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Citizenship and diversity:

Citizenship and diversity:. How the UK became a multicultural society. Question:. How to you tell who is a citizen of a country & who is not? Jus solis v. Jus sanguinis as polar types Jus solis: born on the soil (e.g Canada, US, France) Jus sanguinis: blood tie (Germany until recently).

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Citizenship and diversity:

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  1. Citizenship and diversity: How the UK became a multicultural society

  2. Question: • How to you tell who is a citizen of a country & who is not? • Jus solis v. Jus sanguinis as polar types • Jus solis: born on the soil (e.g Canada, US, France) • Jus sanguinis: blood tie (Germany until recently)

  3. UK before WW II • Ethnically & racially homogeneous • Primary differences: • Religion • ‘Nationality’ • Social class • Social class: primary line of cleavage in party system

  4. UK today: • An ethnically diverse society • Of a population of 57.9 million in 1999, about 3.8 million (6.7%) non-white

  5. Transformation Reflects the empire come home: • Post world WW II emigration from “new” commonwealth • Bound up with changing notions of British citizenship

  6. British Citizenship/subjecthood • Initially, anyone born under the British crown – effectively anyone born within confines of the British Empire • Potentially 800 million

  7. 1948 British Nationality Act • Triggered by 1946 Canadian Citizens Act • Defines 6 categories • Citizenship of UK & Colonies • Citizens of Independent Commonwealth countries • Irish British subjects • British subjects without citizenship • British protected persons • Aliens • Presumption: small flow, 10-20,000 per year

  8. Events & issues • 1948 Arrival of the Empire Windthrush, with 500 Jamaicans • 1950s: • rising immigration ~50,000/year • Occasional constituency pressures • Colonial Office tries to discourage migration from new commonwealth • But resists efforts to stem flow • 1958 Nottingham & Notting Hill Riots > pressure for change

  9. 1962 Commonwealth Immigration Act • Distinguishes between citizens of the UK & Commonwealth (CUKC) subject to restriction & those who are not, depending on whether their passports were issued on `authority of London’ or by colonial or commonwealth government • However, allows for family unification • Rising immigration in anticipation of change: 136,000 in 1961-62

  10. From 1962 • Continuing secondary migration as a result of family reunification ( ~50,000 per year) • 1965 Passage of Race Relations Act • 1968 Enoch Powell’s Rivers of Blood Speech (Wolverhampton) • Problems with exclusions • Kenyan Asians – did not take/were denied Kenyan citizenship -- denied entry (Wilson govt’) • Vs. 1972: Ugandan Asians allowed (Heath gov’t)

  11. Commonwealth Immigration of Act 1968 • Require not only passport under authority of London, but also qualifying connection to UK

  12. 1971 Immigration Act • Retain 1948 definitions • Restricts right to reside in the UK to CUKC resident in the UK for 5 years or with grandparent born in the UK (patriality)

  13. British Nationality Act 1981 Provides legal definition of citizenship for Great Britain and Northern Ireland: • British Citizenship • British Dependent Territories Citizenship (BTDC) • British Overseas Citizenship (BOC) Latter two categories lack right to settle in the UK

  14. Interpreting this saga • Attempt to maintain open citizenship with special position both for the Irish & for older commonwealth • From Windthrush, growing concern about unanticipated migration: • Recourse to informal measures: • Press colonial gov’ts to stem tide • Informal queries to police about social problems • Immigration continues, unabated

  15. Conflicting pressures: • Home Office, some MPs (often Labour) want to restrict) • Colonial & later Commonwealth Office, anxious to maintain connections, resist • Eventual restrictions, often tortuous • Restrictions put in place, but paired with Race Relations Act, anti-discrimination legislation • Immigration continues despite further restrictions

  16. UK today • Ethnically & racially diverse • Many citizens – 2nd & 3rd generation • No one single ethnic or national group dominant • Some better off than others • Reluctance to accept asylum-seekers

  17. Racial and ethnic incidents • Occasional unrest • Salmon Rushdie Affair • Murder of Stephen Lawrence

  18. Responses? • Equality and Human Rights Commission ehrc • Acceptance of cultural pluralism • Reluctance to prohibit religious symbolism • But how much? • Acceptance of multiculturalism within common values (Parekh report)? • But need of a new national story

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