Strangers and Settlers: Migration Politics in a Local's World

Author/Contributor(s):	Lacina, Bethany
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Date:	08/25/2026
Binding:	Paperback
Condition:	NEW

In Strangers and Settlers, Bethany Lacina provides the first global study of nativism that features a unified account of the drivers of backlash against international and domestic migration. Using information from censuses, public opinion, mobility laws, and political parties, Lacina describes a world of nested hierarchies of locals, and shows how governments use a range of policies to ensure locals maintain political and economic superiority over newcomers, particularly international migrants. An unprecedentedly comprehensive study, this book offers new insights about migration politics, highlighting that the key to making sense of nativism is understanding whether and how regimes, residents, and newcomers clash over controlling who is local.