Fall/Winter Timetable

POL2391H1S L0101

Undergraduate Course Code: POL410H1S L0101

Topics in Comparative Politics III

The Politics of Immigration in Europe and North America

Themes

International migration prompts policy questions of the highest order: Who shall be admitted? According to what criteria? And toward which ends and to whose advantage? And, once admitted, what if any access should migrants have to citizenship? This course aims to provide students with the theoretical and empirical knowledge needed to grapple with these questions intelligently. We will critically review literature from multiple disciplines with an eye to better understanding both why immigration has become such a dominant issue in contemporary politics and governance in Europe and North America. After surveying theories of immigration policy-making, we consider responses to different modes of international migration, including refugee flows, temporary foreign workers, and highly skilled immigrants. The final part of the course considers debates sparked by the pluralization of industrialized societies after WWII, including: the regulation of citizenship and naturalization, the accommodation of religious minorities, and the fierce battle over multiculturalism and competing modes of immigrant integration.

Texts

Most of the required readings will be available via Blackboard. Students might also consider purchasing the following books: Howard, Marc Morjé. The Politics of Citizenship in Europe. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2009; Laurence, Jonathan. The Emancipation of Europe’s Muslims: The State’s Role in Minority Integration. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2012.

Format and Requirements

This will be a demanding, reading intensive seminar. Students are expected to carefully prepare for, attend, and actively contribute to all classes. Reading responses (25%), participation (20%), paper proposal (20%), Paper (35%)