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Chapter by Chapter ResourcesChapter 10: Not wanted but needed: migrants and minorities
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Most migrants come to Europe because they are poor, discriminated against or in danger. While the majority contribute positively, they are also over-represented in all sorts of negative statistics. The stereotypes are rarely positive – scrounger, job-stealer, criminal, terrorist – and many people buy into them, just as many people vastly over-estimate how many immigrants there are.
Asylum is driven by need, if not always by the imminent threat of persecution that refugee status demands. Some countries seem to get more than their fair share of people seeking that status, although this is disputable if their size is taken into account. Asylum claims have dropped markedly in recent years.
In a climate of anxiety, pumped up by the media, populist radical right parties have thrived – but only in some countries, suggesting that it is the skills of the parties concerned, and the reactions of other parties, that matter more than ‘objective circumstances’.
There was Islamophobia in Europe before there was Islamist terrorism, but the latter has almost certainly made things worse.
The distribution of those moving from the postcommunist East to the richer West is also uneven but, interestingly, does not appear to be associated with increased hostility on the part of people in the countries most affected.
European governments have begun to place more emphasis on ensuring that immigrants fit into the countries they come to rather than relying on a policy of ‘live and let live’. Many have tried to balance this by stepping up anti-discrimination efforts.
European governments have also begun to co¬operate on controlling immigration, but only where it suits them (i.e. illegal immigration and asylum). Other aspects of their regimes remain distinctive and firmly under national control.
(For general web materials on European Politics see Tim Bale's Internet Guide)
www.migrationinformation.org
Wealth of information on migration
migration.ucdavis.edu
Discussion and news on migration
www.compas.ox.ac.uk
Links and working papers on migration
www.migrationwatchuk.org
For a sceptical view on migration
www.www.unhcr.org and www.ecre.org
Refugees and asylum issues
fra.europa.eu
Racism and discrimination in Europe
webhost.ua.ac.be/extremismanddemocracy
Academic research on extremist parties
www.errc.org and romnews.com
Roma news and issues
www.migrationonline.cz/
A good source on migration in Central and Eastern Europe
1. Why, historically, have European countries attracted migrants, be they from inside or outside Europe?
2. In recent years, where have migrants to Europe come from, why have they come, and where do they go?
3. Do you think increased immigration in and of itself satisfactorily explains the rise of the far right in Europe?
4. In your opinion, are some European countries right to be more anxious about asylum seekers than others?
5. Europe’s population is ageing: can migration help solve the problem?
6. Does the EU undermine or support European countries’ attempts to control immigration?
7. How are European countries trying to integrate or assimilate migrants? Is this something you think should be encouraged?
8. Does the historical and present plight of Europe’s gypsies – the Roma – give us cause for optimism or pessimism?
argument?
No updates.
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