This thesis examines the history of Irish immigrants in Birmingham. It defines three distinct phases: two waves of immigration divided by a period when numbers dropped and many assimilated. The questions of housing, work and demographic structure are investigated and used to delineate the character of each migration. Following this the development of distinct Irish communities is described. The contribution of the Catholic Church, and the importance of initiatives from the Irish themselves are evaluated and the tiny group which bridges the centuries is looked at with a view to establishing the part it played in providing a link between the two communities. An attempt is made to place Irish immigration in a broader context, identifying those elements which are unique to them, those which they share with other groups, and exploring the issue of integration and assimilation. The principal conclusions are: that there is a considerable degree of continuity in the Irish experience; that while in many ways they undergo an experience common to many immigrants, the Irish are distinguished by their relationship with the Church and their talent for self-help; and that the twentieth century community, larger and with a broader base than its predecessor, seems more likely to endure.

This thesis examines the dominant responses to and struggles around immigration in contemporary political discourse in Greece. While immigration in Greece has received considerable scholarly and public attention, the question of racism has either been ignored or framed in problematic ways. This thesis argues that the question of racism should play a central role in accounting for these problematizations of immigration. Drawing on Poststructuralist theory and Psychoanalysis it is argued that the potency of racism in Greek political discourse emerges from its disavowed character as well as from the ways it is specifically inflected in appeals to Greece's self-understanding as a hospitable nation. Following how racism as a signifier figures (or is absent) in discourses around immigration and security, this thesis discloses the political and ideological operations at work whose critical explanation is articulated around the development of social, political and fantasmatic logics that characterize, sustain or challenge these discourses. This thesis shows not only how racism has come to be signified as itself a threat to Greek hospitality, but also how and why the social myth that any racist traits are new or effects of immigration enjoys widespread popularity. After reviewing the literature on the relations between 'Greek' and 'other', the immigration 'problem' in the 1990s, and its emergence as a security issue, a theoretical framework gravitating around the concepts of rhetoric and fantasy is developed as a means of approaching the political and ideological dimensions of racism. This approach is deployed in the investigation of parliamentary discourse on immigration and the 'demographic problem' (1990-2001), administrative detention and its contestation in the case of Pagani, Lesvos (2004-2010), urban immigration-related security practices in the centre of Athens (2010), and the Law School occupation by 300 immigrants on collective hunger strike (2011). These chapters trace the complicated and mobile relationships between racism, filoxenia, migration and security, suggesting that political discourse on immigration draws energies from the way the political and ideological dimensions of racism are fore grounded, amplified or made to resonate.

This thesis examines modern migration processes to new destinations. Using case studies in Northern Ireland, it analyses the challenges and complexities of integration as a way of framing migrants' settlement in new societies. Despite the scale and pace of global migration patterns and an expanding research literature, current theoretical approaches and conceptual ideas do not adequately capture the problematic, complex and multifaceted nature of contemporary migration. This study advances and deepens our understanding of migration to new destinations by developing and applying a theoretical framework based on structuration theory. Employing qualitative and quantitative methods the research examines the interplay between migrants' experiences (agency) and the functioning of state and civil society (structures) in facilitating integration processes. Specific themes including employment and housing are used to investigate integration mechanisms. The study evaluates efforts by state bodies and civil society organisations to accommodate migrants, including an examination of local community perspectives. The empirical research shows how integration is a concept with no shared meaning. This is evidenced through state and civil society responses that place limits on migrants to apply their capabilities and fulfil their aspirations. Social reality does not match policy rhetoric of integration as a mutual two-way process between migrants and society. New destinations emphasise the significance of context for migration processes. In Northern Ireland there are additional challenges for integration against the socio-political backdrop of segregation and sectarianism. The conceptual framework developed in this study examines complex structure-agency dynamics that in many ways challenge the theory and practice of integration.

This thesis examines the relationship between Italian immigrants and cinema in early twentieth century London. Through an investigation into a variety of both primary and secondary sources, I retrace the journey of migrant people and of moving images from Italy to the British capital. The aim of this study is to examine how the cultural identity of London's Italian community was constructed between 1890 and 1918 and the place of cinema within this process. The research engages with a series of questions that are linked to the notion that cinema's social role and the access of Italians to and involvement in cinema is better determined by first defining the immigrant community both culturally and historically. A discussion of the representations of, and discourses circulating about, Italians and Italian-ness, and the relative availability of cinematic images produced in or depicting Italy, permit further hypotheses about the response of the colony to moving images. The study of a very particular audience and the context in which it was situated, therefore allows me to explore a complex set of cultural and social histories. As such, the histories of emigration, film production, distribution and exhibition, and film culture more generally developed in this thesis inform a thoroughly contextual understanding of the relation between the 'Little Italians' and the cinema. In its conclusions the thesis reveals that, among London's Italian community, the formation of a sense of national identity and of a sense of belonging, whether to the country of origin or to the country of destination, remained problematic, even contested. It was elite groups above all that promoted a strong sense of national affiliation and identity, which was rather different to the experiences and allegiances of the working class members of the immigrant community. In this sense, my thesis argues that the importance of the cinema in the cultural life of the London's Italian colony was principally a result of the use made of it by the upper/middle-class immigrant elite during wartime.

