Judit Molnár University of & University of Glasgow 2009 The research  American Immigrants –brief history with statistical data  Russian immigrants on the North American Pacific Rim  Preparing for the empirical survey  Reading  Pre-interviews  Questionnaire design and confidentiality statements, permissions, covering letters, publicity  Selecting survey areas, finding respondents  Questionnaire survey  Data analysis  In-depth interviews, observation  Analysis  Results’ summaries Integration and assimilation processes of immigrants (Woltman - Newbold, 2009; Hardwick, 1993)

Segmented assimilation framework

Resources and Nature of Host country Time and spatial characteristics of immigration reception factors immigrants

savings, policy, Period of arrival Voluntary human capital, immigration law, (regional, culture, national Forced level of resources: labor nationality, discrimination, markets, ethnicity, racism religion, economic race, etc. culture, etc. opportunities) Place of resettlement (rural or urban area) Brief history of American immigration with statistical data

picture: http://news.ronatvan.com/2008/02/11/whites-to-become-minority-in-us-by-2050/ Number of foreign born people in the USA 40000000

35000000

30000000

25000000

20000000

15000000

10000000

5000000

0

1910

1930

1850

1870

1950

1970

1920

2010

1880 1940

1980 1860

1900

1960

1890

1990 2000 Immigrants within the whole population of the USA as a percentage 16

14

12

10

8 percent 6

4

2

0 1850 1900 1950 2000 Birthplace of the foreign born population from 1850 to 2007 – I source: US Census Bureau: http://www.census.gov/population/www/documentation/twps0029/tab04.html 12000000

10000000

8000000 Asia 6000000 Caribbean Mexico 4000000 former USSR

2000000

0 1850 1900 1950 2000 Birthplace of the foreign born population from 1850 to 2007 – II source: US Census Bureau: http://www.census.gov/population/www/documentation/twps0029/tab04.html

3000000

2500000

2000000

1500000

1000000

500000

0 1850 1870 1890 1910 1930 1950 1970 1990 2010

Africa Oceania O. C. America

South America North America former USSR Proportion of foreign born people within the whole population by state, 1990 Proportion of foreign born people within the whole population by state, 2000 Proportion of foreign born people within the whole population by state, 2007

Immigration from the former and Russia

Russian population in Washington State

Preparing for the empirical survey Reading

 American immigration

 Integration, segregation

 Russian speaking immigrants Russian Refuge: Religion, Migration, and Settlement on the North American Pacific Rim Susan Wiley Hardwick  have not been typical of other Euroamerican immigrant groups in North America  Russian residential enclaves have been relatively slow to disperse through time – slow assimilation  They had to bear the burden of negative perception  because of Communism  because of the perception that Russia is not truly European  They live and they tend to live in isolated enclaves  because of their religion(Orthodox, , , Molokans, Baptists, Pentacostals)  because of their experience at home (persecution, discrimination, etc.)  Four waves of Russian migration after the first movement to in 1867:  1880-1917  Russians migrated to the Pacific Rim of North America for religious, political, and socioeconomic reasons. Almost 50.000 Russians settled in the region by the beginning of the in 1917.  1917-1945  At the end of the in 1922, thousands who were fleeing the Soviet regime arrived in the US and Canada. A last percentage of them were from the aristocratic classes or were professionals, military officers, Orthodox clergy, and other opposed to the Soviet regime. Most newcomers had to accept employment at the lowest level when they first arrived. There were also many Jews among émigrés who had to left Russia to escape religious and political persecution.  1924: restrictive immigration laws were passed and became effective in 1929. The National Origins Act established the annual immigration quota at 150,000, with total number per country dependent on percentages of population already living in the . These calculations were based on the 1920 census, and the large numbers of Russians had settled in the US after 1922, so the total number of people permitted entry from the Soviet Union was minimized.  1945-1987  A variety of Russian religious groups arrived on the North American Pacific Rime after World War II.  Many Russians lived in China. During the Chinese civil war from 1946 to 1949 tens of thousands of Russians who had been living in China were forced to leave the country. Close to 15,000 Russians were transported to Tubabao, in the Philippines, by the International Refugee Association in May, 1949. Due to the restrictive US immigration laws, Russians could not qualify as immigrants for admission into the US. Senator Knowland sponsored a bill in Congress that expanded the US refugee quota to include Russians. Because of these changes in American immigration restrictions, Russians came to this country in large numbers in 1950-51.  No large scale exodus occurred until the late 1980s from the former Soviet Union.  After 1987  1987 president Gorbachev met with President Reagan: residents of the USSR were free to leave. This announcement triggered the first large scale emigration from the Soviet Union since the early years of the socialist revolution. Surveys

