Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Dedication
- Contents
- List of tables, figures and illustrations
- Acknowledgements
- About the authors
- List of abbreviations
- one Introduction: the social transformation of East London
- two Changing economy and social structure of East London
- three Changing ethnic and housing market structure of East London
- four Moving on, moving out, moving up: aspiration and the minority ethnic suburbanisation of East London
- five Social reproduction: issues of aspiration and attainment
- six The limits to parental decision making under conditions of constrained choice
- seven Reputation and working the system
- eight Conclusions: achieving aspiration?
- References
- Index
three - Changing ethnic and housing market structure of East London
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 September 2022
- Frontmatter
- Dedication
- Contents
- List of tables, figures and illustrations
- Acknowledgements
- About the authors
- List of abbreviations
- one Introduction: the social transformation of East London
- two Changing economy and social structure of East London
- three Changing ethnic and housing market structure of East London
- four Moving on, moving out, moving up: aspiration and the minority ethnic suburbanisation of East London
- five Social reproduction: issues of aspiration and attainment
- six The limits to parental decision making under conditions of constrained choice
- seven Reputation and working the system
- eight Conclusions: achieving aspiration?
- References
- Index
Summary
‘Well, if I was a white working-class person I would notice that there are more and more Asians coming into the area. I mean, this street is a classic example. Ten years ago when I bought this house there were a few Asian families. Now, on this road, let's say there are 50 families, I would say that about 42 are Asian families. Non-Asian families, white families mostly, have moved out – moving out towards Essex, Southend, further and further away. You know, they haven’t moved to Ilford or Gants Hill, they have moved further out to Southend, Canvey, a lot of them have sold their house [here] and got a smaller house out there. But, yeah, a lot of the white working-class families have moved and shifted out towards Dagenham and other areas.’ (Pakistani, male, Newham)
Introduction
Over the last 30–40 years the ethnic composition of London has undergone a dramatic transformation from that of a predominantly white, mono-ethnic city to an increasingly multi-ethnic city with large minority ethnic populations. In 2001, 29% of the population of Greater London were drawn from minority ethnic groups and in inner London the proportion reached a third. In terms of ethnic population, London is becoming more like some major North American cities such as New York and Los Angeles (Storkey and Lewis, 1996; Peach, 1999; Johnston et al, 2002a). Although London's minority ethnic groups are still minorities, they have grown very rapidly during the 1980s and 1990s, and in 2001 in two boroughs (Newham, 61% and Brent, 55%) minority ethnic groups comprised the majority of the population and a near majority in Tower Hamlets (49%). The bulk of the changes have been within the last 20 years. By the 2011 Census the figure is likely to be higher, with over 40% of inner London's population classified as non-white. In this respect, London is a laboratory for the future of ethnic change in some other British cities.
Nowhere has this process been more marked than in East London which, because of its proximity to the docks, was traditionally the first destination for many of London's waves of immigrants. The first group to arrive were the Huguenots in the late 17th century following the persecution of the Protestants in France.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Ethnicity, Class and AspirationUnderstanding London's New East End, pp. 57 - 90Publisher: Bristol University PressPrint publication year: 2011