A detailed exploration of the most sweeping government border closures in human history during the Covid-19 pandemic and the implications for the future of global mobility.
More people traveled internationally in 2019 than in any year in history. After COVID began its rapid spread throughout the world, though, international travel plummeted, and nations across the world hardened their borders. For the first time, governments took the same tools that have been used against less privileged migrants and asylum seekers and turned them on citizens from countries that had long enjoyed relatively unfettered travel--and sometimes on their own citizens.
In When the World Closed Its Doors, Edward Alden and Laurie Trautman tell the story of how nearly every country in the world shut its borders to respond to an external threat and explain how this global shock to the system ended up transforming state border policies around the world. They detail the consequences of the COVID border restrictions--couples separated for years, children blocked from reuniting with their parents, container ship workers moving essential goods trapped at sea, pregnant citizens barred from returning home--and explain why governments used their harshest containment measures on those coming from outside. Throughout, Alden and Trautman focus on human stories to show the multiple impacts that states' increasing restrictiveness has had--economic, demographic, social, and political. And the fallout continues: governments left unchecked will continue to restrict borders with little regard to the collateral damage and disruption they cause.
A sweeping overview of the re-bordering of the world, both during and after 2020, this synthetic, wide-angle view of a singular shock to the international systems of travel and migration highlights why citizens need better protections and governments more robust guardrails.
Industry Reviews
"The authors do a masterful recounting of the impact that border closures around the world had during the Covid-19 pandemic, but the real genius of this book lies in the careful lessons they distill on how we can manage borders better both during regular times and during future pandemics. It's a must-read for anyone concerned about growing economic interdependence among nations and the future of mobility." -- Andrew Selee, President, Migration Policy Institute
"This book brings an invaluable contribution to carrying forward some of the lessons learned from the Covid-19 pandemic, which many governments have failed to do. By humanizing the impacts of border restrictions enacted by countries around the world, Alden and Trautman make a compelling case for protecting cross-border mobility, which is becoming increasingly vulnerable even as more people live cross-border lives. When the World Closed its Doors is an
essential read for anyone whose personal or professional life crosses borders." -- Christine Gregoire, CEO, Challenge Seattle, and Former Governor of Washington State
"By combining thought-provoking analysis with storytelling that allows us to zoom in on and connect with specific experiences, Alden and Trautman expertly breakdown the complexities of the pandemic's impacts on communities such as asylum seekers, ties to the increased politicization of immigration that we've witnessed through moves from Brexit to the handling of the US southern border, and potential ramifications for the future of government authority. This
book is an important contribution to how we understand the world we now find ourselves in--and how we can work to open doors for all of humanity." -- María Teresa Kumar, Co-Founder and President, Voto
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