After 1989 and the fall of state socialism, human mobility became one of the most important features of the post-Cold War era. As a result of the liberalization of border controls and the massive political and economic changes, a significant number of Central and Eastern Europeans (CEE) migrated to Western Europe in search of better opportunities. This phenomenon rapidly amplified fears of mass immigration and triggered an upsurge in negative feelings towards the influx of CEE immigrants. Immigration was perceived as a high-risk phenomenon. Since the 1990s, Romania has become one of the main source-countries for migrants to Western Europe. However, it is especially after 2002, when Romanians were allowed to travel freely in the European Union (EU), that migration to the West increased exponentially. This triggered fears of mass migration and gave rise to negative stereotypes in public and political debates. In January 2007, Romania joined the EU and, theoretically, Romanians acquired European citizenship. In other words, they had the right to move freely within Europe and to work and settle anywhere within the EU. However, after the economic downturn in 2008, certain EU countries restricted the immigration of citizens from new member states, thus placing Eastern Europeans in a category of less-favoured citizenship. These restrictions were lifted in 2014, when the seven-year transition period imposed on Bulgarians and Romanians came to an end.
This research project examined the history of Romanian migration to France from 2002 to 2013 from the perspective of risk. It analysed how evaluations of and responses to risk shaped the migration process. The first step of this project was to understand how fear of migration influences political responses and regulatory measures. As a second step, the fellow investigated how this sense of fear developed and evolved within French, Italian and Romanian societies. Dr. Scutaru also analysed how risk perception impacted migrants’ relationships with the host society. Focussing on the migrants’ own perceptions of their mobility, the third step of the project was to examine how they respond to risk. An emphasis was placed on young adults. The inter-disciplinary perspective adopted in this study provided a more complete history of Romanian migration during the last decade. Drawing on empirical research, this study focused on the connections that could be established between European citizens.
