Religious Communities, Immigration, and Social Cohesion in Rural Areas Evidence from England

Just as Utah represents a new destination state within the United States, a traditional immigration country, rural English towns are becoming ever more diverse in the United Kingdom, the latter a significant site of immigration for more than a half century. In Utah, Claudio Holzner and Melissa Goldsmith find, among other things, that smaller towns provide immigrants with political experiences that accelerate their political incorporation beyond what they might experience in larger destination cities. In England, new rural destinations also offer unique opportunities. In this chapter, Rhys Andrews discovers that mainline Protestant churches assist the social integration of immigrants by engaging in activities that encourage the development of bridging social capital. Taken together, this chapter and the preceding one suggest that smaller towns may provide a level of both political and social contact that creates favorable conditions for immigrant incorporation.