As I wrap up my first academic year at the University of Minnesota, I want to express my gratitude for the colleagues who have supported me through this transition, particularly Michele Waslin, the IHRC’s Assistant Director, and this year's Graduate Assistants: Ibrahim Hirsi (Fall) and Isabel Bethke (Spring). Members of the IHRC’s Advisory Council have also provided invaluable counsel throughout the year. Lastly, the staff at the Institute for Global Studies have been incredibly patient as I gradually learn the ropes. Thank you all!

It has been a busy year! I learned so much from the wide-ranging discussions the IHRC hosted or cosponsored this past year, and I am looking forward to the collaborations that lie ahead. I’m particularly inspired by the ongoing research projects of our Graduate Fellowship recipients. The scholarship of our Summer 2025 and AY 2025-2026 cohorts, which you can read more about here, highlights the incredible interdisciplinary scholarship in Migration Studies that is taking place here at the U. The IHRC is proud to contribute to fostering such a vibrant intellectual community!

These are turbulent times but I remain committed to the idea that studying the history of migration helps us to better understand the present and strive towards a more just and equitable future. May we strive together! 

Sincerely,

Llana Barber

The IHRC has awarded four IHRC Summer Graduate Fellowships. These awards provide summer funding for migration-related research to UMN graduate students. We received more than 20 applications from a variety of colleges and graduate programs, indicating the vast array of migration-related scholarship taking place at UMN.

Congratulations to our 2025 IHRC Summer Graduate Fellows!

Yun Jung Kim, PhD Candidate in History, "Bases and Borders: US Military Bases and Migration Control in the Pacific (WWII-Present)."

Alisa Kuzmina, PhD Candidate in History, "Caught in the Cold War: Immigrant Families in Minnesota."

Khoi Nguyen, PhD Candidate in American Studies, "The Borders Crossed Us Too: Global Indigeneities, Migration, and World-Making."

Nasema Zeerak, PhD Candidate in International Policy, Humphrey School of Public Affairs, "Afghanistan as Method: War, Peace, and Resistance from Exile."

Speakers Charlotte Brooks of Baruch College; Hardeep Dhillon of the University of Pennsylvania; Beth Lew-Williams of Princeton University; Eva Payne of the University of Mississippi; and moderator Naoko Wake of Michigan State University explained why the Page Act continues to be relevant today.

You can watch the recording here.

Migration Studies Workshop

On April 30, Institute for Advance Study (IAS) Postdoctoral Fellow Eduardo Bautista Duran presented his work-in-progress entitled "Negotiating Order in Turbulent Times: The Imperial Origins of Policing in Gold Rush California." He examined how US police interventions in California immediately after the US took possession of the territory correlates to empire-building, racialized power, colonial domination, and global capitalism. Participants read the manuscript prior to the event and offered useful suggestions.

The IHRC hopes to hold additional Migration Studies Workshops in the future. If you are interested in presenting your work-in-progress, please let us know.

Opportunities to Present Work-In-Progress This Summer

This summer, the UMN Law School's Binger Center for New Americans and the Immigration History Research Center are planning to host periodic conversations on immigration-related scholarship-in-progress by UMN faculty, staff, and students. The goal is to provide an opportunity for individuals to present early-stage immigration-related projects at in-person and relatively informal discussion sessions over the summer.  

UMN scholars may complete this form to indicate your interest in participating to discuss presented works, to present your own work-in-progress as a presenter, or both. We would ideally like these to be in-person events, but will try to accommodate those who want to participate but will not be on campus over the summer months.

IHRC Hiring Graduate Assistant for Next Academic Year

The IHRC will be hiring a Graduate Assistant for the 2025-2026 academic year at 25% time. This position is open to ABD PhD students only. For details, please see this link. Applications are due by May 31, and should include a CV along with a cover letter explaining the applicant's interest in the position and their qualifications. Please reach out to us at ihrc@umn.edu if you have any questions.

Graduate students from any department or college at UMN with an interest in global migration and/or immigration to the US are encouraged to join IHRC's Im/migration Graduate Student Group. This is an opportunity to network with other students and scholars, share your work in progress, attend social events, and receive career development information. Students can contact us at ihrc@umn.edu for more information about the graduate student group.

Evan Taparata (University of Colorado), Jecca Namakkal (Duke University), Kalyani Ramnath (Columbia University), and Amy Chazkel (Columbia University) are co-editing an issue of Radical History Review titled “mobility regimes.” The editors are hoping to bring together scholars, practitioners, and historically-minded activists from a wide range of subfields and disciplines in order to make critical connections across the expansive world of migration studies. Abstracts are due June 15, 2025. More information and a call for proposals is available here.

"Women Seeking Asylum in the Age of Trump" by Carol Cleaveland and IHRC Assistant Director Michele Waslin appeared in The Gender Policy Report.

The New York Times ran a story, Are Trump's Actions Truly Unprecedented? We Asked 35 Historians. Several immigration-related executive actions are analyzed by historians.

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