Amic o enemic? Immigration and the Catalan Struggle for Independence

Immigration has extended to regions with sub-state nationalist movements, such as Scotland, Friesland, the Basque Country and, as is the focus of this research, Catalonia. In a context of political upheaval in the region, this article aims to examine the impact of the successive waves of immigration to Catalonia on the modern independence movement. The respective status of the immigrant population in Catalonia is a major issue about which there is a divergence of opinion. This study approaches attitudes toward immigrants through the threat-benefit framework, which perceives immigrants as both threatening and beneficial for the receiving society. The data, gathered from six focus groups and ten narrative interviews, reveal a complexity of attitudes on the impact of immigration on the secessionist movement. Two themes emerge in the informants’ discussion: ‘Immigration: Rising Benefit’ and ‘(New) Immigration: (New) Challenge’. The comments of the respondents indicate that, against the backdrop of the independence process in the territory, there exists a range of views on the impact of the various waves of migration to Catalonia. This study suggests that a fuller understanding of the situation in the territory may be facilitated by qualitative approaches.