Transcript UK Polonia 2006

60 Years On: Polish Migration to
the UK
Conference
Polish Embassy
17th May 2006
Teresa Staniewicz, University of Warwick,
The UK National Focal Point for the EUMC
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://go.warwick.ac.uk/raxen
1
Throughout history (regional as well as
national) Polish culture has been immersed
in concepts of self sufficiency and social
etiquette, to the point of honour. Such
traits, although not exclusive to Poles, are
seen to embody a sense of ‘Polishness’
(Gorka, 1942; Braito, 1988; etc.).
‘Polish’ Characteristics
Fiercely Nationalistic
Status competition: very driven
Proud: very independent
2
The Past Informs the Future
History informs us about the past, which we are
often seen to draw on, in order to speculate about
the future.
Today, I shall draw on the development of the
post-WWII Polish community (Polonia) as an
appropriate springboard for a more
productive analysis of the many Poles, and
their respective experiences, who have
arrived to the UK since May 2004, and clearly
will continue to do so.
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Introduction
Today’s migrants from Europe appear to have
unprecedented access and the freedom, as
never before, to forge new lives, both
temporary and permanent, in those countries
willing to receive them.
I will illustrate some of the varied experiences
that post-Accession Polish migrants have
been having, as their ethnicity intersects with
the endemic nature of racism in British
society. This raises the obvious question:
How successful are they in accessing ‘routes’
towards equitable integration?
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Introduction……2
This presentation has two main strands.
1) It draws on the developed nature of the
established Polish community (or,
Polonia) in the UK. Often forgotten as
an ethnic minority, the result of the
racially essentialist notion that: White
migrants are assumed to have
assimilated totally into a ‘British’ way of
life; and one which is embraced to the
exclusion of all other (previous) ways
of life or, cultural identities.
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Introduction……3
2) It presents the underlying racisms in place in the
UK (mirrored in other EU member-states), which
directly impact on the lived experiences of postAccession Poles in the UK. Such forms of
discrimination feed directly into discourses
surrounding ‘freedom of movement’, new forms of
social / spatial mobility, & may indeed impact on
further changes in immigration policies.
There are therefore, broad comparisons to be
made between the experiences had by Poles
arriving 60 years ago, and those arriving here
since 2004.
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Data on 2nd generation Poles. The higher
educational achievement for male & female
Poles, point towards the influence of the
(Polish) parent’s view of education as a route
to success – underpinning extant literature
(both in the UK and US) on the persistence
of status competition as a cultural element in
the make-up of ‘being Polish’. However, for
some - regardless of their successes - their
ethnicity was to be seen as a ‘ barrier’ to
Britishness (by non-Poles) across a range of
areas in their lives.
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Figure 1: ‘O’ levels - 2nd Generation Poles
Total overall proportions with ‘O’ levels were 90% for UK
Poles, and 48% for comparable GHS data.
[Table 10.3, p.222, General Household Survey, (GHS),1994]
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Polish female
GHS female
Polish male
GHS male
'o' Level Attainment
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FIGURE 2: ‘A’ Levels – 2nd Generation Poles
My UK sample’s figure for overall ‘A’ Level attainment was
73.5%. and 16.75% for comparable GHS data.
[Table 10.1, p.222, General Household Survey, (GHS) 1994]
80
70
60
50
Polish females
GHS females
Polish males
GHS males
40
30
20
10
0
'A' Level Attainment
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FIGURE 3: Degree Levels – 2nd Generation Poles
My UK sample’s figure for overall Degree attainment was 41.3%,
and 15.25% for comparable GHS data [GHS samples, 1991]
45
40
35
30
Polish females
GHS females
Polish males
GHS males
25
20
15
10
5
0
Degree level Attainment
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Racial Discrimination – Ongoing
1st Gen Poles: overall figure for self-reported racism was 75%,
2nd Gen Poles: overall figure for self-reported racism was 43%
80
70
60
1st Gen Poles
50
40
2ND Gen
Females
2nd Gen Males
30
20
10
0
Self-reported Racism
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Real Lived Experience of Racism – from the WME Perspective 1
(WME=White Minority Ethnic)
The following quotations are from a second-generation female
respondent:
"It seems, because I am white, people don't believe that I can
also be racially abused“
The respondent went on to say:
“They - the English - go on about how fair they are, but it's all
rubbish. They hate you for being different, they hate you for doing
better than them at school, they hate you for working hard whilst all
they do is go to the pub every night. They have made me conscious
of myself as a Pole, and they have made me as racist as they are.
