To our readers: Paperjam's editorial team spent Thursday and Friday in Dudelange, meeting the political, social and economic players in this municipality of 22,000 inhabitants. This article is part of that special series.

To shed light on the reality of migration in Luxembourg, past and present. That's how we might sum up Denis Scuto's mission. The son of a Sicilian immigrant and a Luxembourg mother, the associate professor of contemporary Luxembourg history at the University of Luxembourg points out that "one out of every two Luxembourgers is the product of migration, meaning that he or she has at least one parent who was born abroad". The historian is the first holder of the history and migration chair, which has been operational at the University since 1 January 2025. His partner is the City of Dudelange.

Guillaume Meyer: What makes Dudelange an ideal location for research into migration?

Denis Scuto: There are many reasons. First of all, Dudelange is home to a real place of memory of immigration: the Italian quarter. This district, built in terraces, is reminiscent of the architecture of the towns of origin of the Italians who migrated here. As in other towns in the coalfield, the industrialisation of Dudelange has always been closely linked to migratory flows. And these migrations didn't just come from Italy.

As long ago as 1914, eight out of every ten inhabitants of Dudelange were born elsewhere. Migration included Luxembourgers from other regions, French and Belgian cross-border workers, German specialists and Italian and Polish workers. The Italian quarter therefore symbolises a much more diverse migration than might at first appear.

Dudelange also stands out for its political history. It saw the election of the first mayor of Italian origin, Louis Rech. His name sounds Luxembourgish, but it comes from northern Italy. It also saw the election of the first cabinet minister of Italian origin, Mars Di Bartolomeo.

Dudelange is also home to the Centre de documentation sur les migrations humaines (CDMH), founded in 1995.

This is another major asset. This centre, of national importance and for the Greater Region, has a library of 25,000 works and a vast collection of archives. What's more, almost 30 years ago, a database was set up at the CDMH based on censuses and arrival declaration forms. It lists thousands of inhabitants of Dudelange, Differdange and Esch. We think it's time to give this work a more institutional dimension.

What will the general public see of your work?

We have several objectives. The first is to revisit the work done 30 years ago in the collective work 'Itinéraires croisés: Luxembourgeois à l'étranger, étrangers au Luxembourg', edited by the historian Antoinette Reuter, co-founder of the CDMH in Dudelange, and myself, from a contemporary perspective. Since then, there have been many new migrations and research has been carried out.

Over the next two or three years, the CDMH and I also want to put together a travelling exhibition on the history of migration in Luxembourg. This will reach a wide audience across the country and beyond. Finally, we are creating a participatory database on the history of migration in Luxembourg and the Greater Region. This project is part of a series of initiatives to create innovative digital tools in the human sciences.

What areas would you like to focus on?

One of our priorities will be to analyse how migration has transformed Luxembourg society over the last 30 years. Our starting point will be the change in government discourse from the 1980s onwards. At that time, immigration began to be perceived in a positive light. Then, in the 1990s, Luxembourg made the strategic choice to rely more and more on highly qualified immigration.

These policies have had a considerable impact: in 30 years, the migratory balance has recorded a surplus of more than 200,000 people. In addition, around 130,000 people have acquired Luxembourg nationality since 2009. These figures bear witness to the profound transformation of our society.

What lessons can be drawn from a comparison of past and current migration to Luxembourg?

This comparison highlights both continuities and ruptures. There are continuities: whatever the period - 19th, 20th or 21st century - Luxembourg has always attracted people for their skills. However, the sectors concerned have changed. In the 19th century, migrants worked in textiles, agriculture and the fledgling steel industry. In the 20th century, the emphasis shifted away from agriculture and commerce and towards construction and heavy industry. Today, construction and industry remain important. But finance, services, trade and European institutions dominate. Another area of continuity concerns labour immigration.

And the changes?

What has changed radically is the perception of this migration. Until the 1970s, they were often seen and defined as temporary, almost a substitute. They were called Gastarbeiter [guest workers]. Now, in Luxembourg as in other prosperous regions, migration is recognised as a structural phenomenon.

The major change has also been the evolution of attraction strategies. Since the 1990s, we have been recruiting highly qualified people. We attract them with high salaries. This is profoundly changing the landscape, especially in Luxembourg. The city of Luxembourg and its neighbouring municipalities form a metropolis. It is now populated by highly qualified professionals, both Luxembourgers and foreigners.

The changing profile of immigrants to Luxembourg is therefore marked by a rise in qualifications...

That said, a certain duality already existed at the beginning of the 20th century. At that time, most Italians came to do the hard work in factories or on building sites, while German specialists arrived as engineers or managers. Today, this segmentation is even more pronounced.

Some speak of a Sandwich-Gesellschaft. Luxembourg's middle class falls between two extremes. On the one hand, there are low-skilled workers, often foreigners. On the other, a highly qualified elite made up of executives from banks and other high-paying sectors, most of whom are foreigners.

The data from the 2021 census confirms this. For example, the majority of Luxembourg graduates now have a bachelor's or master's degree. For immigrants, the spectrum is broader. They include both construction workers, who used to be mainly Italian or Portuguese, but now come from a wider range of backgrounds, and highly qualified white-collar workers. The growing importance of English in Luxembourg society reflects this evolution.

In contrast to many European countries, the migration debate remains relatively contained in Luxembourg. Will the country end up adopting a similar discourse to its neighbours?

Luxembourg stands out for several reasons. First of all, the 1980s marked a major change in discourse. While many European countries refused to admit that they were immigration states, Luxembourg was one of the first to affirm this. Prior to that, migration policy had been very restrictive, even xenophobic, in Luxembourg too.

For example?

In the post-war period, priority was given to white, Catholic Europeans. In the 1950s and 60s, Italian immigration declined. Employers then wanted to use Tunisian labour via a bilateral agreement. But this proposal was rejected by the government. Similarly, in agriculture, they preferred to recruit Dutch workers... but they wanted to attract those from the south of the country, who were supposed to be Catholics! When the Portuguese arrived, they tried to limit the immigration of Cape Verdeans, even though they were Portuguese.

So there was a big change in the 1980s. Luxembourg society was officially recognised as an immigration society. This stance is rare in Europe. It explains, in part, why migration debates are less confrontational here than elsewhere.

Is this consensus solid?

The consensus remains strong, but there are tensions, particularly around the language issue. Populist rhetoric sometimes emerges under the guise of protecting the Luxembourg language or opposing demographic growth. However, I don't see any real xenophobic rhetoric, as we can see in Germany with the AfD, flourishing here.

The reason is simple: everyone knows that immigration is essential to the country's prosperity. Border workers, for example, play a central role in financing pensions and social security. Similarly, the financial sector, the main driver of wealth, relies heavily on an international workforce. In other words, if we adopt a radical anti-immigration stance, Luxembourg's entire economic model will collapse."

Read the original French-language version of this news report here / lire en français