There is increasing human mobility in the world today, but diminishing opportunities for unskilled migrants to cross national borders legally. This has led to intensifying illegal migration, attempts by governments to control this movement under the guise of national security, as well as debates concerning human rights abuses against transnational migrants.

These processes must be understood in relation to the shifting global political landscape since the end of the Cold War. In this context, the emergence of phenomena such as ‘human trafficking’ and the ’war on terror’ are the most recent developments that affect the regulation of transnational mobility. This course will investigate the changing relationship between transnational mobility, state regulation, and migrant subjectivity. It offers a global and historical overview using case studies from around the world.