Few phenomena have been more disruptive to West European politics and society than the accumulative experience of post-WWII immigration. Against this backdrop spring two questions: Why have the immigrant-receiving states historically permitted high levels of immigration? To what degree can the social and political fallout precipitated by immigration be politically managed? Utilizing evidence from a variety of sources, this study explores the links between immigration and the surge of popular support for anti-immigrant groups; its implications for state sovereignty; its elevation to the policy agenda of the European Union; and its domestic legacies. It argues that post-WWII migration is primarily an interest-driven phenomenon that has historically served the macroeconomic and political interests of the receiving countries. Moreover, it is the role of politics in adjudicating the claims presented by domestic economic actors, foreign policy commitments, and humanitarian norms that creates a permissive environment for significant migration to Western Europe.

Shows how liberal states reconcile the migration trilemma which has pitted markets, rights and security against each other since 9/11.

Examines the different types of migration that have occurred in Europe since the last war, concentrating on long-distance moves since these are arguably the ones of most significance for the balance of a regional population distribution.

This was previously published as a special issue of Journal of Ethnic & Migration Studies. How do states in Western Europe deal with the challenges of migration for citizenship? The legal relationship between a person and a state becomes increasingly blurred in a mobile and transnational world. This volume deals with the membership dimension of citizenship and specifically with the formal rules that states use to attribute citizenship. These nationally specific rules determine how and under which conditions citizenship is attributed by states to individuals: how one can acquire formal citizenship status, but also how it can be lost. We observe six trends in citizenship policies since the early 1980s. First, we observe a trend toward completing the equal treatment of women and men with regard to descent-based citizenship attribution. Second, there is a process of convergence between countries with ius soli and ius sanguinis traditions with regard to birthright provisions. Third, the increasing acceptance of multiple citizenship is reflected in a dual trend to abolish or moderate the renunciation of the citizenship of origin as a condition for naturalisation and also to abolish or restrict provisions of loss of citizenship due to voluntary acquisition of a foreign citizenship. Fourth, many countries have introduced language tests and integration conditions in the naturalisation procedure and some countries are now also concluding the naturalisation process by means of a US-styled citizenship ceremony. Fifth, states increasingly take the principle of avoiding statelessness into account into their citizenship laws. Finally, we see that states start to take membership of the European Union into account in their citizenship laws. Chapters in this volume discuss both these broad trends across Western Europe, analyzing historical patterns and recent change, as well as specific developments in individual countries.

Migration to new destinations in Europe and the United States has expanded dramatically over the past few decades. Within these destinations, there is a corresponding greater variety of ethnic, cultural, and/or religious diversity. This timely volume, The Politics of New Immigrant Destinations, considers the challenges posed by this proliferation of diversity for governments, majority populations, and immigrants. The contributors assess the effectiveness of the policy and political responses that have been spawned by increasing diversity in four types of new immigrant destinations: intermediate destination countries Ireland and Italy; culturally distinct regions experiencing new migration such as Catalonia in Spain or the American South; new destinations within traditional destination countries like the state of Utah and rural towns in England; and early migration cycle countries including Latvia and Poland. The Politics of New Immigrant Destinations examines how these new destinations for immigrants compare to traditional destinations, with respect to their policy responses and success at integrating immigrants, offering perspectives from both immigrants and natives. Contributors include: Dace Akule, AmadoAlarcon, Rhys Andrews, Francesca Campomori, Tiziana Caponio, Scott Decker, Erica Dobbs, Melissa M. Goldsmith, Aleksandra Grzymala-Kazlowska, Claudio A. Holzner, Magdalena Lesinska, Paul Lewis, Helen B. Marrow, Laura Morales, Katia Pilati, Marie Provine, Monica Varsanyi, and the editors. "

Includes statistics.