This thesis is based on a series of maps of population and transport development, which show changes over ten-yearly periods in the century between 1830 and 1930. The population maps have been compiled by means of the information available in the Census reports.

The thesis explores the social and spatial mobilities of young Polish people and the ways in which the self, the family and the community are being re-made through mobility in an enlarged European Union. The research is based on an empirical study with post-accession current and return migrants in Edinburgh, Kraków and Katowice. It explores young people‘s perceptions and experiences of mobility in three key areas: the personal histories of mobility; the practice of mobility; and the relations of mobility. The thesis argues that social and spatial mobility are differentially and relationally experienced by young Polish people. Furthermore, through a critical engagement with theories of mobility and modernity it is argued that collective social forms (family and community) are being re-configured through mobility. Conceptually, the research is positioned within the inter-disciplinary study of mobilities, which assert the centrality of movement in contemporary social life (Urry and Sheller, 2006). Drawing on empirical evidence, the thesis provides an intimate reading of the personal transformations of mobility for young Polish migrants and offers micro-level analysis of theories of migration, mobility and modernity. As such it responds to calls for empirically grounded studies on mobilities (Cresswell, 2006; McDowell, 2006) and reflexivity (Atkinson, 2010), and contributes to a growing area of research post-accession Polish migration and mobility (Burrell, 2009).

This is a study of migration from the parish of St. Elizabeth in Jamaica, 1954-1962. The thesis attempts to integrate the literature relating to debates in the sociology of migration and the sociology of race and ethnic relations. We begin with a discussion of theoretical issues raised in the literature with regard to migration and labour. These raised questions about structure and agency. We emphasise the passage between cultures and the significance of biographies, work histories and kinship. Chapters 3 and 4 examine the context of migration in the 1940s and 1950s from the background of rural Jamaican society and focuses upon the parish of St. Elizabeth and a series of interviews with some septuagenarians. Chapters 5 to 11 focus upon the life experiences of the people who migrated. We pay particular attention to the reasons for migration, experiences of British society and racism, how they obtained jobs and pursued their concern for a better life. In this we raise questions about the way in which aspects of St. Elizabethan culture fitted them to cope with British society. We pay particular attention to kinship, savings and credit schemes and their attitudes towards education as a source of social mobility. Chapters 12 and 13 look at the children of the migrants and particularly their experience of education and family relations. In this we identify important sources of variation in the experience of the second generation. We explore these in Chapters 14 and 15 through questions relating to social class and social identity. Throughout the thesis has relied upon detailed informal interviews, life history and participant observation as research techniques. These were all used to facilitate our understanding of the qualitative side of the migrants' experience.

This thesis is interested in understanding the new migration patterns and changing geographies of multiculture taking place in the UK outside of the larger established cities and towns by investigating Milton Keynes (MK) as a new multicultural city space. Using a case study of MK's Ghanaian and Somali communities it explores how BME communities establish themselves as part of the wider local community and examines the ways in which local policy-makers and practitioners have responded to an increasingly multicultural and ethnically diverse population. The research focuses upon local sites of community construction such as schools, provision for young people and religious centres, reflecting, among other things, the particular formal and informal roles played by these sites. The thesis finds that people within MK are not living the 'parallel lives' crisis of the community cohesion discourse, but rather 'living apart' at times and also 'living together' at others, reinforcing the significance of place-based understandings in the context of new multicultural geographies. The research found that young people of Ghanaian and Somali origin often reflected positively on the sense of community present within MK's residential areas and demonstrated processes of negotiation and of both 'mixing' and 'non-mixing' within certain distinct social and geographic contexts. It also found that, in seeking to manage the emergent multicultural population, policy-makers and practitioners generally rely on identifying community organisations (and their leaders) with whom they can liaise. In doing so they may overlook the significant diversity of experiences which exist within the Ghanaian and Somali communities (and the extent to which these are subject to change) and are therefore less likely to deliver appropriate resources and interventions. The research findings indicated that how people themselves manage multiculture is much more fluid and able to be negotiated than cohesion discourses and formal policy makers imagine and assume.

