Immigration Court sits within the executive branch, under the Department of Justice. This gives the Attorney General and, indirectly, the White House, unusual leverage to translate political priorities directly into the courtroom. The current federal administration is using this authority to rapidly reshape asylum adjudication by restricting the role of the court and the decision-making power of judges by enacting rule changes that divert or terminate cases before hearings take place.

Drawing on four years of ethnographic research in Chiapas State (Mexico), Darién Province (Panama), and Texas, this project examines how U.S. border externalization and changing asylum regimes shape violence, human-rights protections, and community care across three critical border regions in the Americas. The final phase of this ethnographic research in the U.S. focuses on documenting shifting asylum and immigration protections that shape access to health and social services.

Southeast Queens, a majority Black region of New York City, has a disproportionate concentration of environmental hazards, including industrial pollution, sewage back-ups, and illegal dumping. Residents appeal to their state and local government for protection from and mitigation of these harms.