The intellectual focus
Jane Jenson, jane.jenson@umontreal.ca
Oliver Schmidtke, ofs@uvic.ca
While this thematic area potentially covers a wide range of issues, the primary focus is on immigration/multiculturalism and social policy. Development of the interrelation between the two issues is the reason they are included as one theme, as social policy is an important element of multiculturalism. On both sides of the Atlantic social integration and social exclusion are growing problems; marginalization has a particularly important impact on youth and on immigrant groups. Both forms of marginalization underlie visible social problems in Europe and in Canada. Multicultural and citizenship policy is an area where Europe looks to Canada for alternative approaches as European countries reassess traditional ways to deal with immigrant groups; the cluster can help to disseminate research findings about the effect of Canada‟s multicultural, citizenship, and immigration policies and to highlight Canadian achievements. At the same time, increasingly scholars are recognizing striking similarities in the challenges Canada and Europe face in three key issues. First, demands for the public recognition of ethnic, religious, linguistic and cultural differences are challenging Western liberal democracies‟ self-understandings, catalyzing debates over the „politics of recognition‟ and the „limits of multiculturalism‟ (Barry 2001; Carens 2000; Fierlbeck 1996; Gould 2005; Hansen 2003, 2006a, 2006b; Kymlicka 1995; Offe 1998; Phillips and Dustin 2004; Schmidtke 2002, Shachar 2001; Taylor 1994; Young 1989; Williams 1995; Zolberg and Woon 1999). Second, shifting demographic patterns and the imperative of economic competitiveness on a global scale have generated a need for immigration and a related interest in attracting well-educated and highly skilled individuals (Hansen forthcoming; Shachar 2006; Schmidtke 2006). At the same time Canada and European countries are struggling with patterns of failed labour market inclusion and a waste of human capital. With regard to socio-economic integration, immigrants in Canada and especially Europe are experiencing increasing rates of poverty and unemployment (Hansen forthcoming; Ruddick 2003).
Of particular concern is the difficulty well educated and highly skilled immigrants face in finding well-paying and personally fulfilling work that is in line with their qualifications (Reitz 2001, 2005; Triadafilopoulos 2006). While a lack of flexibility in terms of recognizing foreign credentials and work related experience is partly responsible for this problem, racial and other forms of discrimination also continue to hinder immigrants‟ access to and success in Canadian and European labour markets. Third, post 9-11 security concerns and the growing influence of xenophobic political actors have created pressures to restrict immigration, crack down on unregulated border crossing, and regulate access to citizenship more closely, with a concomitant rise in anti-immigrant sentiments in society (Adamson 2006; Andreas 2003; Schmidtke 2004, Ozcumurez and Schmidtke forthcoming, Triadafilopoulos forthcoming; Walters 2006; Hansen 2005; Kofman 2004(this is 2005 in the reference); Faist and Triadafilopoulos 2006). In this respect, European and Canadian policy makers face similar challenges in terms of finding a balance between desirable immigration and security concerns.
Adamson, F. (2006). “Crossing borders: International migration and national security”. International Security, 31(1), 165-199.
Andreas, P. (2003). “Redrawing the line: Borders and security in the twenty-first century”. International Security, 28(2), 78-111.
Barry, B. (2001). “Muddles of multiculturalism”. New Left Review, 8, 49-72.
Carens, J. (2000). Culture, Citizenship, and Community. New York: Oxford University Press.
Faist, T. & T. Triadafilopoulos. (2006). “Beyond nationhood: citizenship politics in Germany since unification”. Munk Centre for International Studies Working Paper Series on Controversies in Global Politics and Societies, 1.
Fierlbeck, C. (1996). “The ambivalent potential of cultural identity”. Canadian Journal of Political Science, 29(1), 3-22.
Gould, R. (2005). “The German Headscarf Debate: Constitutional Court vs. Public Discourses.” Canadian Diversity/Diversité Canadienne, 4 (3), 45-47.
