Negotiating the community:

1
Negotiating the community

• How diversity provides a space for old and new
  immigration in Derby

2
Recent Studies

• Dawson, A (2002) The problem with asylum seeker
  dispersal transitions, structures and myths
  Benefits, 101 9-14
• DOnofrio, L and Monk, K (2003) Understanding
  the stranger Interim case study findings
  commissioned by The Information Centre about
  asylum and refugees in the UK (ICAR)
• Subhra, V (2002) Developing Services for
  Refugees and People Seeking Asylum A Research
  project looking at the issues facing people
  seeking asylum and refugees and the development
  of services in Derby, Leicester and Nottingham
  Refugee Action/University of Derby
• Goodall, C (2005) Dealing with Difference
  Towards a Model of Successful Relations between
  Established Communities and New Arrivals in Stoke
  on Trent, Seeking Refuge, Seeking Rights,
  Seeking a Future, 3rd Annual Forced Migration
  Student Conference, Oxford Brookes University,
  Oxford, 13-14 May 2005

3
Literature Review (PhD)

• Theoretical critical race theory, cultural
  theory, Foucauldian theory
• Policy Driven European migration policy,
  citizenship and migration, dispersal policy
  (asylum), restrictionist policy measures,
  ethnicity and community, ethnic identity

4
Theoretical underpinning

• Why does difference matter (Hall, 1995, p234)
• How ethnically diverse communities form (Bauman,
  1990, 1997)
• The permeable realities of boundaries (Barth,
  1966, 1970, 1984, 1989, 1996)
• The effect of powerful discourses (Foucault,
  1977, 1977a, 1982, Carter, 1997)
• Empirical
• How British is this community? (Modood, 1994,
  1997)

5
Time line of immigration in Derby since World War
2

• 1945 Poles, Italians, Ukrainians
• 1950s Pakistani Muslims, African Caribbeans
• 1960s Ugandan Asians (mainly Hindu, some Muslim)
• 1970s Indian Sikhs, Vietnamese
• 1990s Kosovan, Albanian, Bosnian refugees
• 2000 onwards Iraqi Kurd, Congolese, Afghani,
  Iranian, Zimbabwean and other asylum groups
• (DCC 2004)

6
Comparative statistics (ONS 2004)

• Predominant Groups

Derby
Community
7
Interview Respondents

• The local council
• Director of a religious research centre
• A local academic
• A local NGO volunteer
• A refugee community leader
• A journalist
• A Sikh dignitary
• A Pakistani businessman and his Kurdish friend
• Two men from NASS
• A practice nurse

8
Question areas

• Respondent
• Boundaries
• Local perceptions of difference (asylum seekers)
• Local perceptions of difference (community)
• Desire to self manage
• Agencies working together
• Myth of the ghetto
• Do asylum seekers fit in

9
Boundaries negotiating spaces

• If you are going to use that resource of a
  community that is able to absorb diversity,
  quickly, easily and relatively painlessly, then I
  think you have to think in terms of, policy
  makers thinking in terms of these communities
  are doing us a favour, so what should we put into
  that community as the payback?
• And how could that be done?
• Whether it is structural issues to do with
  housing repairs.. Whether it is to do with the
  funding of local authority departments who are
  going to be doing additional work in the area and
  whether its about the funding of the voluntary
  sector and agencies who will concentrate on that
  sort of celebration of diversity, championing
  conflict issues, that sort of work
• (local academic)

10
Boundaries permeable reality

• You know sometimes you can talk to an Indian, a
  Sikh or something, you can feel it that he is not
  very clean from the heart, he is talking on the
  side
• But then
• When asylum seekers first came into this country,
  the Pakistani community and the Sikh community
  they were going to stop renting houses to them
  they (Sikhs) said if the government is not going
  to do anything about this, we are going to do
  something
• (Pakistani Businessman)

11
Boundaries desire to self manage

• At one time, I used to get daily phonecalls
  complaining about asylum seekers (mainly from
  white people), racist talk, but not anymore (14)
  local council
• There are examples..where communities from
  particular countries or sharing a common language
  come together and use the structure of voluntary
  organisations as a vehicle to support and help
  themselves, self help groups, community groups
  and so on (312) local academic
• It is our heart is open, it doesnt matter the
  number of the people, so the Sikh community got a
  big heart, so we can accept people and we can
  maintain them as well. We have no problem (714)
  Sikh dignitary
• More we would probably go to their community
  centre and have a word, and say, look I think
  this is an issue (88) Pakistani businessman

