Community Development Journal Advance Access originally published online on July 12, 2005
Community Development Journal 2006 41(3):293-306; doi:10.1093/cdj/bsi070
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Living apart or together? Multiculturalism at a neighbourhood level1
Vrije Universiteit, Faculty of Social Studies, Department of Social Cultural Sciences, The Netherlands
Address for correspondence: Vrije Universiteit, Faculty of Social Studies, Department of Social Cultural Sciences, De Boelelaan 1081c, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands. email: pgsm.smets{at}fsw.vu.nl
Dutch urban renewal policies aim to engineer a mixture of different income groups in previously working-class neighbourhoods. The underlying notion is that such a social mix will improve the liveability of the neighbourhood and that the more affluent residents will prevent the poorest from falling into a culture of poverty. As a result of this policy, the composition of the population in such neighbourhoods has changed and one can distinguish between the so-called native Dutch, immigrants, and newcomers, who face problems in living together and sharing public spaces. This paper discusses the dynamics between the different groups in a Dutch neighbourhood, including its norms and values, and the role of intervening agencies.