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Rethinking Ethnic Concentration: The Case of Cabramatta, Sydney

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  • Kevin M. Dunn

    (School of Geography, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia, K.Dunn@unsw .edu.au.)

Abstract

The concentration of Indo-Chinese-Australians in and around the vicinity of Cabramatta in Sydney, NSW, has been unfavourably depicted by most media, policy-makers and academics. Positive aspects of ethnic concentration in Cabramatta are rarely ever discussed. It has been axiomatic in much of the urban studies literature that ethnic concentrations were manifestations of societal malady. This assumption was based upon the premise that social distance equated with spatial distance. However, a just system of urban and social planning requires a perspective which does not automatically pathologise cultural difference. Such a system should not enforce cultural assimilation through strategies such as migrant residential dispersal. To this end, urban researchers require fresh perspectives for the analysis of ethnic concentration. One such perspective is the 'politics of difference' approach proposed by Iris Marion Young and others. A politics of difference approach celebrates institutional practices which give rise to diverse cultural expressions, and rejects the previous denial of difference which was dominant in much of urban social science. This perspective allows urban scholars to adopt a more progressive position in contemporary urban political debates about migrant settlement. It also provides a less partial assessment of ethnic concentration by seriously theorising the advantages and the dynamism of unassimilated cultural difference in a place like Cabramatta.

Suggested Citation

  • Kevin M. Dunn, 1998. "Rethinking Ethnic Concentration: The Case of Cabramatta, Sydney," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 35(3), pages 503-527, March.
  • Handle: RePEc:sae:urbstu:v:35:y:1998:i:3:p:503-527
    DOI: 10.1080/0042098984880
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. R Fincher, 1993. "Gender Relations and the Geography of Migration," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 25(12), pages 1703-1705, December.
    2. R Fincher, 1997. "Gender, Age, and Ethnicity in Immigration for an Australian Nation," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 29(2), pages 217-236, February.
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    Cited by:

    1. Gideon Bolt & Ronald Van Kempen & Jan Van Weesep, 2009. "After Urban Restructuring: Relocations And Segregation In Dutch Cities," Tijdschrift voor Economische en Sociale Geografie, Royal Dutch Geographical Society KNAG, vol. 100(4), pages 502-518, September.
    2. Zwiers, Merle & van Ham, Maarten & Manley, David, 2016. "Trajectories of Neighborhood Change: Spatial Patterns of Increasing Ethnic Diversity," IZA Discussion Papers 10216, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    3. Gerald Mollenhorst, 2015. "Neighbour Relations in the Netherlands: New Developments," Tijdschrift voor Economische en Sociale Geografie, Royal Dutch Geographical Society KNAG, vol. 106(1), pages 110-119, February.
    4. Yogi Vidyattama, 2017. "Assessing the Association between Trust and Concentration Area of Migrant Ethnic Minority in Sydney," Australian Economic Review, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, vol. 50(4), pages 412-426, December.
    5. Marinus C. Deurloo & Sjoerd De Vos, 2008. "Measuring Segregation At The Micro Level: An Application Of The M Measure To Multi‐Ethnic Residential Neighbourhoods In Amsterdam," Tijdschrift voor Economische en Sociale Geografie, Royal Dutch Geographical Society KNAG, vol. 99(3), pages 329-347, July.
    6. Qing Guan, 2019. "Measuring the spatial integration of the China-born population in Australia, 1981–2016," Journal of Population Research, Springer, vol. 36(4), pages 319-346, December.

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