Rural areas are changing – a population turnaround was first identified in the 1970’s (Beale 1975). Since that time more and more research has uncovered the numbers and types of people moving into rural areas (Boyle 1995, Boyle and Halfacree 1998, Bolton and Chalkley 1998) and the impact of this migration (Bell 1994 Cloke and Goodwin 1992). Keeble and Tyler (1995) began to address the economic capacity of in-migrants highlighting that many rural businesses are owned by in-migrants. Stockdale, Short and Findlay (1999) identified that on average for each self-employed in-migrant 2.4 jobs are created. In recent years the policy focus on rural areas has centred on endogenous development, Stockdale (2006) argues in-migrants are essential for this approach to be successful. This research has combined literature from migration studies, with entrepreneurship literature, to examine the economic activity choices of in-migrants; with a particular focus on self-employment. Migration studies focus on where people choose to migrate to and the impact they then have on the area. Entrepreneurship literature focuses on the types of people who chose to become self-employed and the impact of various factors on their decision making. This research has utilised concepts from both literature sources to examine lifetime migrant’s economic activity in rural areas (defined under the ONS rural – urban classification). Powys and Gwynedd are two local authority areas in rural Wales that have interesting economic and migration patterns. They were selected as study areas as they represent areas of varying degrees of inward migration, self-employment, accessibility to major transport networks and levels of Welsh speaking. This research charts the economic activity of households across these local authorities in order to understand what impact individual, household and area level influences have on in-migrants economic activity. A postal survey of 597 households in the case study areas was used to explore the research questions; ‘what are the differences in the current economic activity of migrants and non-migrants in rural labour markets in Wales; and why do these differences exist?’ The conclusions of this research make three key contributions to knowledge: 1. In-migrants and non-migrants in the case study areas selected have broadly similar levels of economic activity rates. There are no statistically significant differences in economic activity choices between the two groups. 2. Some in-migrants (at similar levels to non-migrants) become self-employed and start a business. These businesses are often different to that of non-migrants, they tend to be largely based from home and prefer to employ family members. 3. Many in-migrants do not move into rural areas with the intention of becoming self-employed this is mobilised often up to a decade after the move. The findings of this research play a key role in understanding why in-migrants make the economic activity choices they do in rural areas. – Through a combination of push and pull factors that centre on the individual (age, nationality, employment history), the household (household structure, tenure) and the area (labour market, levels of Welsh speaking) in-migrants make economic activity choices that for some, result in self-employment. The businesses created by in-migrants differ slightly from that of non-migrant owned businesses. In-migrant owned businesses are most likely to be based from or closer to home than non-migrants. They often employ family member and tend to be younger than non-migrant owned businesses. They do not appear more likely to create jobs than non-migrant owned businesses. This is an important finding given the importance of in-migrant owned rural businesses in much recent rural debate (Bosworth 2008, Bosworth 2010, Stockdale 2006).

This study focuses on the conditions of immigrants in Italy, the problems of integration they are facing and the coping strategies they adopt in this process. During the 1980s, an increasing number of immigrant workers arrived in Italy. The Government and the Italian society in general were not prepared to absorb immigrant workers for many reasons. Traditionally Italy has been a country of emigration rather than immigration. Moreover, the number of immigrant workers grew considerably in a short period of time, and Italy did not have the necessary legal and social infrastructure to cope with this in-flow. Since the Government is not providing them with some essential services needed to live in the country, many immigrants have to rely on the assistance of voluntary associations and non-governmental organisations (NGGs). Although, there are many associations of immigrant workers, they are not in a position to provide these services. The integration of immigrants is made more difficult by their sociological characteristics. The immigrant population is not homogeneous. Immigrants workers belong to different nationalities and have different migration plans in mind. Filipinos, for example, are mainly women who are planning to work for a few years and then go back to their country. North Africans and Senegalese are generally men who are planning to stay for a longer period. This complexity has involved additional difficulties in addressing the problem of immigration effectively. In addition, the situation of immigrants is not well known. Social scientists have analysed some aspects of the phenomenon and have given some indications of its extent and although the research conducted suffered from many limitations it has helped decision makers to face emergencies but not to plan ahead. Government inaction and the deteriorating living conditions of immigrants have favoured the emergence of racism and intolerance in public opinion. The service provision has now become secondary to the problem of race relations. The problem to be solved is the right of immigrant workers to citizenship and not only the provision of basic services. The situation analysis at national level and the study of two cases (Florence and Rome) suggest that: 1) there is a gap between the image and the reality of immigrants in Italy; 2) the working and living conditions experienced by immigrants do not correspond with their expectations and this create a sort of 'status discrepancy'; 3) immigrants have to cope with a situation of uncertainty that does not permit them to plan their life in the long-term; 4) NGOs and voluntary associations cannot replace the Government in the provision of services but can play an important role in the process of integration of immigrants; 5) after many years piecemeal, fragmented and contradictory interventions the Government, pressed by racism and dissatisfaction growing among public opinion, is now in favour of a policy of closed doors and self-protection.