stories of personal encounters and anecdotes. Like Suny, De Waal brings a much needed perspective to highly contested subject matter, providing a vivid sense of inter-connectedness of the histories and experiences of Armenians, Turks, Kurds and other minorities inhabiting the Ottoman/Russian borderlands. He demonstrates clearly that acknowledging that violence was perpetrated by all ethnic groups during and after the First World War is not tantamount to denying Armenian suffering but rather is essential if ongoing conflicts in the region are to be properly understood. Each of these texts reflects, in very different ways, on the politics of genocide recognition and the way it has shaped and limited historical understandings of the fate of the Armenians. Suny, in his conclusions, points to the need for nuance and specificity in the way the concept is deployed in scholarship:

Migrant Women Transforming Citizenship: Life-Stories From Britain and Germany

In this highly ambitious study that forms part of the Studies in Migration and Diaspora series, Erel seeks to overturn the precedent set by the vast majority of works on migrant communities by concentrating on skilled women. She draws on the life-stories of female Turkish migrants in London and in an undisclosed German city and, in doing so, combats the stereotypical view held of Muslim women as traditional, backwards and passive victims of the migration process. Rather than viewing her female respondents as merely the dependents of men, Erel highlights the roles they have played through education, the labour market and within the family unit, thus portraying them as active independent migratory agents. She argues that the notion of citizenship should not be constrained by its legalistic definition, but rather should encompass a range of political, economic, cultural and judicial practices, and that recognition needs to be given to the extent to which female Turkish migrants in both Britain and Germany have transformed the boundaries and meaning of this citizenship. The life stories do indeed support this hypothesis in that the women’s personal experiences in the classroom, the household, the workplace, and with regards to social and political activism, expose the extent to which they exercise agency. There are questions to be asked, however, regarding the methodology of the study. Not only are the life stories drawn upon few in quantity, but they also appear to represent a small segment of the female Turkish migrant communities which have been explored here. The women are educated and skilled, and also form exceptions in other ways, such as being homosexual or divorced. Whilst there is no doubt that there is a need to reverse the predominant neglect of these women in literature on migration, it is difficult to imagine that Erel’s respondents truly represent