In and out from the European margins: reshuffling mobilities and legal statuses of Romani minorities between the Post-Yugoslav space and the European Union

ABSTRACT

This paper traces the mobilities of Romani minorities between the ‘old’ EU Member States and the non-EU Post-Yugoslav space. It unravels how the mobilities of Romani individuals, who are Non-EU Post-Yugoslav citizens, were different from the mobilities of Roma coming from other post-socialist spaces, now EU Member States. Instead of focusing on motivations for mobility of Romani individuals as some previous work has done, this paper investigates the treatment of these mobilities by different states and the legal statuses these states ascribe to those labelled as Romani migrants. By using the combination historical and socio-legal analysis, this paper diachronically examines the precarious migrant statuses of Post-Yugoslav Romani minorities in the old EU, such as Yugoslav labour migrants, Post-Yugoslav forced migrants and subsequently the ‘bogus’ asylum seekers. The paper points to the interconnectedness of these statuses, but also to their interminable liminality: they are constantly on the verge of being rendered ‘illegal’ and are hence subject to deportability. I claim that while their legal statuses are being reshuffled, their liminality and interconnectedness also contribute to circular mobilities between the Post-Yugoslav space and the EU. I investigate how these mobilities are not only socially produced, but are also legally and politically conditioned by the hierarchical relationship between the Post-Yugoslav space and the EU. As a side effect of this relationship, Roma are positioned as a racialized minority, treated only as temporary migrants in their ‘host country’ and without prospects of inclusion in their ‘country of origin’ as minority citizens.     

Multi-level governance of an intractable policy problem: migrants with irregular status in Europe

ABSTRACT

This article explores the responses of European local authorities to the public service needs of residents with irregular immigration status and the tensions with national governments to which this can give rise. Drawing on a study of responses by national and local tiers, including a mapping of national legal frameworks on entitlements to health care and education, it identifies factors that lead to divergence between local and national policy framing and responses. Finding that socio-economic and individual consequences of exclusion dominate in shaping local framing of policy responses in contrast to national government priorities, it explores the implications for modes of multi-level governance (MLG) on this issue. It expands on the concept in the literature of ‘decoupling’, contrasting relationships of overt conflict with low-visibility strategies of conflict avoidance; demonstrating the differing forms this ‘shadow politics’ of migrants’ rights and shadow provision of services can take, including arms-length provision through NGOs. Thus the dynamic of MLG is itself one part of explaining the nature of local responses to the challenges that migrants with irregular status can pose.     

A tale of four cities: the boundaries of blackness for Ethiopian immigrants in Washington,DC, Tel Aviv,Rome, and Melbourne

ABSTRACT

Scholars increasingly view urban areas as fragmented spaces where migrants are policed in ways that promote differential access to mobility, but the glocal meanings of race are often undertheorized. This paper explores the mobility experiences of Ethiopian migrants in four cities: Washington, DC, Tel Aviv, Rome, and Melbourne. Using a textual analysis of newspaper coverage in each city, the analysis finds that media and police often act as agents who racialize Ethiopian migrants relative to native minorities and other migrants. The paper concludes that the experiences Ethiopian immigrants faced in urban areas were informed by glocal meanings of race (blackness); they were shaped in relation to not only other migrants and native minorities, but also a globalized discourse on immigration.     

Migrating rituals: negotiations of belonging and otherness among Tamils in Norway

ABSTRACT

By examining a funeral ritual devised by Tamil refugees living north of the Arctic Circle in Norway, I argue that the study of migrant rituals offers new insights into migrants’ senses of belonging, identity and wellbeing. Within a context of the exclusion and inclusion of cultural minorities, I describe the process of creating a funeral ritual that involves encounters between local Norwegians and Tamil refugees. The funeral followed the sudden death of a Tamil worker at the local fish plant as a result of a freak accident. The article focuses on how the Tamils’ work of devising and performing the funeral speaks to local migrant experiences of living on the boundaries between the Tamil and Norwegian life-worlds. A centrepiece of the case study involves a young widow, thus the analysis includes social and cultural dimensions of widow- and womanhood, while also highlighting issues of migration and the shared human condition. In conclusion, I underscore the way in which the migrant ritual, embodiment and (Othering) discourse cohere together to form a temporal phenomenon that responds to the present-ism of human life.     

