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1 Introduction and Overview
[T]he commanding passion of the seventeenth century, on both sides of the globe, was to navigate âthe unknown channel âtwixt the seas of East and Westâ; to reduce that once unbridgeable distance through travel, contact, and new knowledge; to pawn oneâs place of birth for the world of oneâs desire. This was the fire within seventeenth-century souls. (Brook 2009, p. 25)
Introduction
That fire described in the quote above is as evident among migrants today as it was four centuries ago. People are on the move. Everywhere. We live in an age of migration. We are constantly bombarded with stories of mobility and movement. In London boroughs alone over 80 languages are spoken in the home (NISRA, https://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/census/2011-census/key...in.../rft-qs204ew.xls). Although some question the degree of novelty that can actually be associated with current patterns of international migration (see Moch 1992 in Engbersen and Snel 2013; Brook 2009) and of other present-day social phenomenon, such as income inequality (see for instance Piketty 2014; Savage 2014), it can be stated with certainty that the intensity of migration in the 21st century is heightened when compared to previous patterns, much of this due to substantial transport, communication and technological advances. The accelerated scale and pace of migration have compressed time and space (after Harvey 1990a), at times making the world seem small and parochial. It is also true that contemporary life offers new challenges for people moving to unfamiliar places, even if those movements are not entirely new.
Malmbergâs observation that most people prefer to stay âat homeâ holds true today, with just 3.3 per cent of the global population comprising international migrants (United Nations Population Fund n.d.). Despite this apparently low figure, migration is the phenomenon of our age. It has attracted attention worldwide not least because of the highest level of refugees since World War II and its visibility through dramatic scenes of thousands of men, women and children on the move. Surprisingly, refugees comprise only 8 per cent of international migrants (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees 2015), as most migrants are in search of economic and social opportunities (UN 2016). Migration is something that people have been doing for a long time, and we can trace a rich backdrop of contemporary global flows. Distinct patterns have resulted in an unfolding patchwork of diversity as labour migrants move from Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries to opportunities in the West. African migrants fill temporary labour positions in southern Europe. Refugees move from war-torn countries, including Syria, Afghanistan and Somalia, seeking refuge in different European Union (EU) states, including Germany, Greece and Sweden. Meanwhile, international economic migrants are attracted to professional opportunities in health care, IT and other sectors facing labour shortages. This explains why many EU and international migrants shore up the British National Health Service, providing nearly 40 per cent of doctors in 2007 (Ognyanova et al. 2014). International migrants are also attracted to study. For example, there has been a large increase in Chinese students across higher education in the UK, rising from just under 25,000 in 2005â2006 to nearly 60,000 in 2014â2015 (Higher Education Statistics Agency n.d.). These and other migration streams have created increasing levels of uneven and fluid migration pathways as migrants settle in established gateways as well as in new destination areas (Snel et al. 2006; Vertovec 2009; Engbersen et al. 2013). Significant attention has been focused on pre-established destinations where migration has long been the norm and where networks and support structures provide migrants with sufficient social and cultural capital to effectively navigate their way through a new social context (Evergeti and Zontini 2006; Ryan et al. 2008; Pfeffer and Parra 2009). Conversely, for some communities, migration feels like a very ânewâ and unfamiliar thing. New Immigration Destinations (NIDs) are emerging across the globe as international migrants arrive in rural regions and small towns, many of which have a limited history of immigration.
Stark distinctions, including pushâpull, stayâmove, newcomerâlocal and permanentâtemporary, are no longer appropriate for considering migration in the modern age. Vertical as well as horizontal connections become important as a âtransnational perspective holds these sites equally and simultaneously in conversation with each other and tries to grapple with the tension between themâ (Levitt 2004, p. 3; Levitt and Nyberg-SĂžrensen 2004). Diverse routes bring people with very different backgrounds to new places (Crawley et al. 2016; Meissner and Vertovec 2015). Some may wonder why we need another book on migration, as the subject has received a lot of attention from scholars over many decades, and this interest has also increased in the past decade. Equally, new branches of migration studies have emerged in recent years as attention turns to contemporary flows and patterns of migration and ensuing social relations, including those within NIDs. And yet even with the increased focus on migration, many of these âspatial registers of affiliation that are part of migrantsâ everyday embodied experiences remain largely unexploredâ (Brickell and Datta 2011, p. 3). There remains a lack of understanding of how migrants navigate between two, and sometimes more, cultural realities in relation to the various domains of their lives, including family roles and responsibilities, parenting, work and work ethic, and relationships with authority (Chirkov 2009).
