Workshop on "Paths of integration: similarities and differences in the settlement process of immigrants in Europe, 1880-2000"
Call for papers
Background
The integration of immigrants in the United States has interested migration scholars already for a century. In the 1990s an interesting and heated discussion emerged about the question, if and to what extent the 'new' post 1965 immigration to the U.S. will lead to similar integration and assimilation processes as in the case of the equally massive immigration from Southern and Eastern Europe between 1880-1920. So far this debate, admirable summarised by Nancy Foner in her book From Ellis Island to JFK, has had virtually no resonance in Europe. Although migration research in the old world across the disciplines has made considerable progress in the last decades, the canyon separating historians and social scientists working on migration is much deeper and communication even more sparing than in the American case. As most European states experienced immigration from the end of the 19th century onwards, however, the issues and questions raised in the US-debate are relevant for Europe as well and it is high time to organise this discussion by bringing together migration-specialists from both the social sciences and the historical discipline.
By organising a well-structured workshop we aim at stimulating scholarly discussions on this topic and hope to deepen our understanding of integration processes both in the past and in the present. Of utmost importance is the systematic comparison of past and present integration processes and therefore bringing together historians and social scientists around similar themes and paradigms. We are interested in papers on social mobility, ethnicity, intermarriage, migrant organisations, transnationalism and opportunity structures of receiving societies. Comparisons in time and space are especially welcomed.
Organisation
The workshop is an initiative of the Institut für Migration und Interkulturelle Studien (IMIS) of the University of Osnabrück and the Center for the History of Migrants (CGM), an interdisciplinary joint venture of the Universiteit van Amsterdam, Leiden University, Nijmegen University and the International Institute of Social History (IISH) in Amsterdam.
Applications
The papers will be discussed in a small, high quality 2-days workshop with maximum 20 people. Papers will be distributed before the conference. Those interested are asked to send abstracts of 500 words on themes that relate directly to a position paper which will be published on the websites of both the IMIS (www.imis.uni-osnabrueck.de) and the CGM (www.iisg.nl/CGM). After the deadline of the abstracts (November 1 2002) the organisers will select the most interesting proposals and invite the authors to the workshop in June 2003. In principle all travel (economy, 2nd class) and accommodation costs will be covered by the organisation. Afterwards the papers that fit in the overall problematique will be published in an English language edited volume.
Time schedule
The conference will take place in Osnabrück from 19-21 June 2003. The deadline for applications and abstracts is November 1 2002. The deadline for the papers (6,000-9,000 words) is April 1 2003. For further information, please contact Leo Lucassen (l.lucassen@hum.uva.nl), Klaus J. Bade or Jochen Oltmer (joltmer@ometecutli.rz.Uni-Osnabrueck.de).