1. Introduction -- 2. Women Migrants, Work and Social Integration -- 3. Ethnic Economy and the Turkish Ethnic Economy in London -- 4. Migratory Trends from Turkey and 'Turkish' Community in London -- 5. Turkish Immigrant Women in London -- 6. Women's Work in the London's Turkish Ethnic Economy -- 7. Zigzag Ways to Social Integration -- 8. Conclusion
Summary
Exploring recent contemporary debates on gender and migration, this book scrutinizes the relationship between women's work in ethnic economies in Europe and social integration. Based on extensive ethnographic fieldwork in London, it critically engages with the contemporary political discourses of integration and the ways in which the Turkish community constructs their own forms of integration through the expansion of the ethnic economy. The book shows how women are silent contributors to the ethnic economy and how women's work and their role in the maintenance of social ties and networks play an important role in the economic success of the Turkish community. Questioning the role of the ethnic economy in increasing emphasis on women's traditional gender roles as mothers and wives and in representing ethnic/national identity, this book provides evidence that Turkish women in Britain zig-zag their way to social integration and underlines the need for context-specific integration policies in Europe
