Immigration and Immigrants in the US and Europe
SOAN 283 / Winter 2015
M/W 11:10-12:20; F 12:00-1:00
Leighton 330
Professor: Daniel Williams
dwilliams@carleton.edu
Leighton 234
Office Hours: Mondays and Wednesdays, 3:30-4:30 pm, Fridays, 10-11 am, and by
appointment.
Course Description
While immigrants and immigration have been part of the national narrative and even the
very basis of the United States as a nation for more than a century, European countries
have only recently understood themselves as “immigration countries,” and to varying
degrees. In contrast to the US as a country that needed immigration, European countries
formed nations under very different circumstances than the US. Despite these
differences, the US and Europe share many similarities, “challenges,” and narratives
about and around immigrants and immigration, while also differing in important respects.
In this course, we will consider immigration and immigrants with a focus on how and
where immigrants are incorporated into society. Many terms are used to describe these
processes of becoming a part of society—from “assimilation” and “integration” to
“citizenship” and “belonging.” While we will deal with all of these terms, our overall
focus will be on inclusion and “incorporation,” in an effort to opens up a discussion of
specific sites, processes, and ways that immigrants become and negotiate their place and
identity in society. Immigrants are also diverse—differentiated by national origin, class,
gender, generation and other differences—and these differences matter to their
incorporation in Europe and the US. As we will see, incorporation and the various terms
associated with it takes many forms—cultural, linguistic, economic, social; and takes
place in many places—in policies, the workplace, schools and educational institutions,
and in everyday life and in public debates and discourse about immigration in both
European countries and the US.
We will examine inclusion and incorporation these sites and processes of inclusion from
a comparative perspective—comparing both countries as well as differences between
immigrants.
Course Texts
All readings for this course will be available through E-reserve and Moodle.
The following book is recommended, as we will be reading more than one chapter from
it:
SOAN 283: Immigrants and Immigration in Europe and the US
Winter 2015
2
Marrow, Helen. New Destination Dreaming: Immigration, Race, and Legal Status in the
Rural American South.
Academic Policies and other Logistics
Academic Honesty
As stated in Carleton’s academic procedures and regulations: “It is assumed that a student
is the author of all course work (quizzes, problem sets, online contributions, tests, papers,
lab work, etc.) that he/she submits, whether for a grade or not, and that the work has not
been submitted for credit in another class without the instructor’s permission. Images,
ideas, data, audio clips, or phrases borrowed from others should be fully identified by
standard procedures for making such acknowledgment. All permitted collaboration with
others must still be acknowledged. Academic Honesty in the Writing of Essays and Other
Papers is one source for information on proper citation.”
Any act of academic dishonesty will be referred for appropriate action to the Academic
Standing Committee (ASC) via the Associate Dean of Students or the Associate Dean of
the College.
Further details can be found here:
http://apps.carleton.edu/campus/dos/asc/academic_regs/?policy_id=21359.
Accommodations for Students with Disabilities
Students who require an accommodation due to the impact of a disability should contact
me privately to discuss their specific needs. The office of Disability Services for
Students will also help coordinate reasonable accommodations for students with
documented disabilities. Please visit this URL to learn more:
https://apps.carleton.edu/campus/wellness/disability_services/
SOAN 283: Immigrants and Immigration in Europe and the US
Winter 2015
3
Course Assignments
Attendance and Participation. (5%)
This course requires that you do the readings, attend class and actively participate. This
also means being on time to class. After two unexcused absences, you will lose your
attendance and participation points.
Moodle Posts. (10%) 3 @ 3.3 each
Length: 1-1.5 pages single-spaced; Not longer!
Due Dates: Any readings starting Week 2 or later. Posted to Moodle by 7 pm the
evening before class. One must be posted before the midterm.
You will write three short Moodle response papers to a single reading.
In your paper, you should do the following:
 Briefly summarize the reading.
 Discuss a point or finding from the reading that you found particular interesting or
