The Local Dimension of Migration Policymaking: (IMISCOE Reports)

This book prompts a fresh look on immigrant integration policy. Revealing just where immigrants and their receiving societies interact everyday, it shows how societal inclusion is administered and produced at a local level. The studies presented focus on three issue areas of migration policy - citizenship, welfare services and religious diversity - and consider cities in very different national contexts. Spanning Switzerland, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands and Canada, the cases display great variety in their theoretical and methodological approaches. In all the countries considered, we see that the local level has an undeniable relevance despite differences in state structures, models of integration and centre-peripheral relations. Particularly for future migration policy research, such a complex comparative exercise thus yields an important universal realisation: the local dimension of migration policymaking matters. This title is available in the OAPEN Library - http://www.oapen.org.

Table of Contents:
Contents - 6 Introduction - 10 1. Naturalisation politics in Switzerland: explaining rejection rates at the local level - 34 2. Grassroots multiculturalism in Italy: Milan, Bologna and Naples compared - 58 3. Young immigrants' low participation in the German vocational training system: how local actors in Munich and Frankfurt/Main try to make a difference - 86 4. Local policies concerning unemployment among immigrant youth in Amsterdam and in Berlin: towards strategic replacement and pragmatic accommodation - 110 5. Managing religious pluralism in Canadian cities: mosques in Montreal and Laval - 136 Conclusion: making sense of local migration policy arenas - 162 List of contributors - 198

About the Author :
Tiziana Caponio is researcher at the University of Turin, and research associate at the Forum Internazionale ed Europeo di Ricerche sull'Immigrazione (FIERI) in Turin. Maren Borkert is research officer at the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) in Vienna.

Review :
IMISCOE has produced yet another timely book on some of the most pressing social issues of our times. This is a highly reliable guide to understanding the challenges associated with large scale immigration to Europe, the diversity that it is introducing to Europe's cities, and the tensions that it poses for governments to resolve. Dr. Howard Duncan, Executive Head, Metropolis Project "Caponio and Borkert have assembled a very valuable collection of contributions dealing with the crucial issue of local dimension of integration policies in Europe and beyond. They deal with a variety of topics from grassroots multiculturalism to the local management of religious pluralism in cities to try to make sense of the specific role of local authorities in promoting integration in diverse societies. This is a very refreshing collective effort." Marco Martiniello, FRS-FNRS and CEDEM-UNiversity of Liege, Belgium "Migration scholars have finally discovered the importance of local policymaking. This book convincingly shows that scholars should take the local level seriously and not just focus on national models of immigrant integration. It paves the way for more systematic comparison across cities in different national contexts." Dirk JACOBS, professor in sociology, Universite Libre de Bruxelles "Contemporary immigration is an urban phenomenon, but most comparative research on immigration in Europe has compared countries, not cities. _The Local Dimension of Migration Policymaking_ begins to fill this gap, and does so admirably by examining local policymaking and implementation in areas as diverse as youth employment and religious accommodation. Balancing deep, local knowledge with thoughtful attention to the wider political, social and cultural context, this book will appeal to scholars and practitioners alike." Irene Bloemraad, Associate Professor of Sociology, University of California, Berkeley