Hansen, R. (2003). “Citizenship and integration in Europe”. In C. Joppke & E. Morawska (Eds.), Toward Assimilation and Citizenship: Immigrants in Liberal Nation-States.Houndmills: Palgrave.
Hansen, R. (2006a).” The Danish cartoon controversy”. International Migration, 44(5).
Hansen, R. (2006b). “Diversity, multiculturalism, and the turn from integration in the UK”. In R. Banting & T. Courchene (Eds.), Diversity and Canada’s Future. Montreal: IRPP.
Hansen, R. (Forthcoming). “The free economy and the Jacobin state, or how Europe can cope with the coming immigration wave”. In C. Swain (Ed.), The immigration Debate. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Kofman, E. (2005). “Citizenship, migration and the reassertion of national identity”. Citizenship Studies, 9(5), 453-467.
Kymlicka, W. (1995). Multicultural Citizenship: A Liberal Theory of Minority Rights. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Offe, C. (1998). “Homogeneity and constitutional democracy: Coping with identity conflicts through group rights”. The Journal of Political Philosophy, 6(2), 113-141.
OECD. (2004). Early Childhood Education and Care Policy. Canada Country Note. Available on www.sdc.gov.gc, October.
Phillips, A. & M. Dustin. (2004). “UK initiatives on forced marriage: Regulation, dialogue and exit”. Political Studies, 20, 531-551.
Reitz, J. (2001). “Immigrant success in the knowledge economy: Institutional change and the immigrant experience in Canada, 1970-1995”. Journal of Social Issues, 57(3), 579-613.
Reitz, J. (2005). “Tapping immigrants‟ skills: New directions for Canadian immigration policy in the knowledge economy”. IRPP Choices, 11(1), 1-18.
Ruddick, E. (2003). “Immigrant Economic Performance: A New Paradigm In a Changing Labour Market.” Canadian Issues/Thèmes Canadiens, April, 16-17
Schmidtke, O. (2002). “The paradox of culture: A critical appraisal of Brian Barry‟s culture and equality”. In Ethnicities, 2(2), 274-279.
Schmidtke, O. (2004). “From taboo to strategic tool in politics: Immigrants and immigration policies in German party politics”. In W. Reutter (Ed.), Germany on the Road to Normalc; Policies and Politics of the Red-green Federal Government (1998-2002). Palgrave Macmillan.
Schmidtke, O. (2006). “Beyond nationhood? Immigration, diversity and the Canadian salad bowl”. In M. Bommes & D. Thränhardt (Eds.), National Paradigms of Migration Research. Institute for Migration Research and Intercultural Studies, Münster: LIT.
Shachar, A. (2001). “Two critiques of multiculturalism”. Cardozo Law Review, 23(1), 253-297.
Shachar, A. (2006). “The race for talent: Highly skilled migrants and competitive immigration regimes”. New York University Law Review, 81, 101-158.
Taylor, C. (1994). “The politics of recognition”. In Gutmann, A (Ed.), Multiculturalism: Examining the Politics of Recognition.. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Triadafilopoulos, T. (2006). “A model for Europe? A critical appraisal of Canadian integration policies”. In K. Schönwälder, S. Baringhorst & U. Hunger (Eds.), Politische steuerung von iIntegrationsprozesessen: intentionen und wirkungen. Wiesbaden: Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften.
Triadafilopoulos, T. (Forthcoming). “Dual citizenship and security norms in historical perspective”. In T. Faist & P. Kivisto (Eds.), From Unitary to Multiple Citizenship. Houndmills: Palgrave.
Walters, W. (2006). “Border Control.” European Journal of Social Theory 9 (2),187-203.
Williams, M. (1995). “Justice towards groups: Political not juridical”. Political Theory, 23(1), 75-83.
Young, I. M. (1989). “Polity and group difference: A critique of the ideal of universal citizenship”. Ethics, 99(2), 250-274.
Zolberg, A. & Long L. W. (1999). “Why Islam is like Spanish: Cultural Incorporation in Europe and the United States”. Politics and Society, 27(1), 5–38.
View PDF
