Immigration: Integration is possible

The University of Manchester’s School of Environment and Development will host the second of its annual lectures on 9 March.

Renowned academic Professor Saskia Sassen, Ralph Lewis Professor of Sociology at the University of Chicago and Centennial Visiting Professor at the London School of Economics, will present ‘Immigrants and Citizens – A new architecture for political membership’. The lecture will take place in Crawford House lecture theatre 1 at 3.30. Professor Sassen is a world authority on globalisation, urbanisation, migration, state sovereignty and cognate issues, and has recently completed a five-year project for UNESCO on sustainable human settlement, for which she set up a network of researchers and activists in more than 50 countries. She will draw upon this research for her lecture.

Professor Sassen’s lecture will focus on immigration, racism and the difficulty of integration. She believes that immigration scares most people, but that we do know how to deal with it, as Europe has been built upon immigration. She commented: “Each phase of European Union enlargement has raised the spectre of mass migrations from poverty to prosperity. Western Europe actually has a history of assimilating millions of immigrants, albeit with difficulty. This historical record suggests Europeans were equally negative about those who today are considered insiders: German and Belgian workers in France, Italians in Germany, and so on.” Professor Sassen argues that in the past we crafted incorporation over decades, but today – when products and services are readily available to tackle just about any problem – the expectation seems to be that, if there is not an instant solution, there is no solution at all.

Professor Jeff Henderson, organiser of the lecture series, commented: “Immigration is once again – in Britain and in many countries across the world – becoming a highly charged political issue. “Professor Sassen provides a refreshing and authoritative point of view on the matter, which is of relevance both to Manchester as a city, and to the UK as a whole – especially in light of the UK’s current pre-election campaign. “The University of Manchester and the School of Environment and Development are honoured to host this authoritative contribution”.

For more information please contact Jo Grady, Media Relations Officer at The University of Manchester on 0161 275 2081 or at jo.grady@manchester.ac.uk, or Andreas Bardelli Danieli, External Affairs Administrator on 0161 275 2815 or at a.bardelli-danieli@manchester.ac.uk.