Culture and immigration in context: an ethnography with Romanian migrant workers in London

Abstract

In recent years, increased political attention has been drawn to the issue of immigration to the UK. For some, their motives to be in the UK are associated with 'organised crime' networks, begging and claiming various welfare benefits. In contrast to the belief that migrants are a 'risk' to British society and have put significant pressure on the British health and social system, Briggs and Dobre debunk these thin accusations to provide a more humane and realistic account of Romanian economic migrants and their life in the UK. Their focus is to place immigration in its historical and political economic context by examining the cultural and structural barriers which the Romanian labour force face when they come to work in London.

Culture and Immigration in Context acts as a critique to the dominant, economic-modelled field of migrant studies by offering an ethnographic lens which is social, political and subjective in its vista to reveal the lived experience of Romanian migrant workers in Britain who have left the debt and corruption of their home life in the hope of finding something better in Britain.