Kanstroom on his new book "Deportation Nation"

I had the opportunity to hear Daniel Kanstroom give a seminar about his new book Deportation Nation Outsiders in American History.

The book gives a historical account of deportation in American history outlining the tension between the country's identity as an "immigrant nation" and its policies towards immigrants. He traces everything from the Alien Sedition acts to the Native American Removal Act to what he thinks is the turning point in American history: Fung Yue Ting vs. U.S. in 1893, which stated that "the right to deport is as absolute as the right to prevent."

Kanstroom notes that there has been very little academic work done on deportation, and he is hoping to change that through developing a theory around it. He classifies two types of deportation: 1) Extended Border Control which is a form of deportation related to the nation-state and is based on the principles of sovereignty 2) Post Entry Social Control which is a form of deportation that deals with those in legal status who are subject to possible conduct that could get them deported. It is a form of social control to get rid of the most undesired.

He notes four recent trends: 1) There has been a shift in policy from extended border control to post entry social control. 2) Since 9/11 deportation has been aimed at particular groups 3) There has been an expansion of informal deportation mechanisms i.e expedited removal 4) There has been increased state/local involvement.

Deportation can happen to anyone that is not a U.S Citizen- Green card holders, those on student visas etc. The numbers are staggering. According to Kanstroom, there are well over 50 million people who can be deported. Since 1977, 34 million have been. Perhaps more disturbing is that deportation is largely under the raider of the law. Those who are subject to deportation are detained, do not have access to council, have minimal if any 4th amendment rights, no trial by jury or judicial review. Moreover, there is a retroactive aspect: an individual can be deported even if the crime that he/she committed was not a deportable offense at the time of its act.