Chapter 2: Using data from the German Socio-Economic Panel, this study examines the relation-ship between immigrant residential segregation and immigrants" satisfaction with the neighbor-hood. The estimates show that immigrants living in segregated areas are less satisfied with the neighborhood. This is consistent with the hypothesis that housing discrimination rather than self-selection plays an important role in immigrant residential segregation. Our result holds true even when controlling for other influences such as household income and quality of the dwelling. It also holds true in fixed effects estimates that account for unobserved time-invariant influences. Chapter 3: Using survey data from the German Socio-Economic Panel, this study shows that immigrants living in segregated residential areas are more likely to report discrimination because of their ethnic background. This applies to both segregated areas where most neighbors are immigrants from the same country of origin as the surveyed person and segregated areas where most neighbors are immigrants from other countries of origin. The results suggest that housing discrimination rather than self-selection plays an important role in immigrant residential segregation. Chapter 4: Using data from the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) and administrative data from 1996 to 2009, I investigate the question whether or not right-wing extremism of German residents is affected by the ethnic concentration of foreigners living in the same residential area. My results show a positive but insignificant relationship between ethnic concentration at the county level and the probability of extreme right-wing voting behavior for West Germany. However, due to potential endogeneity issues, I additionally instrument the share of foreigners in a county with the share of foreigners in each federal state (following an approach of Dustmann/Preston 2001). I find evidence for the interethnic contact theory, predicting a negative relationship between foreign-ers" share and right-wing voting. Moreover, I analyze the moderating role of education and the influence of cultural traits on this relationship. Chapter 5: Using data from the Socio-Economic Panel from 1998 to 2009 and administrative data on regional ethnic diversity, I show that ethnic diversity inhibits significantly people- political interest and participation in political organizations in West Germany. People seem to isolate themselves from political participation if exposed to more ethnic diversity which is particularly relevant with respect to the ongoing integration process of the European Union and the increasing transfer of legislative power from the national to European level. The results are robust if an instrumental variable strategy suggested by Dustmann and Preston (2001) is used to take into account that ethnic diversity measured on a local spatial level could be endogenous due to residential sorting. Interestingly, participation in non-political organizations is positively affected by ethnic diversity if selection bias is corrected for.
"Culture", in addition to its ethnic signification, can also express various groups' and communities' political and economic situation in society. As well as signifying the accommodation of ethnic diversity, the integration of dissimilar cultures in South Africa has to do with both the former oppressors and the formerly oppressed coming to terms with the oppression of the past, and with the equitable distribution of material means. Constitutional and other legal means have been designed to facilitate a process of integration dealing with the abovementioned issues. Some of these measures will be looked at. The speaker will argue that the integration of different cultures in South Africa cannot and will not be achieved if the law is invoked, in a strong arm fashion, trying to concoct a melting pot. The law can do no more than aiding the facilitation of a process of consolidation as precondition to nation building. Deep-seated, cultural differences among various sections of the population cannot and should not be denied or simply thought away.
Kommt die Scharia auch in Deutschland zur Anwendung oder wäre die Inkorporation bestimmter Teile der Scharia in deutsches Recht zumindest wünschenswert? Könnte Großbritannien hier Vorbild sein, wo Schlichtungsgerichte für muslimische Streitparteien ebenso wie die staatlicherseits anerkannten Schariagerichtshöfe fest etabliert sind? Und wie sind islamische Friedensrichter in Deutschland zu bewerten, die vielerorts eine vermittelnde Rolle zwischen muslimischen Tätern und deutschen Strafverfolgungsbehörden übernehmen? Schiedssprüche zwischen Konfliktparteien gleich welcher Religionszugehörigkeit können nur dann als vorteilhaft beurteilt werden, wenn sie geeignete, rechtstreue, ausgebildete Personen durchführen, die nach rechtsstaatlichen Prinzipien urteilen und der gerichtlichen Kontrolle unterliegen. Schiedsverfahren dürften traditionellem Schariarecht nicht folgen, da es in seiner klassischen Auslegung staatlichem Recht widerspricht und ebenso wie das Operieren von "Friedensrichtern" integrationshemmend wirkt.
Der Beitrag zeichnet die jüngere öffentliche Debatte über die Spannungen in der Europäischen Union und insbesondere innerhalb der Europäischen Währungsunion nach, die durch die Folgen der Finanzkrise und der Staatsverschuldung in mehreren Mitgliedsländern der Europäischen Union entstanden sind. Es wird deutlich, dass die Grundsätze der Solidarität und der Solidität etwa im Hinblick auf die äußerst schwierige Lage in Griechenland mit einer enormen Beanspruchung des gemeinschaftlichen Zusammenhalts verbunden sind. Der Unterstützungsbedarf mehrerer Mitgliedsländer der Euro-Zone hat auf fast schmerzhafte Weise Grundsatzfragen demokratischer Legitimität aufgeworfen. Europa steht möglicherweise an einem Schweideweg.