A country of immigrants no more? The securitization of immigration in the National Security Strategies of the United States of America. Issue 1 (1st January 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Colomé-Menéndez, Desirée; Koops, Joachim A.; Weggemans, Daan
• Is Part Of: Global affairs. Volume 7:Issue 1(2021)
• Page Start: 1
• Page End: 26
• Publication Date: 2021-01-01
• Subjects: Immigration -- national security -- agenda setting -- National Security Strategy; International relations -- Periodicals; World politics -- Periodicals; Geopolitics -- Periodicals; 327.05
• DOI: 10.1080/23340460.2021.1888652
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2334-0460

Abstract

ABSTRACT: This article studies the securitization of immigration in the United States of America (U.S.), through the analysis of the National Security Strategies (NSS) published between 2002 and 2017, using a two-layered analytical framework that combines securitization theory and agenda setting theory. A discursive analysis of each NSS documents shed some light on how immigration and immigration-related issues emerged, were removed or were prioritized in the security agenda, and how they were framed (or not) as threats. Different contexts in which these documents were published were also taken into consideration, including major crisis or "shocks, " as well as political or institutional changes. The article also considered shifts in the conception of American identity, and the prevailing public opinion on immigration. The main findings demonstrate that the securitization of immigration should be understood as a dynamic process that depends on a variety of factors that change over time.