Results of research

After our Kickoff meeting in Germany the german students gathered material about the sorbs. During a meeting all of them presented their materials which they have found. Concerning the minority of the sorbs a lot of literature, articles and videos exist.One student reported on her telephone call with the cultural office of Bautzen (town in Lusatia). They sent her a lot of material about the sorbs.
Finally we divided the material into four groups :
1. Geography, living space, history of the sorbs2. Tradition: folklorism, art, famous Sorbian persons3. Today’s situation: economic situation, political situation4. What is Sorbian identity? What do the sorbians themselves would like to tell the majority society?
Each student chose a theme which he/she wants to work about.Concerning the form of the exhibition we decided to write short texts and to use much figures, schedules and maps.Because we want to meet Sorbian people and ask them personally what they think about their present situation especially concerning the expansion of the quarries of lignite in their living space we wanted to visit them.
After a while we met again and each student presented her/his work. We tried to keep in mind the restricted space in an exhibition. Concerning the abundance of the gathered material it was a difficult job to reduce this material for a poster which could be part of an exhibition.
Finally in the beginning of march we visited the sorbs in their living space. We spent three nights in Bautzen (near Dresden). There we had a guided tour which ended in a sorbian café where we discussed with the landlady over coffee and cake.
During the following days we met some sorbs who informed us about their life in Lusatia.
Our visit in the quarries of lignite was very impressive. The quarries of lignite are a threat for Sorbian villages because they have to be destroyed for the quarries.
Our next step will be researching material about the sinti, the second minority we want to deal with.
Andrea

Poland: Report about research activities

Which minority has been chosen? Short background why this minority has been chosen?
When we talk about national minorities in Poland, we mean immigrant minorities (so-called “new minorities”) and historical minorities (so-called “old minorities”).
For our project we chose one community which represent “new minority”: Vietnamese immigrants and one of “old minority”: German minority.
Vietnamese immigrants because Poland is currently one of the few European states in which the Vietnamese form one of the biggest and best organised immigrant communities.
And Germans because this is the most numerous minority among thirteen official historical minorities in Poland.

Status quo of the research and perspective:
We focused on a few aspects of the minorities’ life in Poland:
history, economic activity, relations with Polish society (everyday life), culture and problems of minorities.
The plan of future activity:
- next meetings with representatives of Vietnamese immigrants and German Minority,
- workshops for our learners,
- participation in the events organising by The Associations of German Minority.

Results of the research (short summary):
Vietnamese immigrants:
1. The biggest and self-contained group of immigrants with a high level with co-operation and self-organisation, which deal with: textile and food trading (over a thousand trading stalls and small shops) and catering services (30 big restaurants and 300 other fast-food places);
2. Supported in the daily life by Vietnamese community;
3. Integration with Polish society:

a) Immigrants from "first wave" (the migration began in the 1950's):

- a well assimilated,
- Polish universities graduates with a good command of Polish,
- “an elite” among immigrants community.
b) Immigrants from “second wave” (the migration began after 1989):
- non-assimilated,
- less educated,
- need a support group,
- many of them live in Poland without legal status,
- only small group of adults immigrants speaks Polish,
- their migration has mostly economic character.
c) Children of immigrants (raised in Poland):
- well integrated,
- attend Polish schools,
- speak Polish fluently.

It is difficult to estimate the number of Vietnamese who live and work in Poland. In 2001 the Polish Office for Repatriation and Foreigners counted as many as 40 thousand Vietnamese living in Poland. Today's estimates suggest their number from 30 to 50 thousand.

German minority:
1.The most numerous among thirteen official minorities in Poland with its own organisations, schools, cultural institutions, media and with their country of origin just behind the border;
2. Financially supported by Polish and German government;
3. Well-assimilated:
- they are an integrated part of Polish society,
- they speak German and Polish.

The members of German minority:
- work in Poland in all professions, serving a variety of roles depending on educational background and experience
or
- take up a legal job in the European Union countries, first of all in Germany and the Netherlands.

Second citizenship:
- over 280 000 people possess German citizenship (for almost all of them it's a second citizenship next to Polish),
- 100 000 people with dual Polish-German citizenship currently work in Germany.