12
Boundariesgroups form/dialogue begins

• And so they are helping themselves because they
  are coming from countries where there is not a
  history of that sort of process. Groups that are
  popping up are supporting themselves in all sorts
  of ways
• (local academic)
• Yes, not in the past, I mean, not in the
  beginning, ever since I have got their leader, a
  relationship you know, so they will always
  discuss with us you know if there is any problem,
  obviously he is new in this city, I have been
  here so long, so obviously I am in a position to
  help him. It depends upon the issue of course
• (Sikh dignitary)

13
Boundaries agencies working together

• Agencies could work together better, but people
  are working together (14) local council
• Depends on the personalities involved, the people
  involved within those statutory and voluntary
  groups (212) religious research centre
• There was a sense of chaos, many agencies wanting
  to do something but not many actually doing
  something. No sense of leadership or direction
  and it has certainly moved from that picture
  where agencies are consolidating, building
  partnerships (312) local academic
• They agreed enthusiastically that everybody
  worked together very well. These agencies
  included the statutory and voluntary sector
  (notes) (93) NASS

14
Local perceptions of difference asylum seekers

• I dont know about the Kurdish but the Pakistanis
  yeh, they wouldnt like to be called asylum
  seekers..you got already the Pakistani people
  and the Sikh communities living in this country
  and they are not labelled and there is a caste
  system in our communities (811) Pakistani
  businessman
• I call them newcomers to the city which I feel
  is a better term (13) city council
• I think People seeking asylum is as good as it
  gets really (37) local academic
• Of course, I dont like this name, but we have no
  other choice (57) local refugee leader
• It has connotations these days that arent
  particularly positive (65) charity/media
• In the beginning it was negative, because
  everyone was frightened of them you know, but now
  it is settling because the police are doing their
  practice now (710) Sikh dignitary
• In the media it is used interchangeably (asylum
  seeker, refugee economic migrant). I dont know
  what would be a better term. It has got negative
  connotations (108) practice nurse

15
Local perceptions of difference within groups

• The Pakistani community have helped a lot. The
  Kurdish people need help and the Pakistani people
  have helped. I dont know about the elders, you
  know the youngsters
• (Pakistani businessman)
• I like you know, we are like brothers,
  we share a lot you know what I mean, with all his
  brothers
• (his Kurdish friend)

16
Local perceptions of differenceCommunity
Enclave/GhettoInsider/Outsider view

• It is perceived as being disadvantaged from the
  outside but I do not feel that it is
  disadvantaged (15) (City Council)
• It has an incredible richness I dont know the
  unemployment statistics (217) (Religious
  Research Centre)
• Of course it is a good community (58). Let me
  tell you about the word poor. When we say poor
  in fact from our perspective the word does not
  exist in England (516) Refugee Leader
• Yeh I do. Poor in the monetary sensejust walking
  around and looking at the shops and housing stock
  indicates that it is a relatively poor area
  compared to a lot of places. It looks like a lot
  of other inner city areas (65) Charity/Media
  partnership
• They didnt really know the community too well
  (from notes) (93) NASS
• A lot of respect in this community..over the
  past years, how many times have we had joint
  functions. Is there any other area where they
  have a joint function? (715) (Sikh dignitary)
• Safe (814) Pakistani Businessman

17
Local perceptions of difference do asylum
seekers fit in

• Other asylum seekers can be wary of new asylum
  seekers coming in because they are worried that
  it may rock their boat (16) local council
• I dont know the answer to that. I havent got my
  ears to the grass roots of Normanton and Peartree
  (219) religious research centre
• You think things are OK and you have very good
  friends, its nice, everything is perfect and you
  are happy then suddenly you are walking on the
  street and someone approaches you bad word
  because you are a foreigner (521) refugee leader
• You kind of like to think that if people have had
  experience of you know, people from different
  cultures, they might be more likely to you knowI
  really couldnt say, it concerns individuals
  (66) charity/media
• I welcome them because I mean, being an immigrant
  myself, I think I had experience of you know,
  thats where you can be from time to time so you
  should help them (717) Sikh dignitary
• I think the people in Normanton do a lot better
  than the people outsideI know a lot of Kurdish
  lads yeh, and they are doing so well for
  themselves (818) Pakistani businessman
• They felt Derby was quite welcoming overall of
  asylum seekers and instances of hostility were
  few (notes) (93) NASS