Post-Colonial Journeys: Historical Roots of Immigration and Integration

The effect of Italian colonialism on migration to Italy differed according to the pre-colonial social structure, a factor previously neglected by immigration theories. In Eritrea, precolonial Christianity, sharp class distinctions, and a strong state promoted interaction between colonizers and colonized. Eritrean nationalism emerged against Ethiopia; thus, no sharp break between Eritreans and Italians emerged. Two outgrowths of colonialism, the Eritrean national movement and religious ties, facilitate immigration and integration. In contrast, in Somalia, there was no strong state, few class differences, the dominant religion was Islam, and nationalists opposed Italian rule. Consequently, Somali developed few institutional ties to colonial authorities and few institutions provided resources to immigrants. Thus, Somali immigrants are few and are not well integrated into Italian society. * Direct all correspondence to Rebecca Jean Emigh, Department of Sociology, 264 Haines Hall, Box 951551, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1551; e-mail: [email protected]. ucla.edu. We would like to thank Caroline Brettell, Roger Waldinger, and Roy Pateman for their helpful comments. Chase Langford made the map. A version of this paper was presented at the Tenth International Conference of Europeanists, March 1996. Grants from the Center for German and European Studies at the University of California, Berkeley and the UCLA Faculty Senate supported this research. Comparative Sociology, Volume 1, issue 2 Ó 2002 Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden