SEGREGATION AND HOUSING OF MINORITY ETHNIC GROUPS IN WESTERN EUROPEAN CITIES

Segregation of minority ethnic groups is a returning issue in public and political debates in many parts of the world. This paper focuses on Western European cities and presents information on levels and dynamics of segregation. While acknowledging the measurement problems, we feel comfortable in saying that overall segregation levels do not appear to increase. However, big differences exist, not just between immigrant groups in one city, but also between similar groups in different cities and countries. ‘Integration’ processes of those who settled a long time ago may be counterbalanced by new and difficult to predict immigration. Likely, individual preference, availability of resources, the role of the state, globalisation and economic restructuring as well as discrimination simultaneously impact on segregation.