Alice, Casey, Imogen, Paris, Seb Immigration, multiculturalism, imperialism, post-imperialism, post-colonial Alice, Casey, Imogen, Paris, Seb

Definitions Immigration – the action of coming to live permanently in a foreign country. Multiculturalism – the coexistence of diverse cultures, where culture includes racial, religious and cultural groups. Imperialism – a policy of extending a country’s power or influence through colonisation or use of military force. Post-imperialism / Colonialism – the human consequences of external control and economic exploitation of a native and its lands. Post-colonial writer – writers from colonised countries that often address the problems of decolonisation of a country, especially problems relating to political and cultural independence.

Groups of people who have moved to Britain since 1945 Polish: Post WWII, a considerable amount of people from Soviet-controlled territories settled into Britain, like Poles and Ukrainians. In the 1951 census, the Polish-born population of the UK rose up from 44,642 in 1931 to 162,339. India: After India had gained independence in 1947, large numbers of them moved to the UK. 60,000 had moved to the UK by 1955 and had gone into the textile/factory industry or drove buses. Later arrivals opened up corner shops or ran post offices. Indian immigrant numbers peaked between 1965 and 1972 due to Idi Amin's sudden decision to expel all 50,000 Gujarati Indians from Uganda. After this, around 30,000 Ugandan Asians migrated to the UK. Hungary: After the Hungarian Revolution in 1956, 20,990 moved to the UK. Jamaica: 92.1% of Jamaicans are descended from Sub-Saharan Africans who were brought over as slaves by the British. Post-war Britain suffered from labour shortages so 492 Jamaicans were invited to the country to work. Many more followed as the steady flow of Jamaicans to the UK was maintained due to the continuing labour shortage and between 1955 and 1968, 191,330 Jamaicans settled in the UK. Pakistan: After the war Pakistani migrants found employment in the textile industries of Lancashire, Yorkshire, Manchester and Bradford, cars and engineering factories in the West Midlands, and Birmingham, and growing light industrial estates in Luton and Slough. Bangladesh: People living in Bangladesh fled from the civil unrest in their homeland, to seek a better life in Britain during the 1970 civil war between East and West. Sri Lanka: During the 1960s and 70s, small numbers of professionals immigrated to the UK from Sri Lanka and found work in the NHS and other white-collar occupations. These early migrants came from affluent backgrounds, were well-educated and have become established in British society. The next distinctive phase of Sri Lankan migration to the UK occurred from the 1980s onwards, during the civil war in Sri Lanka; these migrants were from less affluent background. 70% of people of Sri Lankan origin live in London, 20% in the Midlands and the rest in other parts of the UK. Many have found employment in small businesses, including grocery shops and newsagents, with increasing numbers setting up their own business.

How has migration been problematic and resulted in conflict? Notting Hill race riots: Series of racially motivated riots that took place in Notting Hill, England, 30 August – 5 September 1958. The end of the Second World War had seen a marked increase in West Indian migrants to Britain. By the 1950s, white working-class "Teddy Boys" were beginning to display hostility towards black families in the area, stemming from organisations urging people to “Keep Britain White”. A mob of 300 to 400 white people, many of them Teddy Boys, attacked the houses of West Indian residents. The disturbances, rioting and attacks continued every night until 5 September. The Metropolitan Police Service arrested more than 140 people, mostly white youths but also many black people found carrying weapons. Enoch Powell’s 1968 speech: The Conservative Enoch Powell made a speech attacking the government's immigration policy. He said that Britain had to be mad to allow in 50,000 immigrants each year. He compared it to watching a nation busily engaged in heaping up its own funeral pyre, and called for an immediate reduction in immigration and to encourage those already in the UK to return home.

Riots in Toxteth in 1981: This came from long-standing tensions between the local police and the black community. The Merseyside police force had a poor reputation within the black community for stopping and searching young black men in the area, and being heavy handed when arresting. Disturbance erupted into full-scale rioting, with pitched battles between police and youths in which petrol bombs and paving stones were thrown, and the police fired gas grenades to disperse the crowds. In all, the rioting lasted nine days during which 468 police officers were injured, 500 people were arrested, and at least 70 buildings were damaged so severely by fire that they had to be demolished. A second wave of rioting saw police attacked with missiles and a number of cars being set alight. 26 officers were injured. The Merseyside Police drove vans at high speed into the crowds to disperse them. Oldham 2001 riots: They were violent riots involving the use of petrol bombs, bricks, bottles and more by up to 500 Asian youths as they battled against riot police. At least 20 people were injured in the riots, including fifteen officers, and 37 people were arrested.

