We will explore questions about migration and membership in the contemporary world by drawing on empirical and normative perspectives. By “empirical,” we investigate what social science evidence tells us about the drivers of migration or the benefits of citizenship. By “normative,” we think through questions of what a society ought to do: what is the morally right, just, or fair thing to do about issues of migration and citizenship?

Migration and Membership: Empirical and Normative Perspectives Fall 2022 (Legal Studies C134 | Sociology C146M) In this course we will explore questions about migration and membership in the contemporary world by drawing on empirical and normative perspectives. By “empirical,” we investigate what social science evidence tells us about the drivers of migration or the benefits of citizenship. By “normative,” we think through questions of what a society ought to do: what is the morally right, just, or fair thing to do about issues of migration and citizenship? The first half of the course will focus on membership. How should we conceive of membership—as a formal legal status (e.g., citizenship status), entitlement to a set of rights, active participation in self-governance, an identity, or something else? What is the relationship between membership, on the one hand, and class, race, gender, sexuality, and national origin, on the other? What rights have historically been associated with citizenship status, and what rights have been extended to noncitizens living in a country? How is citizenship acquired? How should it be acquired? What would cosmopolitan citizenship look like? The second half of the course will focus on migration. Why do people migrate across international borders? Should people be allowed to migrate across borders? States exert control over migration but what, if anything, justifies this control? What is the impact of migration on sending countries, receiving countries, and migrants themselves? What are the key dynamics in the history and politics of immigration and how do they shape immigration policymaking? What are the current immigration categories and priorities in U.S. immigration law? What kinds of immigration policies should the U.S. and other liberal democratic countries pursue? This will be a demanding and rewarding class, requiring that you move back and forth between different types of thinking, from data and evidence-based evaluation to reflection on normative questions about justice and fairness. We expect all students to treat each other – and their ideas – with respect, even as we might disagree with each other.

Repeat Rules

Course is not repeatable for credit.

Requirements class fulfills