Ethnic Minorities and Industrial Change in Europe and North America

Western industrial societies have undergone a massive transformation since the 1980s, and this is particularly noticeable in the older cities whose economies were based on labour intensive industry. In the period following World War II racial and ethnic minorities, who migrated from overseas or from the rural areas within the same country, formed a pool of low-paid labour upon which the prosperity of the industrial city depended. With the subsequent reorganisation of these economics, industrial production shifted overseas, while the new technological industries expanded locally, requiring fewer, and better skilled workers. The consequence for those seemingly excluded from the prosperity of the post-industrial age has been disastrous. In this collection of essays, edited by Malcolm Cross, leading authorities compare the situation of racial minorities in the post-industrial cities of Europe and North America, and examine ways in which their position can be ameliorated. The authors ask whether it is true that racial discrimination is no longer the main problem to be overcome in combating racial inequality, and consider whether racial minorities should remigrate in search of work, or concentrate their efforts in developing the kind of skills required by the new technology. They suggest that failure to find a solution that ensures greater equality for racial minorities may inevitably lead to a ghetto society where cities are the focus of unrest and urban rioting.