This book draws on research that I have been conducting since 2005 on immigration in Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland is located on the periphery of the United Kingdom, as indicated by Map 1.1
Map 1.1 Northern Irelandâs location in Europe
As for many parts of the UK, Northern Ireland experienced significantly accelerated immigration from the late 1990s onwards. As an NID, Northern Ireland offers a natural laboratory for better conceptualizing migration and its impact on intergroup relationships (Waters and JimĂ©nez 2005; Smith 2006; Lichter 2012). This book seeks to respond to calls from various quarters for a new epistemological framework to conceptualise these new movements (see for instance Glick-Schiller 2008; Bakewell 2010; Iosifides 2011). More specifically, others have urged for an understanding of these movements at a local level and within peripheral and non-metropolitan locations (see for instance Smith and Guarnizo 1998; Lichter and Brown 2011; Brickell and Datta 2011). By analysing experiences in such non-traditional destinations, we can ârecognise the specificities and generalizabilities that surface in terms of immigrantsâ experiences in these emerging transnational spacesâ (Miraftab 2011, p. 2019). One of the challenges within this is to understand how individuals and organisations operate across different structures and cultures (Levitt 2004; Batnitzky et al. 2009, p. 1290). I follow Goffmanâs (1969, 1983) emphasis on individual interactions and experiences to unravel the everyday encounters and experiences of migrants in NIDs.
Previous research indicates the importance of gaining access to key services, including health, housing and employment, for migrantsâ well-being and integration. These structures are important, but so, too, are the individuals moving within them. There is a lack of research on the micro-level issues facing migrants to new destinations and on the conditions that affect these path-dependent processes of migration, such as the factors affecting how âthe systemâ within newly receiving nations can cope (Smith and Favell 2006; Favell and Hansen 2002; Favell et al. 2006; Winders 2014; Lichter et al. 2016). This is an ever-changing scene; it is a kaleidoscopic phenomenon.
New Immigration Destinations
New Immigration Destinations have been witnessed in countries in Europe, including Ireland, Scotland, Greece, Italy and Spain, with migrants arriving from Central and Eastern Europe, as well as from South America, Asia, Africa and the Middle East (see for instance Kasimis et al. 2003; Jentsch and Simard 2009). They also are evident in the US, a country with a history of immigration, but that has experienced recent accelerated immigration beyond traditional gateways and into many parts of rural and small-town America, transforming communities in the process (see for instance Kandel and Cromartie 2004; Jensen 2006; Lichter and Johnson 2006; Broadway 2007; McConnell and Miraftab 2009; Lichter and Brown 2011; Lichter 2012; Crowley et al. 2015; Marrow 2011). Localities in non-metropolitan Australia, often with depopulating and declining communities, actively attract refugees to settle by highlighting employment opportunities (Hugo 2008b; Krivokapic-Skoko et al. 2015). Migration pathways are increasingly diverse, differing according to migration motivations, places of settlement and relations with the home country. There is variance in the reception towards migrants from nation-states, experiences in the labour market and more locally among communities and neighbourhoods.
Northern Ireland as an NID
It was during the early years of this century that change became particularly noticeable in many different parts of the globe, including Ireland. With the backdrop of generations of Irish emigration as a cultural reference point, the contrast could not have been starker for those living in Belfast. Added to this was the âpeace processâ that ended decades of civil unrest, resulting in the creation of new opportunities. To be sure, Spanish students had for a long time been travelling for study periods to Belfast, but it was not until the start of the 21st century that immigration became truly visible. It was noticeable in the ethnic shops located along certain streets, such as the Ormeau Road in Belfast. But this change was not just confined to Belfast, the regional capital; small towns and rural communities across Northern Ireland became hosts to many different Eastern European migrants. Not simply confined to the major cities of Belfast and Derry, migrants were settling in towns and villages. Quite literally, there was evidence of the celebration of âhybridity, impurity, intermingling, the transformation that comes of new and unexpected combination of human beings, cultures, ideas, politics, movies, songsâ (Rushdie 1992 in Hall 1993). Events that were organised by one local non-governmental organization (NGO) included a celebration for all children in the area to celebrate their different cultures, including costume, music, dance and food, and in recognition of the increasing diversity in what had been a fairly ethnically homogenous society. Meanwhile, day trips helped to promote local heritage and history to all users of the services provided by that NGO, and the process of taking different people out together fostered more connections. These activities were made possible by volunteersâ altruism.
At a personal level, all of the places that I had frequented while growing up in County Armagh were now considered âhomeâ to immigrants, including Polish migrants working in meat processing or Lithuanians working in mushroom farming. I was immediately drawn to their personal stories: why on earth would anyone wish to come from Eastern Europe and live in small places such as Newtownhamilton? This is the place where as a child I went to school, and it was embossed in my memory as one with little opportunity, that probably being a gentle recollection of my memories! And so began what has become a longer-term interest in migration: I have been researching international migration to Northern Ireland for over 10 years now.
My interest is in migrantsâ experiences of finding jobs, making a life and of the barriers and opportunities that they face along the way. This involves complicated and interconnected issues, matters that transcend individual actions while also connecting to wider social structures; connections that I hope to reveal throughout the course of the book. In this book I use the word âkaleidoscopeâ to describe migration because of the complex and changing nature of the phenomenon. With its origins in Greek, and literally meaning âbeautiful formâ, kaleidoscope describes âa constantly changing pattern or sequence of elementsâ (Oxford Dictionary, https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/kaleidoscope) or âa complicated set of circumstancesâ (Free Dictionary, www.thefreedictionary.com/kaleidoscope). Just as the optical instrument produces patterns and reflections depending on how the different colours and shapes of glass are rotated, the act and impact of migration differs according to an intricate combination of factors.
