Category Archives: Refugees

The Erosion of US Asylum Protections

Posted on 07/29/2024 by Janice Jayes

It’s been a bad year for international “rule of law.” The escalating war in Ukraine and the wretched failure of the United Nations (UN) to respond to the horror in Gaza deserve the attention they have received, but other international … Continue reading →

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Ukrainian Refugees and National(ist) Politics in Eastern Europe

Posted on 02/12/2024 by Richard Esbenshade

In an article in our last issue (November-December Public i), I used the case of Hungary—its positive reception of Ukrainian refugees, alongside its negative role in hindering EU political and material support of Ukraine in its defense against Russian aggression—to … Continue reading →

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Ukraine, Hungarian Refugee Politics, and the Future of Migrants in the EU

Posted on 11/18/2023 by Richard Esbenshade

The February 24, 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine unleashed, in addition to death, destruction, and hardship on the Ukrainian people as a whole, a wave of refugees not seen in Europe since World War II. Over six million Ukrainians were … Continue reading →

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Progressive Dilemmas on Ukraine

Posted on 05/13/2022 by Richard Esbenshade

The Left has tangled itself in knots over how to respond to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Early statements, such as by CodePink and Black Alliance for Peace, while putatively opposing war, laid emphasis on US and Western responsibility, NATO’s … Continue reading →

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The Border We Build Every Day: Guatemala in Champaign-Urbana

Posted on 11/15/2021 by Janice Jayes

The border mechanisms that capture headlines—the roundups, the cages, and the deportations—deserve attention, but this human sorting isn’t confined to the moment or space of the frontier crossing. It is part of the food we buy, the clothes we wear, … Continue reading →

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Counting the Costs of War

Posted on 04/03/2021 by Seth Lerner

“The refugee crisis” is a big and scary concept, but to many of us it is just that, conceptual. However, a September 2020 study has found that between 37 and 59 million people from 12 different countries have been displaced … Continue reading →

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Opposition to the Proposed ICE Dwight Detention Center Continues.

Posted on 06/13/2019 by Janice Jayes

Efforts to halt the construction of a 1200-bed Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention facility in Dwight, Illinois continue at both the state and local level. The proposed facility would be built and operated by the Virginia-based, for-profit prison company … Continue reading →

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It’s Not an Immigration Crisis, It’s a Global Labor Tragedy

Posted on 05/09/2019 by Janice Jayes

An underclass of “undocumented” workers in the U.S., sweatshops in Asia, child miners in Africa, contract ironworkers in Dubai … we live in a world of globalized labor exploitation. This doesn’t just mean a world where workers in many countries … Continue reading →

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For a World Without Borders

Posted on 03/12/2019 by Tariq Khan

Speech by Tariq Khan at the UIUC Ayuda Rally at Anniversary Plaza, November 29, 2018. UIUC Ayuda was a student group/campaign to raise awareness about and material support for the Central American caravans made up of people seeking asylum. I … Continue reading →

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After Four Months in Detention, 8 Year-Old Girl Reunited With Family in C-U

Posted on 11/14/2018 by Brian Dolinar

This eight-year-old girl (on the right in the photo) traveled 4,000 miles and spent four months in detention to get a hug from her mother. They were reunited last week at Willard Airport in Champaign. The news reports about children … Continue reading →

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Des-Ordenes Presidenciales

Posted on 02/23/2017 by Korinta Maldonado

Comenzamos con lo que en gran medida ha estado ausente en los llamados por los derechos de los inmigrantes: estamos asentados en tierras ocupadas como resultado de políticas de remoción y / o genocidio de los pueblos Nativo Americanos. En … Continue reading →

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Executive Dis-order?

Posted on 02/23/2017 by Korinta Maldonado

We begin with what has largely been absent in the calls for immigrant rights: we sit on occupied land as a result of removal policies and/or genocide of Native Americans. In a dramatic surge that sent shockwaves through immigrant communities … Continue reading →

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“Anti-Refugeeism without Refugees” in Eastern Europe

Posted on 11/18/2016 by Richard Esbenshade

Analysts of post-World War II, post-Holocaust Eastern Europe coined the term “Anti-Semitism without Jews” to characterize the uncanny persistence of prejudice in countries mostly cleansed of any actual Jewish presence. The category of “Jew” took on a symbolic character, incorporating … Continue reading →

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Activists Among Us: Claire Szoke

Posted on 09/02/2016 by Julie Laut

By Julie Laut Claire Szoke is an activist among us who has worked tirelessly on behalf of social justice issues for over forty years. She is currently the co-chair of Central Illinois Jobs With Justice, part-time director at the Channing-Murray … Continue reading →

Posted in Immigration, International, Refugees, Women | Comments Off on Activists Among Us: Claire Szoke

The Syrian Refugee Crisis and the Problem of Categories

Posted on 08/17/2016 by Janice Jayes

The Syrian refugee crisis is ultimately a problem about categories, not numbers. Yes, the numbers are overwhelming. But, unfortunately, after years of tragic stories about the 11 million displaced by the Syrian war, international sympathy is waning even as the … Continue reading →

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