Legal Studies 393LG - S-Law & Global Migration

This course explores the ways in which law affects and is affected by the movement of people across borders. An estimated three percent of the world's population are migrants, and while the United States has long been a "nation of immigrants," countries across Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East are all becoming host to large numbers of non-citizens. We will examine the various ways in which states approach migration law-making, studying migration law as a form of national identity, a means of social control, and a way of reproducing racial hierarchies. We will learn about how domestic and international migration laws assign migrants to various categories and statuses, some of which lead to rights and privileges and some of which do not. Finally, we will ask how the realities of global migration patterns challenge legal categories and conceptions of citizenship.

LEGAL 101