 Interviews  Conversation with immigrants for the reason to design the questionnaire  Questionnaire survey  Among local American residents (who were born in the USA and whose parents were born there too).  Among immigrants from the former USSR Statements, permissions, covering letters, publicity Selecting survey areas

 Using the map, where they are in Washington state  They have tight relationship with religious: visit churches  Many of them are refugees: visit different organisations which support refugees  World relief  Lutheran Community Services  Russian Social Services  Schools – ESL teachers  Russian Cultural groups Preliminary results of the questionnaire survey Our respondents

Respondents Men Women Age /mean 47.3 43.7 Age when they 38.6 35.0 entered / mean

•The average years they have spent in the USA : 9 years •More than 76% of them came directly to this area •More than 84% of them had friends or relatives in this area before they came •More than 71% of them had recieved help to settle down (financial support 75%, and information 50%) •Everyone has friends now in the area where they live •Around 73% of them live in the area where other Russians live •7 months after they entered the US they found a job Their English skills and educations, %

English skills and educations men women Spouses / F Spouses / M No English when they entered 75.0 84.6 55.6 92.9 Good English now 50.0 57.7 44.4 46.2 They had a university degree when 58.3 48.0 66.7 50 they entered the US They did study in the USA 66.7 76.9 They studied at the university / college 25 30 11.1 25.0 They studied in the language school 41.7 34.6 33.3 25.0 They speak with their spouses Russian 83.3 68.0 They speak with their spouses R & E 8.3 24.0 They speak with their kids Russian 58.3 64.3 They speak with their kids R & E 8.3 21.4

•Selective migration – high education standard •More women studied in the USA •Among female respondents they use English at home in their communication with their husbands and children How they feel about Russia, % men women Unfavourable economic circumstances 33.3 11.5 Religious discrimination 0 34.7 Why did they Ethnic discrimination 25.0 30.8 leave Russia? Better economic stiation in the USA 41.7 15.4 Better future for their children 33.3 34.6 Family unification 16.7 19.2

Would they like No 50.0 65.4 to return to Yes 8.3 3.8 Russia? Maybe 41.7 26.9 Relationship, friendship 50.0 19.2

What they like Social life 33.3 19.2 the best in Education / Language 16.7 7.7 Russia? Landscape, environment, climate 8.3 19.2 Food 16.7 3.8 How satisfied they were living in the USA when they first arrived and how they like it now? (scale -10 - +10)

•Improvement since they entered •Gender difference: male respondents like living in the USA better Opinion about the USA, % men women Good career and living standard 41.7 46.2 Learn English 16.7 15.4 Why it is beneficial Religious freedom 8.3 11.5 living in the USA Independence 16.7 7.7 Education system 16.7 7.7

The greatest Language 58.3 69.2 challenges living in Different custom 8.3 15.4 the USA Hard to get the best position 8.3 15.4 General opinion The best 83.3 73.1 about the USA Lots of opportunity (economic, edu.) 33.3 19.2 Mentality of people 33.3 23.1 What they like the Freedom 25 23.1 best in the USA High living standard 8.3 23.1 Tranquility 16.7 11.5 Citizenship, identity men women Russian 50.0 34.6 Their American 33.3 38.5 citizenship Russian and American 8.3 11.5 Russian 58.3 65.4 Their Russian American 0 3.8 national identity No 8.3 7.7 Russian with Jewish roots 16.7 3.8 Only Russians 8.3 15.4 Their friends’ Russians, , other European mixed 8.3 30.8 nationalities Russians, Americans, other Europeans and 41.7 19.2 other nationalities mixed Their closest Russians and/or 75.0 60.9 friends’ their spouses’ : Russians and/or Russian 58.4 (F) 64.3 (M) nationalities Americans Their experiences of being discriminated (scale 0 – 10)

•Low level of discrimination, •Main disadvantage because of the lack of English especially among female respondents

How proud they are for their Russian nationality (scale -10 - +10)

•They are not very proud of their Russian nationality •There is no big difference between female and male respondents’ attitude Their opinion about the immigration policy (scale -10 - +10)

•Male respondents’ attitude is more distributive and more categorical •Equal opportunity for immigrants from different parts of the world and for employees Continue our project work

 Gathering more data

 Carrying out in-depth interviews

 Observation

 Final analysis of the US part of the research

 Comperative research in the UK, Scotland