Participacion religiosa e integracion de los inmigrantes : una reflexion entre America y Europa, entre historia y actualidad

After having been neglected for a long time in migration research, religion has come back in contemporary theories of immigrants’ integration in receiving societies. The paper explores this issue starting from an analysis of past and current North American experience, with a focus upon two specific aspects: a) it is wrong considering North American society as one that has always been open and tolerant in respect of immigrants’ religious belongings; b) religion has always represented a resource for social integration in a context characterized by high levels of hostility and discrimination. In the last part, the article deals with the European experience, discussing the reasons why the expression of a religious identity (especially if Islamic) is considered an obstacle to the immigrant minorities’ integration.