Public Policy Discourse: Anti-terrorism and Migration

Professor Maureen Duffy has published the Chapter “Public Policy Discourse: Anti-terrorism and Migration” in Handbook of Political Discourse, published by Elgar Handbooks in Political Science and edited by Piotr Cap.

The book synthesizes a range of substantive disciplines to consider formative traditions and the different interdisciplinary domains over which political discourse can extend. Beyond being interdisciplinary, the book is also transnational, drawing on the work of scholars from a range of national jurisdictions.

The Chapter continues Professor Duffy’s extensive interdisciplinary work, arguing that flawed political discourses can taint legal discourses, and that this continues in a problematic cycle. The Chapter particularly critiques the long-standing political myth that increased migration increases the risk of terrorist attacks. This myth has repercussions well beyond the political realm, and, as the Chapter demonstrates, has given rise to problematic legal developments, particularly within the United States in recent years. The Chapter draws on particular examples, such as the building of “the Wall,” at the U.S.-Mexico Border; the so-called “Muslim Ban,” which began as a unilateral restriction on travel for people from certain predominantly Muslim countries; and the “family-separation” policy, under which the U.S. Government removed children from migrant families and detained them in often-horrific conditions. The Chapter traces the beginning of these legal policies through the political discourses that gained traction disturbingly quickly, and which continue to undermine the legal realm relating to migration.