Hate crime in 2016 Race hate crimes on UK railways have risen by 37% in the past five years. British transport police logged an average of 5.5 incidents a day in 2015 across England, Wales, Scotland and London underground. One in four in the UK have seen racial hate crime in the past year. Police recorded a 57% rise in hate crime following the Brexit vote. Incidents of anti-Muslim abuse went up by 326% in 2015. This was most commonly attacks towards Muslim women wearing Islamic garments, from young white males.

How have immigrant groups formed close communities and established a strong sense of their own culture and history? How has multiculturalism positively benefitted the UK? There are lots of different shops/restaurants/areas designated to people of different cultures and parts of the world, furthermore museums include historical events from lots of different parts of the world. Also, many housing areas designated to migrants are very secluded and only have those from their own culture living there, therefore the sense of their own culture will be very strong there. Immigrants may make close friends with one another ensuring that their sense of community is strengthened. Multiculturalism has benefited the UK by breaking down the borders of stigma surrounding immigrants, people have become more tolerant and may even celebrate how diverse our country is now. Furthermore, it has encouraged more people to explore the world as they've had a sense of other cultures and so want to experience these more by visiting other counties. We have a bigger range of types of food, shops, music in our cities therefore making them more exciting and interesting to visit.

Immigration authors: Andrea Levy An English novelist, born in London to Jamaican parents who sailed to England on the Empire Windrush in 1948. She is primarily of Afro-Jamaican descent. Her first novel, the semi-autobiographical “Every Light in the House Burnin’” is the story of a young girl, the child of Jamaican migrants. Her second novel “Never Far from Nowhere” is about two sisters of Jamaican parentage growing up in London in the 1960’s and 70’s. The text focuses specifically on the physical differences between the sisters in terms of skin colour, eye colour and hair type, that causes them to be treated differently by British people. The novel was long listed for the Orange Prize. After its publication , Levy visited Jamaica for the first time to learn about her family. “Fruit of the Lemon” set in England and Jamaica in the Thatcher era. “Small Island” (2004) is set in 1948. One of its strongest themes is war and its casualties who suffer psychologically as well as physically. The other major theme is of racial discrimination and of the challenges faced by migrants.

Hani Kureishi A British playwright, screenwriter, filmmaker and novelist of Pakistani descent. Kureishi was born in Britain to his Pakistani father and British mother. His father was from a wealthy family, most of whose members moved to Pakistan after the Partition of British India. The Partition of India was the partition of the British empire that led to the creation of states to later include Pakistan and Bangladesh. Most of his texts are assumed to be semi-autobiographical, for example, his novel “Intimacy” revolved around the story of a man leaving his wife and two young sons after feeling rejected from them. It was published shortly after Kureishi left his wife.

Monica Ali A Bangladeshi-born British writer and novelist. She was born in Bangladesh to a Bangladeshi father and British mother. Her family moved to Bolton, England when she was three years old. “Brick Lane” follows the life of a Bangladeshi woman who moves to London at age 18. The novel explores her adaptation to life in the community. Apposed the British Government’s attempt the introduce the Racial and Religious Hatred Act which made it an offense to incite violence towards a person on grounds of their race or religion.

Salman Rushdie A British Indian novelist. He was born in Bombay, then British India into a Muslim family. His work is concerned with the migrations between Eastern and Western civilisations. His fourth novel “The Satanic Verses” (1988) was a subject of controversy as many Muslims accused him of unbelief and blasphemy. The Supreme Leader of Iran made a call for assassination against him. The British Government put him under police protection. His father adopted the name Rushdie in honour of Averroes- a medieval Andalusian polymath. The Satanic Verses was banned in many countries that have a large Muslim population. In 2010 he was named on Al Qaeda’s hit list.