………... I don't let on that I'm Polish when I go out, but at home, it's
different … I can be Polish without the need for public displays.”
•
•
UK 2nd Gen No.22/BPP/F
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Real Lived Experience of Racism – the WME Perspective 2
One male classified himself as a British Pole, yet did not
Identify with the formal or public aspects of the community, just
observed the ‘dual matrix’ in terms of ethnic identity.
"I know it's because of my being Polish that I am
treated differently, you know, not like everyone else. I
never get the shift I want, unless I change with
someone else….My supervisor hates anyone who isn't
English – black or white”.
UK 2nd Gen No.27/BPP/M
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The Integration of Poles into British Society (1)
It is clear from these academic results, that Poles
can be seen as having integrated successfully by
the 2nd generation. After all, education is a central
plank of the Government’s attempts to create a more
cohesive society. But at whom is this aimed?
What is a lesser known fact, is that because of the nature of
the construction of ‘British ‘identity, Poles (as well as all
non-indigenous British, other 2nd/3rd generations),
continue to be viewed as, the ‘Other’. Even though
successful, far from being immune to the tentacles of
racist rhetoric, Poles are found to be just as susceptible,
but in contextually differing ways.
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The Integration of Poles into British Society (2)
The ‘British Imperial’ legacy, has faithfully served to
perpetuate racisms in everyday discourse, where the
sedimentation of (our) racialised understandings of the
‘Other’ (originally slaves form the Caribbean; then, the
Windrush generation, along with DPs and exiles; postSolidarity Poles; and, more recently Kosovans).
Lets not forget the Roma, the EU ‘whipping boy’, vilified by
so many different ‘so-called enlightened’ nation-states.
All have individuals within their ethnic group who will find
resonance with what is means to be discriminated
against on the basis of cultural difference. Within these
parameters therefore, decisions are made based on
which elements of their ethnicity are to be maintained.
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The Integration of Poles into British Society (3)
Well before 4th May 2004, the media started the latest
campaign. Newspapers instigated moral panics with
the ferocity of their hardly impartial editorials: ‘Floods
of migrants taking our jobs’.
The Sun claimed that it would be 'tens of thousands'.
The Sunday Times predicted 100,000. The Express
announced that 1.6 million are 'ready to flood in'. In
the newspapers' numbers game, no amount of
exaggeration is excessive - but any amount of
immigration is too much. Before long, every story
about imminent migration discussed Polish migrants.
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The Integration of Poles into British Society (4)
In Poland the run-up to Accession was no better:
The promise of better job and lives was projected
beyond reason, by both the media and the pro EU
politicians in Poland. A misleading headline in a
leading Polish national daily paper, Gazeta
Wyborcza, read ‘Half a million jobs await Poles in
the UK’. This was published in April 2004, and with
great certainty, such articles can be seen in some
ways to be culprits in sending thousands of
desperate Poles to the UK, and creating a ‘braindrain’ for Poland. News articles are already
circulating about the ‘invasion’ of non A8 migrants
from Romania and Bulgaria.
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Comparisons Between Past and Present Migrations
I wish now to turn to the broad comparisons to be made
between the experiences had by Poles arriving 60
years ago, and those arriving here since 2004.
Today’s migrants under discussion are generally not,
to use Adrian Favell’s term - Eurostars. These Poles are not
in a position to transfer their unique set of skills across
borders within the EU’s ever expanding transnational
space, with a minimum of effort. The Poles being
discussed here, are clearly not moving freely in the
promised / anticipated way. There is need for an
overarching framework which ‘maps’ movement of
migrants and their skills to better match them to the
job opportunities in the UK.
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Post-war: These Polish males were in positions of
disadvantage in the labour market, and were
vying for jobs from a substantially weakened
position. Often, the 1st generation suffered
déclassment as a result of the Polish Diaspora,
due to status incongruity. Culturally, it was very
strongly felt to impact on how the family back
home was perceived.
Post 2004: stories indicate that Poles return to
Poland and mislead family / friends about their
alleged success, for fear of shame on families.
