Forced Displacement and the Politics of Seeking Refuge

In the last decade, the number of people who are forcibly displaced has more than doubled, and today the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees estimates that 108.4 million people are forcibly displaced. Among this group, people face distinct legal, social, economic, and political challenges according to their status as refugees, asylum seekers, internally displaced persons, and others who do not fit these categories. In this course, we will examine the political conditions that forcibly displace people across and within countries including persecution, conflict, and environmental disasters exacerbated by climate change as well as their experiences of seeking refuge. How do international, state, local, and non-governmental institutions cooperate to manage the needs of forcibly displaced persons? In what ways do political pressures create opportunities for and barriers to effective policies to address refugee issues? How do these structural challenges affect forcibly displaced persons, and what strategies do advocates use to improve the human rights of these populations? Throughout the course, we will bear in mind the interconnectedness of macro-level policy-making and micro-level issues that affect the daily lives of individual humans experiencing forced displacement. Note: This course counts towards either the undergraduate Comparative Politics subfield or the International Politics subfield.
Course Attributes: AS SSC; AS SC; EN S; FA SSC; AR SSC

Forced Displacement and the Politics of Seeking Refuge

POLITICAL SCIENCE 4046

Section 01