Rahsaan Maxwell
Room E1.08, 1st floor, New Campus SDA Bocconi
and simultaneously via ZOOM meeting
Abstract
One of the central conflicts in Western Europe is whether nation-states should be open or closed to immigration and ethnic diversity. These issues have been at the center of election campaigns and may structure debates about the future of European societies. However, analysis of these debates tends to focus on the anti-immigration side, because those views are considered abhorrent and in need of explanation. People who do not hold anti-immigration views are considered normal and have not been rigorously analyzed. This oversight is unfortunate because pro-immigration sentiments may be a unique and complex set of preferences that are more than just the opposite of anti-immigration sentiments. Moreover, the depth of commitment to pro-immigration perspectives is unclear, as many Europeans may be neutral or have conditional preferences. I am writing a book that comprehensively analyzes pro-immigration people, which is essential for better understanding the future of immigration politics in Europe. I will present some of the preliminary results in this talk.
Bio
Rahsaan Maxwell is a Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. The central question for his research is how national boundaries operate. Within that theme, he has pursued numerous topics including immigrant integration, political representation, identity and political behavior, primarily in Western Europe. His recent work focuses on cultural diversity, globalization and the conditional nature of preferences for immigration and diversity.