An article examined the place of 'race' in public policy, and suggested that it had been marginalized at a time when minorities had experienced greater disadvantage.
Source: Gary Craig, 'Invisibilizing "race" in public policy', Critical Social Policy, Volume 33 Issue 4
Links: Abstract
Date: 2013-Oct
A new book examined the practical application of 'critical race theory' to the English context. Despite claims of a 'post-racial era', equality laws were under threat, and evidence of racism persisted in life and work.
Source: Namita Chakrabarty, Lorna Roberts, and John Preston (eds), Critical Race Theory in England, Routledge
Links: Summary
Date: 2013-Sep
An article examined the widespread perception of a wholesale 'retreat' from multiculturalism in Europe, with governments replacing it with a strong emphasis on civic integration. It presented an index of the strength of multicultural policies for European countries and several traditional countries of immigration at three points in time (1980, 2000, and 2010). The results showed that although a small number of countries, including most notably the Netherlands, had weakened established multicultural policies during the 2000s, such a shift was the exception. Most countries that had adopted multicultural approaches had maintained them, and a significant number of countries had added new ones.
Source: Keith Banting and Will Kymlicka, 'Is there really a retreat from multiculturalism policies? New evidence from the multiculturalism policy index', Comparative European Politics, Volume 11 Issue 5
Links: Abstract
Date: 2013-Aug
An article highlighted inconsistencies and gaps in policies on social cohesion in Europe. The problem of social cohesion had little to do with the issues of immigration or immigrant and minority-ethnic integration. There was a need for a more coherent, integrated, and multi-level governance policy framework based on social justice, socio-economic equality, and cultural diversity to achieve the elusive goal of social cohesion in Europe.
Source: Gerard Boucher, 'European social cohesions', Patterns of Prejudice, Volume 47 Issue 3
Links: Abstract
Date: 2013-Jul
An article examined the advance of racial neo-liberalism. It said that issues of race were being increasingly erased from public and institutional discourse, whereas the institutionalization of racism continued unbounded, legitimated through the 'war on terror'.
Source: Nisha Kapoor, 'The advancement of racial neoliberalism in Britain', Ethnic and Racial Studies, Volume 36 Number 6
Links: Abstract
Date: 2013-Jun
A new book examined the distinction between migrant and citizen, using the concept of 'the community of value'. The community of value comprised 'good citizens': it was defined from the outside by the non-citizen and from the inside by the 'failed' citizen (figures such as the benefit scrounger, the criminal, and the teenage mother). Although 'failed' citizens and non-citizens were often strongly differentiated, it was better to consider them together. Judgements about who counted as skilled, what was a good marriage, who was suitable for citizenship, and what sort of enforcement was acceptable against 'illegals', affected citizens as well as migrants. Rather than simple competitors for the privileges of membership, citizens and migrants defined each other through sets of relations that shifted and were not straightforward binaries.
Source: Bridget Anderson, Us and Them? The dangerous politics of immigration control, Oxford University Press
Links: Summary | Compas press release
Date: 2013-Mar
An article examined whether multicultural policies undermined redistribution policies in European countries, by eroding the social cohesion on which redistribution measures were built. Policies that focused on recognizing minority groups might lead to a greater social acceptance of those minorities, and in turn might lead to their feeling more appreciated as participants in society. Multicultural policies could easily be combined with policies that invested in national unity and social cohesion.
Source: Francois Levrau and Patrick Loobuyck, 'Is multiculturalism bad for social cohesion and redistribution?', Political Quarterly, Volume 84 Issue 1
Links: Abstract
Date: 2013-Mar
A think-tank report examined theoretical approaches to integration, including the differences between integration and cohesion; assessed integration policy, focusing on policy changes and government initiatives since 1990; analyzed the different ways in which integration occurred (through education, employment, income, childhood, housing, and society); and identified some of the essential elements and potential opportunities for a new kind of integration policy, nationally and at the community level.
Source: Jill Rutter, Back to Basics: Towards a successful and cost-effective integration policy, Institute for Public Policy Research
Date: 2013-Mar
An article cited evidence that senior politicians from all parties were committed to the goal of multiculturalism – contrary to the idea that the policy was in retreat or in question, and raising doubts about the coalition's approach to 'Britishness'.
Source: Varun Uberoi and Tariq Modood, 'Inclusive Britishness: a multiculturalist advance', Political Studies, Volume 61 Issue 1
Links: Abstract
Date: 2013-Feb
A report examined what social scientists had discovered about how people saw themselves and others, and the implications for policy. It focused on implications for: crime prevention and criminal justice; health, the environment, and well-being; skills, employment, and education; preventing radicalization and extremism; social mobility; and social integration. Over the next 10 years, people's identities were likely to be significantly affected by several important drivers of change, in particular the rapid pace of developments in technology. The emergence of hyper-connectivity (where people could be constantly connected online), the spread of social media, and the increase in online personal information, were key factors that would interact to influence identities. The increasing diversity of the population meant that dual ethnic and national identities would continue to become more common, while the gradual trend towards a more secular society appeared likely to continue. Identities could be a positive resource for social change, building social capital, and promoting well-being: but they could also have a role in social unrest and anti-social behaviour.
Source: Future Identities: Changing identities in the UK – The next 10 years, Government Office for Science
Links: Report | Summary | Background documents | British Academy press release | CLS press release | IOE press release | NSS press release | OMS press release
Date: 2013-Jan
A new book challenged the view that ethnic diversity was socially beneficial.
Source: Ed West, The Diversity Delusion: Why mass immigration has failed Britain, and how we can make it better, Gibson Square Books
Links: Summary | NCF press release
Date: 2013-Jan