I felt compelled to explore the way in which recent migrants moving to Northern Ireland were integrating into an already divided society with two majority groups (divided according to religion, Protestant and Catholic); doing nothing is itself a political act in the same way as choosing to take action represents a political standpoint (Armbruster and Laerke 2008). Significant research had been conducted on the daily lives of these new communities and on the barriers they faced in accessing employment and generally becoming established in a new place. Most of this research provided valuable insight in the absence of little or no knowledge of these communities, but it was for the most part reactive and piecemeal. The option of doing nothing was to suggest that this type of information was sufficient. For me it fell short on advancing knowledge of the longer-term implications for society.
Northern Ireland experienced a sudden increase in its ethnic minority population over a very short span of time (Doyle and McAreavey 2014, 2016). Although absolute numbers remain small, evidence from other countries, such as Canada, indicates that the small quantity is no reason to discount the implications overall (Halliday 2006). In fact, the dramatic transition in Northern Ireland has created integration challenges. Incidents of racism and discrimination demonstrate how the majority population struggles to recognise newcomers as equals within society. Equally, migrants have been found to make a significant contribution to the Northern Irish economy (Oxford Economics 2009b). I want to further explore how migrant incorporation in the region is supported or if it is impeded in everyday life. I hope to reveal the more everyday experiences of individuals as they go about their daily lives. Such micro-practices of everyday encounters are not insignificant, as they typically affect migrantsâ economic and social outcomes and relate to wider social structures and practices. The book is fundamentally concerned with migrant incorporation in a destination area with attention focused on the challenges and the benefits to both the migrants and the receiving society. Empirical data from Northern Ireland will be used to explore a range of theoretical, methodological and ethical issues associated with how we understand the kaleidoscopic process of migration and social integration in these areas. This will be achieved through the lens of migration governance, the labour market and everyday encounters. The implications for future policy and research will be highlighted.
Aims of the Book
The key aim of this book is to contribute to a growing body of work on one aspect of the current ânewâ wave of migration; that is, migration to regions with little previous experience of immigration, areas that have been labelled New Immigration Destinations, concentrating on small towns and peripheral areas. It is about a small portion of the worldâs migrants, but a significant group nonetheless. The book will not focus on metropolitan areas that have become host societies for migrants. Northern Ireland, which is a peripheral area encompassing rural areas, villages and towns and compact urban regions, will be considered for two key reasons. Firstly, it is hoped that the knowledge will contribute to wider scholarship on NIDsâabout recent migration to the UK, Lichter and Schafft observe that â[T]he policy implications for immigrant incorporation and cultural integration are similar to those in new immigrant destinations in the rural United Statesâ(2016, p. 331). There is wider merit in scrutinising the experiences of Northern Ireland as a new rural and small town NID. The specificity of migration processes and patterns to that region have the potential to shed light on connections between experiences of migration in different regions. Secondly, rural areas cannot be considered in isolation. It is a recognised fact that, globally, urban and rural boundaries are increasingly blurred and possess dense economic, social and cultural connections (Lichter and Brown 2011; Shucksmith et al. 2012). In this way rural places are connected to urban areas, and so global flows affect all places (Woods 2007), thus justifying the need to scrutinise NIDs within the context of wider migration flows and to consider migration pathways to and between regions. Therefore, rather than consider the âruralâ (whatever that may be) as separate from and indeed opposed to the âurbanâ, I conceive of social, economic and cultural flows between the two. I apply Lichter and Brownâs observation that âAmerica today contains many rural Americas, all of which are linked in fundamental but different ways with urban America and big citiesâ (2011, p. 566) more widely to conceive of interconnecting relations in rural and regional areas of modern post-industrial economies. Understanding what is happening in NIDs will allow us to unravel some of the complexities and wider ramifications of globalisation.
Structure of the Book
In the chapters following this, the zones of social interaction are explored by using empirical data. Rather than âcurious anomaliesâ (Striffler 2007, p. 676), these âepisodic nodes of exclusion, have a complex (i.e. intersectional) originâ (BĂŒrkner 2012, p. 186) and present natural laboratories (after Lichter 2012, p. 3; see also Lichter et al. 2016) that can add to our empirical and theoretical knowledge of NIDs.
Chapter 2 considers historical patterns of migration. It situates migration into a wider socio-political framing to show how various factors intersect to influence migrantsâ pathways. The chapter positions New Immigration Destinations into wider global flows, revealing that the unfolding relations in NIDs are uneven and complex. The discussion proceeds by examining migration decisions, showing how they are not reducible to economic considerations. Instead, a complex interplay of factors, including emotional, cultural and practical issues, affect individual and famil...
