Belonging in Brexit Britain: Central and Eastern European 1.5 generation young people's experiences

Naomi Tyrrell,Daniela Sime,Claire Kelly,Christina Mcmellon

doi:10.1002/psp.2205

Naomi Tyrrell, Daniela Sime + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1002/psp.2205

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Abstract

AbstractIn this paper, we examine the experiences of young people born in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) who are part of the 1.5 migrant generation living in “Brexit Britain.” We focus on two key themes: (a) young people's feelings of belonging to Britain, their countries of birth and Europe, and the ways in which these have been impacted by the EU Referendum result; (b) young people's future plans, in an intergenerational context, with particular regard to their feelings of belonging and the ruptures of migration and Brexit. Britain's decision to leave the EU caused uncertainty for CEE 1.5 generation young people at a time when many of them were consciously reflecting on their beings, becomings, and belongings. The majority of young people asserted a sense of belonging to Britain whilst simultaneously feeling a sense of “in‐between‐ness.” Many young people wanted to remain living in Britain, at least in the short term, and felt a sense of belonging to Britain. Our focus on the potential intergenerational impact of Brexit suggests that CEE young people and parents may view possibilities for the future differently; we examine some of the key reasons for these differences from the young people's perspectives.

Highlights

“Brexit means Brexit,” the Prime Minister, Theresa May, famously declared in the aftermath of the EU Referendum in June 2016
By focusing on Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) young people's opinions and experiences in the period between the referendum result and the United Kingdom's exit from the EU, this paper provides some illumination on the question many people living in and beyond the United Kingdom are considering—“What next?” We examine young people's feelings of belonging to Britain, their countries of birth, and Europe and the ways in which these have been impacted by the EU Referendum result
We examined the opinions and experiences of 1.5 generation CEE‐born young people living in Brexit Britain gleaned from a national online survey, focus groups and adult stakeholder interviews across England and Scotland

Summary

| INTRODUCTION

“Brexit means Brexit,” the Prime Minister, Theresa May, famously declared in the aftermath of the EU Referendum in June 2016. For the young people in our study, who were born in CEE countries, but many of whom have lived most of their formative years in the United Kingdom, what it means to belong in Britain is being deconstructed during the crucial time of their transitions from childhood to youth and adulthood, due to Brexit. Parents' concern for children's education and well‐being—fear that they would not settle back into the school system in the home country or that their education and employment prospects were better in the United Kingdom—and children's own expressed desire to remain in the United Kingdom often influenced these familial decisions These processes of family migration from CEE countries to Britain can be succinctly summed up in the wider definition of “lifestyle migration” that King (2018) has espoused in research with CEE young adult migrants in Europe. The result of these migration decisions and processes has been that in spite of migration flow predictions, CEE parents and children are one of the largest migrant groups living in communities across Britain

| METHODOLOGY

Findings

| CONCLUSION