Publication date:
27 February 2014Length of book:
178 pagesPublisher
Lexington BooksISBN-13: 9780739149485
The New Minorities of Europe: Social Cohesion in the European Union argues that while the EU currently faces economic issues, it is pressed with larger questions and potential problems due to the backlash against those who move freely inside the union. It uses the intra-EU migrants, particularly the Polish community who moved post-2004 into Britain and to a lesser extent Ireland, as the case through which to examine these issues. The book argues that the traditional definitions of minorities and migrants are no longer valid in the EU and we should look at all groups collectively through a continuum of social cohesion based on their ability to access rights. The book traces the development of free movement in the EU, the movement of the intra-EU migrants, and the challenges and growing chilly climate they and other non-EU immigrants face across Europe. The book concludes with a proposal for the development of a High Commission on Social Cohesion in the European Union similar to the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities who could use Quiet Diplomacy to try to work with minority groups in all their forms and the EU member states to address these issues.
Johns deals with migration into and within the European Community and its economic and social consequences. After summarizing the phases of European integration, he discusses the challenges of immigration to European society. He distinguishes between indigenous and 'new' minorities, and between 'internal' and external immigrants, the former coming from member countries of the EU, and the latter from elsewhere. This mixture presents a challenge to 'social cohesion,' which is defined as an approach to bringing these communities together to face common problems. Much of the discussion is focused on the internal immigrants, who have benefited from the freedom of movement provided by the Schengen Agreement and from the fact that they possess rights as European citizens. These minorities include not only immigrants but indigenous ethnic communities, among them autonomist separatists, who are regarded as 'new minorities.' Much attention is devoted to Polish immigrants, including the proverbial 'Polish plumbers,' who compete for jobs with indigenous workers, and to the Roma, who are often subjected to mistreatment. The book discusses a number of issues associated with the presence of these minorities, such as discrimination, xenophobia, and the growth of anti-immigrant extreme-right movements. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate, research, and professional collections.