The educational experiences of the second generation from refugee backgrounds

This paper draws on qualitative interviews to explore the educational experiences amongst the UK-born adult children of refugees from Vietnam, Sri Lanka (Tamils) and Turkey (Kurdish). Second generation from refugee backgrounds are characterised by diversity and as a group are increasing numerically. However, little is known about the specificity of their experiences as they have been either subsumed within or have fallen between the research agendas on new migrants, refugees, asylum seekers and the body of research on larger established minorities. This paper sets out to fill a gap in the literature by exploring the perspectives of second generation from refugee backgrounds. We examine the impact of policy – particularly dispersal and mobility – on education, the ways in which inter-generational relations and the aspirations of both parents and their children can be shaped by refugee histories, how schools fail to alleviate barriers to parental participation and racism within school settings, especially – though not exclusively – within schools that are less ethnically diverse. We conclude that the policy context and refugee backgrounds shape educational experiences and aspirations but also significant are the structural divisions that reproduce class and race-based inequalities.     

From a ‘sort of Muslim’ to ‘proud to be Alevi’: the Alevi religion and identity project combatting the negative identity among second-generation Alevis in the UK

ABSTRACT

This article explains how the negative identity of second-generation Alevi-Kurds in the UK has been transmitted intergenerationally, linked to their history of persecuted exclusion in Turkey and to the transnational settlement of Alevi migrants in the UK, and how this sense of marginalization and invisibility in the receiving country can be addressed. Education is identified as a starting point for the underachievement and disaffection of Alevi pupils, which can lead them into more serious trouble and descent into the rainbow underclass. In the quest to tackle this identity issue, a unique collaborative action research project was set up between an Alevi community centre, local schools and a university to develop the world’s first Alevi lessons as part of the compulsory Religious Education curriculum in British schools. The Alevi Religion and Identity Project is described and evaluated in terms of its outcomes, especially its contribution towards a more positive Alevi identity as a reflection of a vibrant community.     

2011年中国民族法学研究述评

2011年中国民族法学研究成果颇丰。这些研究在内容上的有以下特点：一是内容较为全面,其中民族司法的研究增多且有理论突破;二是出现了一些梳理性、反思性研究成果;三是应用性研究成果增多。这些研究在方法上的有以下特点：一是研究视角的多元化,法律政策学、软法话语成为研究的新视角;二是注重实证研究;三是注重比较研究。在全面梳理的基础上,笔者根据研究内容所涉及的民族法学基本理论、民族权利保护、民族区域自治、民族法制建设、民族习惯法、民族法制史、民族司法等方面分别对其主要成果进行了介绍与评价,在辨别良莠、展示精华的同时,力图为中国民族法学研究的不断繁荣提供可借鉴性的年度综合史料。     

Inclusion,exclusion or indifference? Redefining migrant and refugee host state engagement options in Mediterranean ‘transit’ countries

What determines policies toward migrants and refugees in the transit-turned-host countries? Compared to the vast literature examining migration to Europe and North America, we know relatively little about why ‘newer’ host states pursue a liberal strategy with access to residency, employment and services on par with citizens, or what drives them to treat migrants and refugees with exclusion. This paper argues that there is a third choice: the idea of indifference-as-policy. Indifference refers to indirect action on the part of the host state, whereby a state defers to international organisations and civil society actors to provide basic services to migrants and refugees. The paper uses data collected over two years in Egypt, Morocco and Turkey to examine how this tripartite understanding of engagement maps onto empirical reality. Drawing on this analysis, the argument in this paper is two-fold. First, indifference is a strategic form of engagement utilised by host states, and that it creates a specific type of environment that allows for the de facto integration of migrants and refugees. Second, even when host states take steps toward a more liberal engagement strategy, examining policy outcomes, rather than outputs, demonstrates that indifference is still the dominant policy.     

Migration decision-making and migration industry in the Indonesia–Malaysia corridor

ABSTRACT

This paper explores the involvement of migration industry (MI) in the migration system of Indonesia and Malaysia. The two countries share an extensive border and have much in common in culture and history but they are very different in geographical size, population and economic development, the latter being a main cause for labour migration from Indonesia to Malaysia. The changing context of government policies generates new niches for migration services taken up by formal and informal intermediaries, thereby confronting migrants with a varied migration-decision field and thresholds during their migration process. Much of the migration is legal, but a large part of it also takes place outside the control of the national governments. While taking mental processes in migration decision-making as starting point, we analyse how the MI, by way of fostering, facilitating and controlling geographic mobility and localised employment, connects to the production and negotiating of three migration decision thresholds faced by migrants.     

Identity,Othering and belonging: toward an understanding of difference and the experiences of African immigrants to Australia

ABSTRACT

This paper aims to contribute to understanding of difference and knowledge on the analysis of the concepts of identity, Othering and belonging not only from a theoretical perspective, but more importantly by relating them empirically to the Australian context in a way that sheds a better light on the experiences of African immigrants to Australia. It draws on data from interviews conducted with 30 black Africans living in South East Queensland. Their racialized identities impacted on how they felt, were defined, related to and constructed, in Australia. Their accounts suggest that Othering practices can marginalize, exclude and affect migrants and refugees’ ideas and sense of belonging. The findings indicate the need for a more inclusive Australia, the accommodation of difference, the fostering of new identities, the rejection of negative representations and stereotypes of the Other, and the recognition that Othering is one of the important factors to understanding the marginalization, exclusion and challenges of ethnically and racially marked people in Australia.     