important.
 Link the article to another reading from the course, whether theoretical, conceptual,
or case-/group-based.
 Pose one discussion question for the class based on the topic, findings, or argument
that the article presents.
 Keep your paper under 1.5 pages! It’s not easy, but succinct and concise writing is a
good skill to learn.
Immigration in the News and Public Discourse Journals (15%) 3 @ 5% each
Length: 3-5 pages double-spaced
Due Dates: January 14, January 30, February 18
Three times during the term, you will turn in a memo discussing anything event,
experience, or anything else related to immigration. In most cases, I’m expecting this to
be a news story you find in major news media. It may also be something you personally
experience or observe from your everyday life or social world, such as a conversation
you participate in or overhear.
For each journal, you should:
 Discuss and describe the example. This is self-explanatory, but be sure to give the
context and source of your example. (1-1.5 pages)
 What is particular important or interesting about the example? Specifically, in your
own words, what does it tell us about immigration and immigrants? In doing this,
you should also connect your example to at least one reading from class, even just
briefly (1-1.5 pages), and to specific concepts and academic discussions about
immigration.
 Each of you will present one of your journal entries in class.
SOAN 283: Immigrants and Immigration in Europe and the US
Winter 2015
4
In-Class Article Presentation and Discussion (10%)
Each of you will pair up with another student in the course and present one
article/reading assigned for class.
Expectations for the presentation:
 Presentation style. How you present – whether to use video or power point is up to
you – but it is recommended that you use some kind of visual, audio, or other media,
to either outline points or for visual information.
You should plan to use about half of a class period (20-40 minutes), depending on the
article in question.
 Article summary. What are the article’s research question, data sources, and main
findings?
 Importance and Contribution. What does this reading tell us about immigration?
What is important about this article in your opinion?
 Supplementary information. You should present some additional information
relevant to the article, taken from sources outside of class. This could be additional
background information about the population being discussion; a comparison with
other groups or countries; a historical overview of the issues or group in question –
anything to “spice up” or put the article/reading in perspective. This can also be a
good basis for class discussion.
 Class discussion and questions. You should prepare two discussion questions for
class. You should also review the Moodle post questions and both integrate them into
your discussion/presentation, and/or prepare your own answer to them.
 You can’t write a Moodle post about the same article you present in class.
Midterm Essay Exam. (25%)
Due Date: Tuesday, Feb. 10th, 5 pm
There will be a take home midterm exam. You will receive the exam at least 4 days prior
to the due date.
Immigrant Interview. (15%)
Due Date: Monday, Feb. 16th (Week 7)
Each of you will interview someone who is either an immigrant or a ‘Second Generation’
immigrant. More information on this assignment will be presented during week 2 of the
course.
Final Paper / Final Essay (20%) Due the day of the scheduled Final Exam.
You will have the three options for a final project in the course:
1) An argument-based research paper on a topic of your choice using secondary sources.
2) An argument-based paper using your immigrant interview in combination with
secondary sources.
3) An essay exam based on course readings.
SOAN 283: Immigrants and Immigration in Europe and the US
Winter 2015
5
Some useful sources for information, current/recent events and statistics on
Immigration and Citizenship
Pew Research Center. http://www.pewhispanic.org/
Pew is an excellent source for polling data and accessible statistics on a range of topics.
See especially the Hispanic Trends Project.
Migration Policy Institute. http://www.migrationpolicy.org/
Migration Policy Institute provides both data and reports on a range of immigration
issues, both in the US and globally.
Immigration Policy Center. http://www.immigrationpolicy.org/
US Census. www.census.gov
Center For Immigration Studies. www.cis.org
SCHEDULE OF READINGS and TOPICS
Week 1
Introduction and Overview of Immigration in US and Europe
Jan 5
Introduction to Course
Film: Dreamers or Race Power of an Illusion
Jan 7





