The Paradox of the Mexico-U.S. Border

01/22/19 • 48 min

Great Talks at American Philosophical Society

Why is it that at a time when Mexican migration across the Southern U.S. border is historically low, public dialogue surrounding the Mexico-U.S. borderland continues to be divisive and heated? On this episode, Dr. Patrick Spero and Dr. Douglas Massey explore the history and paradoxes of the Mexico-U.S. borderland. They delve into the decades of research that Dr. Massey and colleagues have done for the Mexican Migration Project. Ultimately, they consider what, if any, policy decisions could and should be made to resolve the limbo of undocumented workers and the increasingly bombastic rhetoric around immigration issues in the United States.

Dr. Douglas Massey is the Henry G. Bryant Professor of Sociology and Public Affairs at Princeton University and an APS Member. He has been the co-Director of the Mexican Migration Project with Dr. Jorge Durand for over 35 years. Dr. Massey has published widely on international migration, race and housing, discrimination, education, urban poverty, stratification, and Latin America, especially Mexico.

Full recording of Douglas Massey’s talk entitled “The Mexico-U.S. Border in the American Imagination,” APS Meeting, April 2015
Douglas Massey, “ The Mexico-U.S. Border in the American Imagination”, Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, vol. 260 no. 2 (June 2016): 160-177.
Douglas Massey, “ Understanding America’s Immigration ‘Crisis’”, Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, vol. 151 no. 3 (September 2007): 309-327.

Full recording of Douglas Massey’s talk entitled “The Mexico-U.S. Border in the American Imagination,” APS Meeting, April 2015
Douglas Massey, “ The Mexico-U.S. Border in the American Imagination”, Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, vol. 260 no. 2 (June 2016): 160-177.
Douglas Massey, “ Understanding America’s Immigration ‘Crisis’”, Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, vol. 151 no. 3 (September 2007): 309-327.

Previous Episode

The Life and Times of J. Robert Oppenheimer

Dr. Patrick Spero discusses the life and legacy of J. Robert Oppenheimer with Dr. Martin Sherwin, co-author with Kai Bird of the Pulitzer-prize winning biography American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer. He is professor emeritus at Tufts University and a University Professor at George Mason University.

Full recording of J. Robert Oppenheimer’s talk at the November 1945 APS Meeting: Symposium on Atomic Energy and Its Implications

Article entitled “Atomic Weapons” by J. Robert Oppenheimer published in the Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society in 1946

Next Episode

A Long History of Climate Science

As we face the consequences of climate change, it may surprise some to learn just how long scientists—and denialists—have been talking about this problem. On this episode, Dr. Patrick Spero talks with two leading scientists and APS Members, Dr. Walter Munk and Dr. Charles Kennel, about the oceans and climate change. They explore how their interest in climate science grew out of work in oceanography (in Dr. Munk’s case going back to World War Two), reflect on the state of the oceans, climate, and what it all means for policymakers today.

Dr. Walter Munk, described as the “Einstein of the oceans,” was professor emeritus of geophysics and held the Secretary of the Navy/Chief of Naval Operations Oceanography Chair at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego. He gave a talk at the APS in April 2013 titled, “Corrigendum: Where the Swell Begins.”

Dr. Charles Kennel is Distinguished Professor, Vice-Chancellor, and Director emeritus at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego. He gave a talk at the APS in April 2014 titled, “The Hiatus in Global Warming.”

Full Recording of Dr. Munk’s talk at the April 2013 APS Meeting
Full Recording of Dr. Kennel’s talk at the April 2014 APS Meeting
Walter Munk, “ The Perfect Storm,” Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, Vol. 157, No. 4 (December 2013): 369-392.
Charles F. Kennel, “ ‘Hiatus’ in Global Warming: Paradox and Complexity in Climate Science,” Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, Vol. 159, No. 4 (December 2015): 367-408.