Abstract: In many recent debates on the political theory of immigration, conflicts between immigrants and citizens of host societies are explored along identity lines. In this paper, I defend the relevance of social class. I focus on two types of conflict—distributive and cultural—and show how class boundaries play a crucial role in each. In contrast to both defenders and critics of freedom of movement, I argue that borders have always been (and will continue to be) open for some and closed for others. The same applies to barriers on integration and civic participation. It is time to revive the connection between immigration and social class and to start carving political solutions that begin with the recognition of class injustice as a fundamental democratic concern.
Keywords: migration, justice, capitalism, citizenship, social class
Full essay available to subscribers only. Click here for access.
More in this issue
Summer 2018 (32.2) • Review
The Internationalists: How a Radical Plan to Outlaw War Remade the World, by Oona A. Hathaway and Scott J. Shapiro
In this book, Oona A. Hathaway and Scott J. Shapiro investigate the history, nature, and impact of the international legal prohibition on the use of ...
Summer 2018 (32.2) • Review
Gender, UN Peacebuilding, and the Politics of Space: Locating Legitimacy, by Laura J. Shepherd
Through rigorous and rich discourse analysis, Laura J. Shepherd interrogates not only how the UN understands peacebuilding itself but also how it understands gender, women, ...
Summer 2018 (32.2) • Review Essay
Toward a Global Water Ethic: Learning from Indigenous Communities
This review essay draws on three important new contributions to the water governance literature to suggest that insights from indigenous communities’ more holistic and long-term ...