The Ethics of Immigration

“The Ethics of Immigration illuminates the field that Carens has played a pivotal role in founding. A rich and sophisticated discussion of the normative demands of migration, it is also a subtle meditation on the methodological commitments of such theorizing. Carens has written the required text for the political theory of migration.” –David Owen, Professor of Social & Political Philosophy, University of Southampton

“Joseph Carens’s book is a masterful achievement. In strikingly accessible prose, Carens applies the principles of democracy to immigration. The results are sometimes surprising, often provocative, and always well-argued. Traversing both ideal and non-ideal theory, this is the book to read on immigration.”–Jeff Spinner-Halev, Kenan Eminent Professor of Political Ethics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

“No other author has examined the ethical imperatives and dilemmas of immigration as thoroughly as Joseph Carens. In this book he successfully blends philosophical reflections with practical illustrations and speaks to a broad audience of citizens in wealthy democracies who are troubled about their moral right to exclude immigrants from access to their territory and citizenship.”–Rainer Bauböck, European University Institute, Florence

“Carens’s long-awaited book reprises many of his founding contributions to the field while also advancing them significantly. Carens navigates deftly between grand theory and contextual analysis, between the demands of realism and those of justice, to achieve a synoptic and clarifying analysis of migration ethics. This is an optimistic work of political theory, one motivated by the author’s conviction that justice is possible when democratic states pursue immigration policies ‘true to their most basic commitments’.”–Linda Bosniak, Distinguished Professor of Law, Rutgers University

“Elegantly argued…Carens covers the plight of refugees, guest workers, and other displaced persons with nuance and sympathy.”–Publisher’s Weekly

“The Ethics of Immigration is a rigorous, teacherly touchstone work of political
ethics with a methodological tension at its core…a tour de force”
–Linda Bosniak, Rutgers University, ^lEthics

This lucid, challenging and engaging book will shape the debate within political theory and philosophy for years to come