Theory of the Border

289 Pages·2016·1.994 MB·English

by  Thomas Nail

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Theory of the Border
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Theory of the Border
Thomas Nail
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Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data
Names: Nail, Thomas, author.
Title: Theory of the border / Thomas Nail.
Description: Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, [2016] | Includes bibliographical
references and index. | Description based on print version record and CIP data provided
by publisher; resource not viewed.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016016792 (print) | LCCN 2016003957 (ebook) |
ISBN 9780190618667 (Updf) | ISBN 9780190618674 (Epub) | ISBN 9780190618643 (hard-
cover :acid-free paper) | ISBN 9780190618650 (pbk. : acid-free paper)
Subjects: LCSH: Borderlands—Social aspects. | Boundaries—Social aspects. |
Mexican-American Border Region.
Classification: LCC JC323 (print) | LCC JC323 .N34 2016 (ebook) | DDC 320.1/2—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016016792
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Paperback printed by WebCom, Inc., Canada
Hardback printed by Bridgeport National Bindery, Inc., United States of America
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For Arlo
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CONTENTS
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction: Moving Borders 1
PART I: Theory of the Border
1. Border Kinopower 21
PART II: Historical Limology
2. The Fence 47
3. The Wall 64
4. The Cell 88
5. The Checkpoint I 110
6. The Checkpoint II 138
PART III: Contemporary Borders: United States- Mexico
7. The US- Mexico Fence 165
8. The US-M exico Wall 183
9. The US-M exico Cell 193
10. The US- Mexico Checkpoint 202
Conclusion 221
Notes 225
Index 265
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Since this book was researched and written in tandem with The Figure of
the Migrant, I would like to reiterate my gratitude to all those who contrib-
uted to this project as a whole. I am extremely grateful to the Fulbright
Association for providing me with the means to spend a year in Canada
working with the migrant justice group No One Is Illegal– Toronto and
building the research for this book. This project has benefited greatly from
that year and all the connections it made possible. I also thank Concordia
University, the University of Toronto, and McMaster University for host-
ing me as a visiting Fulbright Scholar while in Canada. When I returned to
the States, I was fortunate to have the support of the Wayne Morse Center
for Law and Politics at the University of Oregon, which provided me with
funding as well as a desk from which to continue my research on the poli-
tics of migration. The University of Denver provided some financial assis-
tance to help with the costs of editing and indexing.
While I was writing this book, several universities invited me to speak
about my research on migration and borders. The feedback and questions
that followed these talks ultimately strengthened the work. For this,
I thank the University of Toronto, DePaul University, the University of
Oregon, the University of Redlands, the University of Colorado at Denver,
and the Metropolitan State University of Denver. My own department at
the University of Denver has been overwhelmingly supportive of this proj-
ect. I am lucky to find myself among such generous colleagues.
I am indebted to a number of people for their support and encourage-
ment of this project: Colin Koopman, Ted Toadvine, Dan Smith, Nicolae
Morar, Robert Urquhart, Josh Hanan, Adam Israel, Adam Bobbette,
Etienne Turpin, David Craig, Kieran Aarons, Julia Sushytska, and all the
folks I worked with at Upping the Anti: A Journal of Theory and Action. I also
acknowledge No One Is Illegal– Toronto for its tireless passion and hard
work toward migrant justice and for welcoming me into the organization
as a fellow activist while I lived in Toronto. Thank you especially to Fariah