Immigration and the American Ethos

Above and beyond the influence of prejudice and ethno-nationalism, perceptions of 'civic fairness' shape how most Americans navigate immigration controversies.

Morris Levy (Author), Matthew Wright (Author)

9781108488815, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 2 January 2020

240 pages, 21 b/w illus.
23 x 15.3 x 2 cm, 0.52 kg

'Immigration and the American Ethos is a must-read.' Tom K. Wong, American Politics

What do Americans want from immigration policy and why? In the rise of a polarized and acrimonious immigration debate, leading accounts see racial anxieties and disputes over the meaning of American nationhood coming to a head. The resurgence of parochial identities has breathed new life into old worries about the vulnerability of the American Creed. This book tells a different story, one in which creedal values remain hard at work in shaping ordinary Americans' judgements about immigration. Levy and Wright show that perceptions of civic fairness - based on multiple, often competing values deeply rooted in the country's political culture - are the dominant guideposts by which most Americans navigate immigration controversies most of the time and explain why so many Americans simultaneously hold a mix of pro-immigrant and anti-immigrant positions. The authors test the relevance and force of the theory over time and across issue domains.

1. What do Americans want from immigration policy, and why?
2. Civic fairness and group-centrism
3. Functional assimilation, humanitarianism and support for legal admissions
4. Civic fairness and the legal-ill
Bibliography
Index.

Subject Areas: Political ideologies [JPF], Politics & government [JP], Migration, immigration & emigration [JFFN], Regional & national history [HBJ]