Description
Book SynopsisKathleen Paul challenges the usual explanation for the racism of post-war British policy. According to standard historiography, British public opinion forced the Conservative government to introduce legislation stemming the flow of dark-skinned...
Trade ReviewA well-researched study.
* Foreign Affairs *
This is not just a well-documented study of an underdeveloped area of research. Sensitive to the complexities of how terms such as citizen and nationality are constructed, it brings to light not only much new information on this important issue, but new ways of looking at the creation of British identity in this late-imperial context.... A most thoroughly researched and convincingly argued book, which should be widely read by all those who seek to understand postwar Britain in all its dimensions.
* Labor History *
Paul uses parliamentary debates, official documents, speeches, and memoirs to demonstrate successfully how British emigration and immigration were controlled and manipulated by the post-WW II governments to preserve the 'Britishness' of the dominions and the 'whiteness' of Britain.... This cogently argued, well-researched book provides valuable insights into British politics of race. It ranks with other pathbreaking works.... Highly recommended.
* Choice *
This work offers an exhaustively researched account of the development of British immigration policy in the post-war period. In a break with the conventional assessment of British policy, Paul... finds that government ministers and civil servants were the driving force behind opposition to immigrants from Commonwealth nations in Africa, South Asia, and the Caribbean, rather than 'racist' popular opinion.... This robust work of scholarship should find readers in British and Commonwealth studies as well as migration and citizenship studies.
* Library Journal *
Paul's book contributes to the debate about what constitutes membership in society and identifies key differences in the British immigration policy.
* International Migration Review *
This book casts an interesting new light on British citizenship and immigration policy in the postwar era. Based on substantial archival research (that is presented in a very readable fashion), this is an often compelling historical account of the maneuverings of the British political elite in defining nationality policy, particularly in the early years of immigration.... A well-researched, well-written, and interesting new approach to the history of British immigration and citizenship policy-making since 1945.
* British Politics Group Newsletter *
