Welcome to the website for Debating Immigration (Cambridge University Press, April 2007.)  On this site you will find information about he author as well as additional resources and references on the topic.

Debating Immigration presents 18 original essays, written by some of the world's leading experts and preeminent scholars, that explore the nuances of contemporary immigration and citizenship affecting the United States and Europe. The volume is organized around the following themes: religion and philosophy, law and policy, economics and demographics, race and ethnicity, and cosmopolitanism. Critical questions addressed include: What accounts for the disconnect between public attitudes about immigration and the policies produced by elected officials? Why has the United States not developed a well-articulated public philosophy of immigration?


Click here to read an excerpt from Debating Immigration

Praise for Debating Immigration

"Carol Swain has drawn together a brilliant and insightful collection of essays on immigration. No matter what your views on immigration, you will find something to inform, educate, or engage."

Senator Bill Frist, former Senate Majority leader from Tennessee

"Just when I thought America could NEVER have a civilized discussion about immigration, along came this wonderful book. Thomas Jefferson would be so proud that many knowledgeable people spent time together wrestling with this highly charged political issue and sharing their thoughts in writing. I wish I could mandate that NO ONE could debate about immigration until they read this book and passed the test!"

Pat Schroeder, former Congresswoman from Colorado

"This is a fascinating and distinctive contribution to our understanding of contemporary immigration issues. Most volumes on this subject are weighted heavily in the pro-immigration direction. Carol Swain, by contrast, has gotten contributions from scholars with a wide range of perspectives, and their work reveals many complexities and nuances that are too often ignored. A first-rate collection that should appeal to general readers as well as to scholars."

Stephan Thernstrom, Winthrop Professor of History, Harvard University and editor of the Harvard Encyclopedia of American Ethnic Groups

"A multitude of intellectual and disciplinary perspectives and a refreshing variety of political positions--Left, Right, and a very lively Middle. This is an imaginative and welcome contribution to an important debate about America's future."

John Skrentny, University of California, San Diego