Migrant workers from central Asia in a Siberian city: infrastructure, employment, everyday life and leisure
Abstract
This paper presents the first year results of the research project named "The Use and Creation of Urban Infrastructures by Migrants in Siberian Regional Centres" (the case of Tomsk). As the object of the study, migrants from three Central Asian republics (Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan) were selected, as being the largest group of foreigners to come to Tomsk. Due to their “visibility”, immigrants from these states are highly discriminated against and frequently labeled by the media as an “average” migrant posing a definite threat for Russian society. This article describes and analyzes the trajectories of the social, economic and cultural adaptation/integration of migrants in Tomsk. The basic approach of this study is borrowed from cultural geography, the gist being that every urban space includes both traditional (real) and mental (vernacular) areas. The main criterion for distinguishing a vernacular area is its localization in the perception by residents of a particular urban area. Three vernacular districts with different socio-economic and geographical characteristics were identified for the study: “The center”, a “prosperous” district, “Cheremoshniki”, a “problematic” district, and “Irkutchi”, an “intermediate” district. The main tools for collecting field data were interviews and participant observation. A survey of migrant workers in each of the vernacular areas was used as an additional method. This is the first study aimed at understanding how migrants integrate into the economy and social relations in a Siberian city. The objects of the “migrant” infrastructure are analyzed not as separate elements of the economic and social infrastructure, but as points of interaction between different groups of migrants and citizens. The paper explores how these objects are embedded into the life of the city and evaluates the degree of integration of migrants in urban space and the role of social institutions that are significant for them.
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References
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