11 December 2017. Public event: ‘Is Scotland different on matters of race and migration?’

Time: 13:00 – 16:00. Lunch from 12:30

Venue: Project Room, 1.06, 50 George Square, Edinburgh, EH8 9JU

Co-hosted with the RSE Young Academy of Scotland and the Association for the Study of Ethnicity and Nationalism

Race and migration are prominent issues in electoral politics and wider public discourse across Europe. Appeals to national identity have explicitly used categories of race in countries as different as Greece, Holland, France, Italy, England and Hungary. Yet while research confirms that race and migration are also features of Scottish social and political life, the topics are ignored in the separate (though related) debates over Scottish nationalism and Scottish Independence. This public event will bring together the latest research from leading experts to consider whether Scotland really is different from neighbouring countries on matters of race and migration, as is often assumed.

What does the data tell us on mass Scottish attitudes? Is ‘Scottishness’ more inclusive then ‘Englishness’? Where do migrants and racial minorities fit into this story and who is narrating it? On these issues how does Scotland compare?

13.00: Nasar Meer. Overview on data and policy

13.30: Emma Hill: Race and migration stories amongst Glasgow Somalis

14.00: Charles Leddy Owen. Nationalism and politics in Portsmouth and England

14.30: Coffee

14.45: Ross Bond. Minorities and national identities: evidence from the 2011 Census

15:15: Sarah Kyambi. Scotland’s migration policy options in a global context

15.45: Alistair Hunter. Closing remarks and ways forward

16.00: Ends.