Migrant Participation in Local European Democracies: Understanding Social Capital through Social Movement Analysis

Abstract

Social capital is examined within the framework of responses to non-European Union immigration in four European cities: Lille and Toulouse, in France, and Florence and Bari, in Italy. Analysis of variations in immigrant participation in local party politics and nongovernmental organizations indicates that social capital is not a monolithic construct and qualitative differences must be included in the analysis if the role of social capital is to be understood. Social movement analysis is used to explain these differences, by examining the presence and autonomy of immigrant social-movement entrepreneurs, the character of local political opportunity structures in which these elites act, and the cultural framework that significantly influences local integration regimes.RESUMENSe analiza el capital social en el contexto de las respuestas a la inmigracion que no proviene de la Unión Europea en cuatro ciudades europeas: Lille y Toulouse, en Francia, y Florencia y Bari, en Italia. El análisis de las variaciones en la participación de los inmigrantes en la política de los partidos políticos locales y en las organizaciones no gubernamentales indica que el capital social no es una construcción monolítica y que para entender su papel se deben incluir las diferencias cualitativas. El análisis de los movimientos sociales se usa para explicar estas diferencias al examinar la presencia y la autonomía de los empresarios del movimiento social inmigrante, el carácter de las estructuras de oportunidad política local en los que estas élites actúan y el marco cultural que influye significativamente en los regímenes de integración local.

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Keywords

• international migration
• social capital
• immigration policy
• France
• Italy

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References

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