Ethics of Immigration Conference Friday-Saturday, November 6-7, 2015

The Mudd Center for Ethics at Washington and Lee University will host a conference on "The Ethics of Immigration" as a part of its series on "The Ethics of Citizenship" on November 6 & 7 at Washington and Lee University. The conference will address questions about the moral status of national borders, the normative foundation of the modern state's right to control immigration, the connection between immigration and citizenship, the gendered and racial dimensions of migration and immigration policy, the ethics of journalistic coverage of immigration, and the ethical status of undocumented migration, among other issues. It will also feature a lunchtime panel discussion about some of the ethical challenges surrounding current U.S. immigration policy. The keynote address and conference are free and open to the public. However, those who would like to attend the lunchtime panel discussion are asked to RSVP here.

Conference Schedule

Friday, November 6, Stackhouse Theater

  • 4:30 p.m.:
    • Keynote Address: Joseph Carens, Professor of Political Science, University of Toronto, "Immigration and Citizenship"

Saturday, November 7, Hillel House Multipurpose Room

  • 8:30-9:00 a.m.: 
    • Continental Breakfast
  • 9:00-10:10 a.m.:
    • Sarah Song, Professor of Law and Associate Professor of Political Science, UC-Berkeley, "Immigration and the Limits of Democracy"
    • Commentator:  Robin Le Blanc, Professor of Politics and Director of Women's and Gender Studies, W&L
  • 10:20-11:30 a.m.:
    • Shelley Wilcox, Professor of Philosophy, San Francisco State University, "Unlocking Global Care Chains: Toward a Promising Feminist Approach to Immigration Justice"
    • Commentator: Melina Bell, Associate Professor of Philosophy and Law, W&L
  • 11:40-12:50 p.m.:
    • Cybelle Fox, Associate Professor of Sociology, UC-Berkeley, "Unauthorized Welfare: The Origins of Immigration Status Restrictions in American Social Policy"
    • Commentator: Jon Eastwood, Laurent Boetsch Term Associate Professor of Sociology, W&L
  • 1:00-2:20 p.m.:
    • Lunch/Lunch Panel Discussion:
      • David Baluarte, Assistant Clinical Professor of Law and Director, Immigrant Rights Clinic, W&L;
      • Margaret Hu, Assistant Professor of Law, W&L;
      • Lucas Guttentag, Senior Counselor to the Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS);
      • David Martin, Warner-Booker Distinguished Professor of International Law, University of Virginia School of Law
      • Moderator: Sandy Reiter, Associate Professor of Business Administration, W&L
  • 2:30-3:40 p.m.:
    • Linda Bosniak, Distinguished Professor of Law, Rutgers School of Law-Camden, "Wrongs, Rights, and Irregular Immigrants"
    • Commentator: David Baluarte, Assistant Clinical Professor of Law and Director, Immigrant Rights Clinic, W&L
  • 3:50-5:00 p.m.: 
    • Félix Gutiérrez, Professor of Journalism and Communication, University of Southern California, "Media Insiders and Media Outsiders: Ethical Issues in the News Coverage of Immigration"
    • Commentator: Aly Colón, Knight Professor of Journalism Ethics, W&L
  • 5:10-6:20 p.m.:
    • Reyna Grande, award-winning novelist and memoirist, "The Distance Between Us: Immigration and the American Dream"
    • Commentator: Ellen Mayock, Ernest Williams II Professor of Spanish, W&L