For decades, laws, such as the 1996 Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigration Responsibility Act (IIRAIRA), have created a social construction that labels immigrants to the United States as criminal aliens.
The Public Purpose
The Graduate Journal of American University's School of Public Affairs
Immigration
Analyzing Social Constructions Regarding Immigration in the U.S.
In the U.S., social constructions have been used to disenfranchise individuals based on their ability, or inability, to assimilate into white culture.
Undocumented Immigrants Deserve Better Policies
The debate around immigration should be reframed so that it centralizes empathy, compassion, and caring for those who may be escaping poor living conditions or threats of violence.
Be Better: Biden’s Challenge to Raise the Bar on Immigration Policy
Biden’s appeal to millions of voters focused less on common ideological ground and more on one simple thing: He was not Donald Trump. That won’t satisfy those attempting to hold him accountable.
Immigration Discourse in America
America’s often-overgeneralizing immigration discourse has led to incompetent policies that inefficiently spend our tax dollars while harming immigrants, particularly those deemed as undesirable.
Addressing Northern Triangle Migration Through U.S. Foreign Aid
An unprecedented number of migrants arriving in caravans from Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador—referred to as the “Northern Triangle”—led the Trump Administration to act on its policy pledge to reduce illegal immigration by cutting foreign aid to the three...
The Price of Approval for Erdoğan
Erdoğan’s plan to deport the displaced population is short-sighted and politically motivated rather than an adequate valuation of the potential benefits…
Trump’s Executive Order on Caravans and What Asylum Means
By: Shea Lamanna There is a group of people that originated in Honduras, slowly moving through Mexico. It has been reported that they intend to approach the US-Mexican border and seek asylum within the United States. The news outlets covering the story of this...
Threats to Overturn Birthright Citizenship
By: Shea Lamanna President Trump has recently spoken publicly about his skepticism over the United States’ Birthright Citizenship Policy. The discussion over the revocation of Birthright Citizenship has emerged as a potential strategy to lower the number of...
#FamiliesBelongTogether: The “Zero-Tolerance” Policy Dilemma and Family Border Separation
By: Indira Bhattacharjee
Repeal of DACA: a Republican Success, an American Public Policy Failure
By: Sophia Cole
Xenophobic Violence in South Africa
By Ifeoluwa Olawole As recently as February 2017, a group of anti-immigrant protesters in Pretoria, South Africa set out to protest the presence of immigrants from other parts of Africa like Nigeria, Somalia, and Zimbabwe. This protest led to the looting and...