The roles of social housing providers in creating ‘integrated’ communities

ABSTRACT

Cohesion and integration agendas in Britain can be characterised by localisation of ‘race relations’ responsibilities and the importance of local institutions in shaping neighbourhoods has been acknowledged. However, little is understood about the roles of housing providers in integration initiatives. Indeed, research on housing and race has experienced a lull in the 2000s. Thus, this paper aims to examine how social housing providers negotiate their positions and are complicit in constructing a certain vision of community. It draws on interviews from the ESRC Centre on Dynamics of Ethnicity (CoDE)’s work in the ethnically diverse neighbourhoods of Cheetham Hill (Manchester), Newham (London), Butetown (Cardiff) and Pollokshields and Govanhill (Glasgow). The paper makes three arguments: first, that race and ethnicity as facets of ‘integration’ have been subsumed into broader agendas, yet remain implicit in community building; second, that housing organisation practices are often detached from local meanings of community and prioritise exclusionary activities focusing on behaviour change and, third, that the roles of housing organisations in constructing ‘integrated’ communities are highly variable and localised, influenced by the history and contemporary dynamics of place.     

Being close to ethnic peers: the formation of ethnic residential clustering from a household perspective

To assess the impact of segregation a better understanding is required why minorities and natives decide to move closer to ethnic peers. This study investigates the drivers for ethnic residential clustering from a household perspective. For this, household panel data for Germany is linked to small-scale information on the share of co-ethnic neighbours and to the number of regional housing offers and requests. As a result, life-course changes and indicators of cultural openness show similar effects on ethnic residential clustering for migrants and natives. For both, becoming married, inter-ethnic partnerships and moving out of the parental home lead to lower shares of neighbours with the same ethnic background. Major differences exist regarding contextual factors. Natives are more likely to self-segregate in times of increasing housing supply while migrants seem to face limitations in access to housing in times of increasing housing demand. The results highlight the importance of the housing market and the relation of moving choices between migrants and natives in the formation of ethnic residential clustering.     

On the threshold: becoming Romanian Roma,everyday racism and residency rights in transition

ABSTRACT

This article examines the reaction of welfare state actors and ‘Romanian Roma’ migrants to the political environment on migration in the UK. Based on the ethnographic fieldwork between January 2013 and March 2014, the article focuses on how processes of everyday racism infused understandings of the legal framework for European migrants’ residency rights. The article first explores how state actors developed ideas about ‘Romanian Roma families’ as opposed to ‘Romanian-not-Roma families’ in a context marked by pervasive uncertainty about legal entitlements, welfare restructuring and decreasing resources. Second, I draw on new migrants’ accounts to identify their perceptions and understandings of discrimination placed within their previous experiences of racism and state violence. The article argues that processes of racialisation are subtly enfolded into everyday life shaping the narratives through which both welfare state actors and new migrants understand their situated experiences and future plans. The article reveals the small and mundane practices that reproduce racialised hierarchies which maintain the notion of ‘Roma’ as a group with particular proclivities and the affects for their socio-legal status as European migrants in the UK.     

Why irregular migrants arrive and remain: the role of intermediaries

Despite many efforts to combat irregular immigration, there is a widespread perception of a failure of public policies in this field. But because unauthorised immigrants are officially excluded from formal labour markets, housing markets and most welfare provisions, they can settle if they find other sources of work, income, housing, and social protection. In this regard, a crucial role is played by various intermediaries: people or institutions who favour the entrance of immigrants, their entry into the labour market, accommodation, response to their social needs, and possibly regularisation. They can act for profit, but also for moral reasons. They can break the laws and work in the shadows, but they can also work in legal forms. In this article, I will explore the identities of these intermediaries and their practices of support towards irregular migrants. My purpose is to show (1) what precisely constitutes intermediation, in what activities it can be factored, and what the main categories of intermediaries are; (2) that the implementation of migration policies is hindered not only by migrants’ practices to circumvent controls but also by the action of these intermediaries. For this reason, too, it is so difficult to eradicate.     

Italy: the ‘illegality factory’? Theory and practice of refugees’ reception in Sicily

ABSTRACT

The recent surge of migrants crossing the Mediterranean in search of protection has presented a major challenge for the whole European Union. What has been labelled as a ‘refugee crisis’ is first and foremost a crisis of international politics and the result of inadequate response mechanisms at local level. This paper focuses on the case of Sicily, the second main area of arrival, after Greece, when migration to the Mediterranean reached its peak. With a long history of immigration, since 2015 the Italian island has seen the implementation of a new approach based on ‘hotspots’: designated areas for the separation of those deemed as economic migrants from ‘genuine asylum seekers’. In the view of some, this has made Italy into a model of migration management, as opposed to the chaotic situation of the Greek islands. The hotspot approach, however, has been also criticised for being engrained on practices that many deem unlawful, actively producing discrimination and condemning many migrants to an illegal status on the Italian soil. Informed by findings from an international research project (EVI-MED), this paper examines this complex scenario, exploring the social, legal and human implications of the refugees’ reception system in Italy.     

