CfP: Workshop “The Contestation of Immigration, Ethnic Diversity and Citizenship” – The Annual Conference of the Dutch and Belgian Political Science Associations

The Contestation of Immigration, Ethnic Diversity and Citizenship – The Annual Conference of the Dutch and Belgian Political Science Associations

Workshop Chairs: Christof Roos (Vrije Universiteit Brussel) and Costica Dumbrava, (Maastricht University)

In most European countries mainstream political parties and the general society seem to have accepted the fact that they have become immigration countries over the past four decades. Governments have sought to actively define and manage their immigrant population by imposing distinct entry and residence conditions for particular groups of migrants (refugees, family migrants, types of labour migrants). In many countries of destination integration policies targeted immigrants’ social wellbeing and their economic performance. A series of reforms of citizenship laws relaxed provisions on dual citizenship mainly in order to ensure the smooth integration of immigrants. European countries politically and legally adapt to ever more diverse and globalized European societies.

However, immigration is not without contestation. New social movements are forming that oppose  religious  and  ethnic  diversity;  populist  political  parties  reinforce  anti-immigrant attitudes. These phenomena prompt questions such as: To what extent can we observe a ‘new’ mobilisation against immigration and immigrants’ rights? Are current phenomena different from the electoral success of radical right anti-immigrant parties in the 1990s and 2000s? What are the actors behind the new anti-immigrant mobilisation? What vision of society do they promote? What are their alternatives to cultural and ethnic diversity? What are the political and legal responses of the EU and of national and local actors to the current wave of anti-immigrant mobilisation?

The organizers welcome contributions from senior and junior researchers who work on issues related to current contestations of immigration policy, ethnic diversity and citizenship policies. The panel is open to different perspectives and to various methodologies; e.g. comparative political science, sociology, political theory.

If you would like to submit a paper proposal please submit a maximum of one page to the chairs of the workshop at christof.roos@vub.ac.be and c.dumbrava@maastrichtuniversity.nl by the 20th of March 2015.

Conference website.