PLAN DE MULTILINGÜISMO DE LA UJ

Migration studies reveal that migrants often consider several destination options. In Megan Hutching‘s study of assisted British migrants to New Zealand, just under half of her

respondents thought about other destinations.10 Similarly, for Kiwis, Australia was not the only possible destination. Just as Paul and Rosanna planned to travel on to England and France, many migrants considered moving to nations other than Australia. The most popular option was Britain, followed by Canada. South Africa was also a possibility for several migrants. For younger travellers on their OE Britain, and by extension Europe, was the ultimate destination. Rosa Tanga wanted to travel to England but could not afford the fare. She planned to work in Australia and move on to England in time for the 1991 Rugby World Cup.11 A few young migrants aimed for more exotic destinations. Tim King and his flatmate applied in 1985 to volunteer in a refugee camp on the Thai–Cambodian border. On being

8 _{For oral history based accounts of these migrants see Hutching, Long Journey for Sevenpence; Hammerton and}

Thomson, Ten Pound Poms.

9 _{Hammerton and Thomson, Ten Pound Poms, 96–121.} 10

Hutching, Long Journey for Sevenpence,82.

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declined Tim decided that since he was psychologically prepared for moving he might as well move to Australia.12 For those considering permanent migration, Canada was a surprisingly common option. Migrants perceived it as a good place to live and bring up a family but were usually dissuaded by the cold winters. South Africa was warm but apartheid was a deterrent. Migrants often settled on Australia because it was a close, warm, affordable, and culturally similar destination.

Kiwi migrants‘ narratives reveal that decision-making dynamics depended on personal relationship situations. While there were exceptions, singles or childless couples made the decision to migrate quickly. Young singles were often impulsive, deciding to migrate almost instantly. Couples with children made the decision comparatively cautiously due to

occasional conflicting views between partners and concerns about their children. Generally Kiwis‘ migration decisions were fairly painless. By contrast, A. James Hammerton‘s research on the gender dynamics of British couples‘ decisions to migrate to Australia found that the length and finality of the journey often made the decision ‗epic‘ and conflicted.13

For young New Zealanders, the decision to migrate was usually straightforward. Most singles made their decision easily, on their own terms, and without any repercussions. Young

unattached Kiwis were often influenced by others when deciding to leave New Zealand. While the motivation for migration was already present, the suggestion of another sparked them into action. For example, Ann Orre was a nursing student when she heard from friends in Australia:

I got a phone call. I‘d talked to these friends in Sydney from a phone box in the nursing home and they said, ―We need a fourth person for this flat we‘re going to get. Do you want to come over?‖ And I think I just said ―Yeah, yeah, I‘ll do that‖. So it was a fairly spur of the moment thing.14

Many young migrants travelled in a pair or group. Jeanne Cashman came to Australia with three other girls:

12

Tim King, written narrative sent to author, 1 October 2009.

13 _{A. James Hammerton, ―‗Family Comes First‘: Migrant Memory and Masculinity in Narratives of Post-War}

British Migrants,‖ in Speaking to Immigrants: Oral Testimony and the History of Australian Migration, ed. A. James Hammerton and Eric Richards, Visible Immigrants (Canberra: History Program and Centre for

Immigration and Multicultural Studies, Research School of Social Sciences, Australian National University, 2002).

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We [Jeanne and her friend] talked about it more seriously and then I mentioned it to a girl that worked downstairs from me and she said, ―Oh I‘d like to do that‖. And she had a friend in Auckland who would like to go too, so the four of us linked up.15

A few young women even advertised in their local newspaper for a travelling companion. For both single and coupled young migrants, a lack of responsibility and dependents meant that decisions could be made quickly. While some young migrants took months to decide, the majority claimed it took only weeks, days, or even seconds. With younger couples, even when one partner was more eager to move than the other, the less enthusiastic party generally acquiesced fairly quickly.

Families with children required more time to negotiate their migration decision. Sometimes one partner was not in favour of migration. When Elizabeth O‘Connor‘s husband needed to move to Australia to do further medical training she was unenthusiastic about taking the whole family to Melbourne: ‗I thought ―Why would anyone want to go to Australia?‖ I was initially unimpressed by the whole thing‘.16 In a very small number of cases the decision almost led to a break-up. Cheryl Walkington recalled, ‗My daughters and I did not want to come and our marriage went through a very rocky patch while we tried to make the right decision. In the end we all came as I decided to keep the family together‘.17

But the majority of couples made the decision to migrate consensually and amicably. With families the decision-making process usually took a little longer. For example Vanessa Farrell‘s parents first considered migration to Australia in 1982. But Vanessa‘s Dad came home from a two week ‗fact-finding mission‘ in Wollongong unimpressed with the Australian way of life. It was only six years later in 1988 that Vanessa‘s parents finally decided to move.18 Even when both partners were enthusiastic about moving, variables such as school terms, selling a house, or family events could slow down the process.

A number of my respondents migrated to Australia as children or young people and they usually had little or no say in the decision. Trent Kimmer‘s family was unusual in that they held a democratic family vote around the Christmas dinner table. The result was three to two

15 _{Jeanne Cashman, interview by author, Sydney, NSW, Australia, 13 April 2010.} 16 _{O‘Connor, interview.}

17

Cheryl Walkington, written narrative sent to author,19 August 2009.

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in favour of the move and the family agreed to a two-year time frame.19 In most families, the children had little direct influence in the decision-making process.

Another aspect of the decision-making process for migrants was resolving the intended duration of their time in Australia. Families, with more to lose and children to placate, sometimes took investigative trips to Australia before the move. Several, like Trent‘s family, put a time limit on their stay. Elizabeth Connor and her family originally only intended to stay in Melbourne for two years.20 Older couples and families were also more likely to see themselves as permanent migrants. The majority of these more intentional migrants did not set a concrete time frame for their migration but rather expected to stay in Australia long- term. By contrast, younger migrants, especially those with travel-oriented motives often only intended to live in Australia for a limited time: a few weeks, months, or a year. Matthew O‘Brien went to Australia with a friend on a whim, planning to ‗have a look for three or four months‘.21 He ended up staying for decades. Like Matthew, many younger travellers never intended to permanently settle in Australia.