This has led to more Poles arriving to the UK
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Post-war: The media of the day launched frequent
xenophobic attacks on Poles in the newspapers,
once in the UK. Also reports of racist attacks were
recorded [See Zubrzycki, 1956, Sword, 1989]
Post 2004: The Pole has become the de facto face of
post-Accession migration. The ‘Polish plumber’ has
now entered the daily lexicon in conveying negative
notions about ‘foreigners’ = Poles (taking local jobs,
at much lower rates). Other recent examples:
1) The Sunday Times, page 18, 14/05/2006
“Anthony Worrell Thompson, the celebrity chef,
blamed poor restaurant service on eastern European
(Poles) waiters, who struggle with the language.”
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Post 2004: racist media reporting, cont./
AWT was subsequently ‘forced’ to retract his
defamatory statement re Polish workers
2) On the BBC 5Live ‘phone-in’ (Sunday
14/0506), listeners complained that Poles
were taking indigenous jobs, due to their
willingness to take a much lower wage (such
as in plumbing) even though their work was
very shoddy. The British worker would lose
out on payment for the whole job, but was
often required to, ‘finish the job, or certify the
work carried out..’
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There is a need for balance here…
This notwithstanding, these experiences are
somewhat tempered by many positive &
supportive stories about new Polish
migrants and serve to confirm, anecdotally,
the high quality of labour Polish workers
are exhibiting (across the UK) in
undertaking any (new) kind of work – even
when over-qualified or new to the job –
and, the pride taken in its completion.
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3) Poles Targeted in Racist Attacks
Regardless of highly publicised reports by the IPPR,
the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, and the TUC to
name but a few, on the overall benefits of Polish (&
other) migrants to the economy generally, there
continues to be a noticeable rise in attacks on
Polish post-Accession migrants, both in NI as well
as on mainland UK.
Media stories, and a lack of concerted effort by the
Government to deal with these migratory flows,
have again fed in to people’s fears about job
losses, lower wages, and general xenophobia.
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There was none of that camaraderie that we had been
led to believe the British would be showing us ….
Instead, we had to fight for everything, the right to be
treated fairly, to live somewhere clean, the right to have
work we wanted and were able to do, the right to
practise our faith, every small right had to be fought for
time and again….Yes, we were treated as an
‘ausländer’.” (Respondent’s own emphasis) 1st Gen
Polish man talking about 1948 treatment arriving in the UK
I heard it would be different in England, everyone I
meet seems hostile to me , I just want to be treated
properly, and to get the right work – clean honest
work, I mean. Why should I have to justify why I am
here, why I like to go to church, what my faith
means to me. Everything I have tried to get is
difficult. Post-Accession Polish man – summer 2005 24
Concluding thoughts……1
Why is revisiting ‘migratory discourse’ crucial
in studying new migrant waves?
because migration is about ‘literal’ exclusion, and
the exclusion of some, impacts, on those who
have already been admitted
it ‘defines the nation’ (Britain), and raises
questions about the legitimacy of migrants’
maintaining ‘ethnic and sub-cultural identities’
(European identity building)
it is often ‘racialised’
Global movements will impact on
im/migration policy in the EU.
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Concluding thoughts……2
Such phenomenal movements globally are
important to track, given that the impact will
be felt at both ends of the migratory route. Some
consideration therefore must also be given to
the impact that the drain of skilled labour will
have on Poland’s economy. There are
anecdotal accounts of advertising campaigns
which recruit en masse, and essentially strip
whole workforce groups in a range of sectors
(shipbuilding, dentists, doctors, etc.) Is this
managed migration – but for whom – the UK
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Concluding thoughts……3
As a 2nd Gen Pole, I find much resonance in Stuart
Hall's (1992) explanation of the concept of ethnic
hybridity, where new generations will necessarily
fashion their own ethnic identity partly from a
mixture of their parent's ethnicity, and partly from
their environment, dependent upon the level of
tolerance towards the practice of such customs,
shown by members of the ‘host’ society
(Cohen,1994). These new Polish migrants may not
be interested in making a home here. New migratory
typologies are being formed as a result of
globalisation, aided by technologies that enable
them to maintain contact, and form transnational
links at the same time. Research is urgently
required to map these new migratory trends. Lets
hope today stimulates the desire for such research.
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