The Center For Free Emigration

Germany's Berlin Wall fell over a decade ago, but numerous other Berlin Walls enslave millions across the world in the form of prohibitive emigration policies. While cognizance is high with regard to human rights abuses such as censorship and religious persecution, awareness of state enslavement is relatively low. This is a significant deficit since prohibition of emigration strikes to the foundation of human rights: self-ownership.

It is the purpose of FreeEmigration.com to highlight regimes with prohibitive emigration policies, promote the principle of self-ownership central to human rights, and contribute to the abolition of state enslavement.

photo credit-www.wall-berlin.org

Counting the Uncountable: Overseas Americans 17 May 2013, 11:53 am

The immigration debate in the United States often focuses on how many foreign born enter and reside in the country. Much less attention is paid to Americans who live abroad — a population estimated at anywhere from 2 million to 7 million. This article examines the challenges of enumerating this population and also explores top destinations for American expats, their livelihoods, and motivations for leaving the United States.

Integrating Europe's Muslim Minorities: Public Anxieties, Policy Responses 10 May 2013, 11:53 am

Muslim integration is one of the most contentious issues in the immigration debate in Europe, and one that gets to the heart of public anxieties about immigration. This article explores public perception toward Muslims in Western Europe and the array of integration policies that countries in the region have adopted during the past several years.

South American Immigrants in the United States 2 May 2013, 11:53 am

Immigrants from South America made up 2.7 million (about 7 percent) of the United States' foreign-born population of 40.4 million in 2011. While the share may seem small, this population has grown 30 times its size since 1960, when about 90,000 South American immigrants resided in the country. This article examines the latest data on South American immigrants in the United States, including population size, geographic distribution, admission categories, and demographic and socioeconomic characteristics.

Sweeping Senate Bill Sets the Stage for Fundamental Overhaul of US Immigration System 26 Apr 2013, 11:53 am

After months of negotiations, a bipartisan group of US senators informally called the "Gang of Eight" in mid-April introduced long-awaited legislation for sweeping reform of the US immigration system. This article provides a summary of the Senate bill's provisions and outlines the main critiques and obstacles ahead, including a tight legislative calendar, a difficult political dynamic in the House of Representatives, and an early stumbling block precipitated by the Boston Marathon bombing.

Mexico: The New Migration Narrative 24 Apr 2013, 11:53 am

Fundamental demographic, economic, and educational changes have set Mexico on a new path, significantly altering its migration-related priorities and concerns vis-a-vis the United States and Central America. This article examines new migration trends, Mexico's role as a country of transit and increasingly of destination, the 2011 migration law, remittances, government policies on the Mexican diaspora, and more.