City of Refuge: New Immigration in Chicago and Beyond
City of Refuge: New Immigration in Chicago and Beyond
This symposium will look at municipal responses to migration and the various meanings and applications of "refuge."
Chicago and other cities like it have historically been destinations for migrants, asylum seekers, and refugees. Seeking safety during this contemporary period of mass migration, newcomers encounter a new policy environment. Chicago’s Welcoming City ordinance establishes a policy framework to receive newcomers into the urban social fabric while attempting to avoid municipal discrimination. Welcoming Cities have also become targets, shouldering the broader responsibilities and challenges of offering refuge in the United States as a national concern. In this symposium, scholars will trace the outlines and nuances generating one of the largest historic migrations ever seen in the Western Hemisphere, and follow these journeys in search of safety through transit countries and into the United States. We will address urban experiences in Chicago and elsewhere for newcomers and residents, seeking to better understand how we imagine refuge and how this concept is enacted, debated, and negotiated in daily life.
This event is in-person only. Free and open to the University of Chicago community. Campus ID required for entry.
SCHEDULE
10:00 – 11:00 am
Virtual Keynote by Bill Ong Hing
11:00 am – 12:50 pm
Immigration Through Latin American Contexts
Panelists: Veronica Zubillaga, Matthew David Bird, Nicole Hallett, Matt Wilde
1:00 – 2:00 pm
Lunch
2:00 – 3:50 pm
Refuge in the United States
Panelists: Lindsay Gifford, Ania Aizman, Chiara Galli, Domenic Vitiello
This symposium will look at municipal responses to migration and the various meanings and applications of "refuge."