Jan 9

Immigration and Immigrants in the US
Portes and Rumbaut, “Nine Stories,” p. 1-11, “Who They Are and Why They
Come,” pp. 12-34
Golash-Boza, “Roots of Immigration to the United States,” pp. 15-44
Jose Vargas, “My Life as an Undocumented Immigrant,” New York Times,
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/26/magazine/my-life-as-an-undocumentedimmigrant.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
Optional:
Frequently requested Statistics on Immigration in the US:
http://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/frequently-requested-statisticsimmigrants-and-immigration-united-states
Passel, “The undocumented”: Read first 10 pages – executive summary
http://www.pewhispanic.org/files/reports/107.pdf
Immigration and Immigrants in Europe
Hansen, “Migration to Europe since 1945: Its History and its Lessons,” pp.
25-38
SOAN 283: Immigrants and Immigration in Europe and the US
Winter 2015

Week 2
Jan 12
Focus Migration Reports: http://focus-migration.hwwi.de/CountryProfiles.1349.0.html?&L=1
o Read one country’s profile and reflect on how it differs in different
respects from the US.
Studying Immigration and Citizenship
Inclusion, Boundaries, and Assimilation




Jan 14





Jan 16
6
Alba, “Bright vs. Blurred Boundaries: Second-Generation assimilation and
exclusion in France, Germany, and the United States”
Brown, Susan K. and Frank D. Bean. 2006. “Assimilation Models, Old and
New: Explaining a Long-Term Process” Washington, DC: Migration Policy
Institute. http://www.migrationinformation.org/Feature/display.cfm?ID=442
Levitt, “Salsa and Ketchup,”
Smith, Mexican New York
The Politics of Immigration – US
Huntington, “The Hispanic Challenge.” Foreign Policy 141 (March/April):
30-45.
Telles, “A Response to Huntington,” pp. 7-21
Bayoumi, “How does it Feel to Be a Problem?”
Why Are So Many Asian Americans Winning Spelling Bees?
o http://www.alternet.org/story/155831/why_do_asian_americans_win_s
o_many_spelling_bees
Zhou, “Are Asian Americans becoming white?”
The Politics of Immigration - Europe
 Bowen, “Europeans against Multiculturalism”
http://www.islamophobiatoday.com/2011/07/13/john-r-bowen-europeans-againstmulticulturalism/
 France
o Haddad and Balz, “The October Riots in France”
 Germany
o PEGIDA movement
o ‘Speak German at home’ http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe30380970
 Europe: Integrating Islam
o http://www.cfr.org/religion/europe-integrating-islam/p8252
 The UK:
o Muslim Integration: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/monkeycage/wp/2014/10/06/the-root-problem-of-muslim-integration-inbritain-is-alienation/
SOAN 283: Immigrants and Immigration in Europe and the US
Winter 2015
Week 3
7
Citizenship as Nationality
Jan 19


Bloemraad, “Ascriptive” Citizenship and Being American: Race, Birthplace,
and Immigrants’ Membership in the United States.”
Brubaker, “The Return of Assimilation,”
Jan 21


Howard, “The Politics of Citizenship in Europe,”
Anil, “No More Foreigners? The Reform of Citizenship in Germany, 19902000”


Brettell, “Political Belonging and Cultural Belonging,”
Ehrkamp and Leitner, “Transnationalism and Imaginings of Citizenship,”
Jan 23
Week 4
Citizenship as Rights
Jan 26

Fujiwara, “Mothers Without Citizenship,” pp. 279-295
Film: Sentenced Home
Jan 28


Focus Reports - Integration Policies in Europe
Reading TBA

Readings TBA
Jan 30
Week 5
Immigrant Integration: Work and the Economy in the US
Feb 2

New Destination Dreaming, “Introduction,” Ch. 2, “The Americans Give You
the Opportunity to Work and Grow,”

Dhingra, Life Behind the Lobby


Hodagneu-Sotelo, “I’m here but I’m there: transnational Latina motherhood”
Hodagneu-Sotelo, “Domestica”
Feb 4
Feb 6
SOAN 283: Immigrants and Immigration in Europe and the US
Winter 2015
Week 6
Feb 9
8
Education, Youth, and the Second Generation
Midterm Break – No Class
Feb 11


Abrego, “I Can’t go to college” because I don’t have papers”
Telles and Ortiz, “Education,” in Generations of Exclusion


Lee, “‘Traditional’ and ‘Americanized’ Hmong Students,” pp. 50-87
Waters, “Black Identities”
Feb 13
Week 7
Education, Youth, and the Second Generation
Feb 16


Keaton, “Arrogant Assimilationism: National Identity Politics and AfricanOrigin Muslim Girls in the Other France”
Ajrouch, “Gender, Race, and Symbolic Boundaries among Arab American
Adolescents,”
Film: Young, Muslim, and French
Feb 18


Worbs, “Between School and Labor Market: the Second Generation in
Germany”
Faas, “Hybridity among Turkish Youth in England and Germany.”

Smith, “In Ticuani, he goes crazy: the Second Generation negotiates Gender,”
Feb 20
Week 8
Immigrant Integration and Identities
Feb 23

Maxwell, “Caribbean and South Asian identification with British society: the
importance of perceived discrimination.” Ethnic and Racial Studies 32(8):
1449-1469.


Ehrkamp, “We Turks are No Germans,”
Silberman, “The Employment of Second Generations in France,”
Feb 25
Feb 27
SOAN 283: Immigrants and Immigration in Europe and the US
Winter 2015

Week 9
Mar 2


Mar 4
New Destination Dreaming, Ch. 5, “The White Americans Have Always Been
Very Friendly,”
The Politics of Belonging
The US
Maira, “Racial Profiling in the War on Terror,”
Perez, “We Are Americans: Undocumented Students Pursuing the American
Dream”


Europe
Ewing, “The Honor Killing”
Bowen, Blaming Islam

Reading TBA
Mar 6
Week 10
9
Presentations and Concluding Remarks
Mar 9-11
 Interview Presentations