Posted on: 29 September 2011
The Minister for Children, Frances FitzGerald, launched a book ‘Where To from Here? Inter-ethnic Relations among Children in Ireland’ by four authors attached to the School of Social Work and Social Policy at Trinity College Dublin. The authors are Philip Curry, Robbie Gilligan, Lindsey Garratt and Jennifer Scholtz.
Migration into Ireland is one of the biggest demographic changes to affect Irish society since the famine. This book reports on social relations between migrant and local children and offers a unique perspective on the migration experience.
It is based on the largest qualitative study of inter-ethnic relations among Irish primary school children to date. In total, 330 migrant and local children from seven schools in Dublin North Inner city took part in intensive child-centred research. The results have resonances nationally as well as in Dublin’s North Inner-City.
Beyond obvious differences of language and culture, migrant and local children often differ in social values, attitudes to education, home life and the very experience of migration itself. Warm friendships can exist between migrant and local children and opportunities for interaction often occur. However a characteristic feature of social interaction between migrant and local children is separateness, a desire among the children to stay with what is familiar and to avoid social contact with other cultural groups. It is argued in the book that this phenomenon is crucial for understanding the nature and future of inter-ethnic relations among children in Ireland.
More powerful forms of hostility also occur. Local children exhibit negative stereotypical beliefs about foreign countries and in some cases prejudiced beliefs about migrants. Racial bullying is clearly identifiable as an issue for many migrant children. Racism occurs both in and out of school. This usually takes the form of ethnic name calling, but can also involve physical assault.
The book seeks to address the question ‘Where to from here?’ both in terms of social policy and in regard to the likely futures for the children who took part in this research. It is argued that there are tough issues to be faced but no easy answers. Progress will depend upon commitment to a realistic process for generating solutions and being open to evaluating their effectiveness.
Published in association with the Children’s Research Centre, Trinity College Dublin and Liffey Press, the content of this book is the subject of a national knowledge exchange exercise targeted at primary schools which focuses specifically on the issue of racism (funded by IRCHSS).