Ethnic penalties? The role of human capital and social origins in labour market outcomes of second-generation Moroccans and Turks in the Netherlands

In Western Europe, the children of Moroccan and Turkish migrants were found to be significantly disadvantaged in the labour market. This ethnic gap was found to persist after considering differences in schooling, which was argued to reflect ‘ethnic penalties’ driven by cultural, religious, or racial factors. This study uses data from the 1st Wave of the ‘Netherlands Longitudinal Life-Course Study’ (2009–2010) to revisit the analysis of ‘ethnic penalties’ for second-generation Moroccans and Turks. Unlike in previous research, empirical analyses not only consider differences in schooling, but also skills and social origins. Results show substantial ethnic inequalities in the labour market, with the exception of women from Moroccan origins. For men, these ethnic inequalities do not disappear when human capital factors are considered, but they do when accounting for the unprivileged social origins of ethnic minorities. For women, the disadvantage of second-generation Turks in achieving privileged occupations clearly disappears when human capital and social origins are considered. Yet, the chances of being unemployed among women of Turkish origins persist after controlling for education, skills, and social origins. Overall, this study has global academic and public policy implications to understand the socioeconomic integration of the Moroccan and Turkish second generation in Western Europe.     

我国地方少数民族教育立法的内容及特点

地方少数民族教育立法是我国少数民族教育立法的重要组成部分,加强地方少数民族教育立法研究是推进我国地方乃至中央民族教育法制建设的需要。本文作者通过文献研究及实地调研,对我国地方少数民族教育立法的内容及特点进行了较深入的阐述。     

Historicity and citizenship as conditions for national minority rights in Central Europe: old principles in a new migration context

Having a historical presence in a country and citizenship of that country are two basic conditions under which national minority rights are granted in many countries, but increasing international migration has started to pose a challenge to this conception. Like other countries of Central Europe, the Czech Republic has adopted the two conditions for granting rights to traditional ‘national minorities’ and has developed a separate policy for the ‘integration of foreigners’; however, the emergence of the second generation of Vietnamese has presented a special challenge to this two-tier policy system. Recent renegotiation of the historicity of this immigrant group has resulted in its ‘official recognition’ as a national minority. This paper discusses this case in its wider Central European context, and addresses the question of whether we are observing an erosion of the two-tier policy system or a reconsideration of the distinction between ‘old’ and ‘new’ minorities. Finally, the paper touches upon the question of the role and usability of ‘old’ minority language rights, considering the lack of interest among the traditional minorities vs. the linguistic situation of the migrants’ second generation.     

Moving citizens: citizenship practices among Polish migrants in Norway and the United Kingdom

ABSTRACT

Following post-EU-accession migration, Poles currently form the largest group of foreign nationals in Norway and the second largest group of foreign born residents in the United Kingdom. Given the considerable volume of new arrivals, there is a growing literature on Polish migration to both countries; however, there is little comparative research on Polish migration across different European settings. By exploring how Polish migrants reflect on the possibilities of settlement or return, this paper comparatively examines the effects that permanent and ‘normalised’ mobility has on Polish migrants’ self-perception as citizens in four different cities. In addition to classic citizenship studies, which highlight the influence of a nation-state based institutionalised citizenship regime, we find that transnational exchanges, local provisions and inter-personal relationships shape Polish migrants’ practices of citizenship. The resulting understanding of integration is processual and sees integration as constituted by negotiated transnational balancing acts that respond to (and sometimes contradict) cultural, economic and political demands and commitments. The research is based on semi-structured interviews and focus groups with a total of 80 respondents, conducted in two British and two Norwegian cities that experienced significant Polish immigration, Oslo, Bergen, Bristol and Sheffield.     

Gender Differentiation in Seasonal Migration: The Case of Poland

This paper reviews seasonal migration from Poland to Germany from the perspective of gender. The main lenses used are the participation in this migration by individuals as members of families, the informal recruitment mechanisms that bring new migrants on board, and the legal environment. The paper argues that the selection of a migrant by the family depends importantly on the costs of migration for the family, and shows how this consideration bears on the choice of women as seasonal migrants. In addition, the paper argues that the patterns of recruitment are gender-specific, explains why women recruit new migrants in a manner which differs from that of men, and assesses the impact of the underlying legal environment on the differential participation of women and men.