everyday nationalism: perceptions of migrants(variously conceived) values. In France a majority of respondents
agreed with the statement that immigrants’ ideas and culture do
not improve the country (Waldinger 2010: 54). In the USA, public
opinion was divided as to the influence of migration: there were
about as many respondents who saw migrants as a factor that
strengthens American society as those who saw them as a threat
to traditional American values (Tunon and Baruah 2012: 151).
What, then, of Russia? Choosing among the various responses
to the statement ‘the ethnic diversity of the Russian popula-
tion strengthens our country’, 57.1 per cent of the NEORUSS
respondents in Moscow (56.6 per cent in Russia) said that it ‘in
some respects strengthens, and in some respects weakens’ Russia;
30.4 per cent in Moscow (22.1 per cent in Russia) felt that ethnic
diversity weakens the country; whereas 10.1 per cent of respond-
ents in Moscow (11.3 per cent in Russia) agreed that ethnic diver-
sity ‘strengthens our country’.
Of particular interest are data about various host- societies’
perceptions of Islam and Muslims – considered an especially dif-
ficult issue for Russia. Pieter Bevelander and Jonas Otterbeck’s
work on young people’s attitudes towards Muslim immigrants in
Sweden also includes data on other countries. Thus they report
that a 2006 study found that about 30 per cent of respondents
in Switzerland displayed Islamophobia, and, similarly, 20–25
per cent of respondents in Germany (Bevelander and Otterbeck
2010: 409). In Sweden, according to a nationwide survey, in
2005 and 2006 39 per cent and 37 per cent of respondents
respectively felt that the number of Muslims entering the country
should be restricted (ibid.: 408). In the Netherlands – according
to a 2007 study – 54 per cent of young respondents expressed
negative attitudes to Muslims (ibid.: 409). Here one should take
into account that young people are generally far more tolerant
than older generations (see below). In Moscow, 30 per cent of
the NEORUSS survey respondents ‘agreed entirely’ with the
rather provocative statement ‘Islam is becoming a threat to
social stability and Russian culture’; a further 43 per cent ‘agreed
somewhat’.
Thus, even a swift glance at the comparative data on attitudes
to migration allows us to draw distinct parallels between Western