In The News

Will Japan Emerge from its Shell? – Part I

Edward J. Lincoln February 3, 2010
For the world’s second largest economy, Japan takes a decidedly backseat approach to involvement in global affairs. While there are no rules to force global intercourse, Japan-specialist Edward J. Lincoln believes that as a key beneficiary and user of global public goods, Japan should become more involved. But the hurdles preventing greater interchange between the world and the Japanese are many...

A Modern Tale of Meatpacking and Immigrants

Kate Linthicum February 2, 2010
For many years, Grand Island in Nebraska has hosted many immigrants passing through in search of work. But migration has come in distinctive waves: refugees from the Vietnam War in the 1970s, refugees from Eastern Europe in the 1990s, Mexican and Latino immigrants in the last couple of decades, and now a new wave of African refugees, including Somalis and Sudanese. Many of the new immigrants are...

Immigration in Italy: Southern Misery

January 15, 2010
Rosarno, Italy has recently experienced a wave of anti-immigrant violence targeted at Africans, many of whom work as crop-pickers. Causes of such violence are multi-faceted. An influx of immigrants, many of whom entered illegally, created tensions with the existing population over employment and race. Worsening the situation, cheap citrus imports from countries like Spain and Brazil left Italian...

Deported Uighurs Highlight China’s Ties to Cambodia

Brendan Brady January 11, 2010
China’s use of its economic power to foster investment or effect policy has acquired a new dimension with the repatriation of Uighur asylum seekers in Cambodia. As a signatory to the 1951 international Refugee Convention, Cambodia is obligated not to return refugees that may face persecution. But its role in the repatriation to China of 20 Uighurs, who may face prosecution for their alleged...

Is a US Brain Drain on the Horizon?

Vivek Wadhwa December 8, 2009
While a second Great Depression may have been averted, the unintended consequences of the Great Recession are just beginning to be felt. One such effect is reverse migration. As noted immigration researcher Vivek Wadhwa reveals, many foreign-born workers in high-tech industries are returning home or contemplating such a return. The reasons for this are many, including better economic prospects or...

How to Let Islam and the West Live in Harmony

Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono November 23, 2009
The recently-re-elected president of Indonesia, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, says that religiosity will continue to rise in coming years. But it will come against the backdrop of rising multiculturalism and tolerance as people realize that cooperation and democracy can help transcend global challenges like climate change and terrorism. To ensure this tolerance is secured, Yudhoyono calls for the...

Money Trickles North as Mexicans Help Relatives

Marc Lacey November 23, 2009
Mexicans immigrants in the US have long sent money back to their families, providing a vital source of capital to a country where almost half of the population lives in poverty. The global recession, and the consequent lay-offs has left many Mexican immigrants unemployed, leading to a 13.4 percent drop in remittances. Mexico is suffering too. But Mexican families are now combining funds to...