CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Why is the issue of immigration so contentious in a nation of immigrants? Why do Americans welcome immigrants but also consider them a threat? As Congress considers changes to immigration, what are the policies that make sense?
A panel of experts will address those questions and others at 4 p.m. Jan. 27 in a public forum at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The forum, sponsored by the university's Center for Advanced Study, will be on the third floor of the Levis Faculty Center, 919 W. Illinois St., Urbana.
The event is free and open to the public, and will include time for public discussion prompted by questions from the audience.
Scheduled to participate on the panel, which will deal with the political, social and economic issues surrounding the immigration debate, are Illinois professors Ilana Akresh, sociology; Hadi Esfahani, economics; Augusto Espiritu, history; Alejandro Lugo, anthropology; Dorothee Schneider, sociology; and moderator Noreen Sugrue, Women and Gender in Global Perspectives Program.
The event is the latest in an occasional series of CAS Forums on Critical Issues, organized to address current topics of public interest. Previous forums have dealt with issues such as stem cell research, civil liberties and national security, and planning for natural catastrophes.
More information about this and other CAS events is on the center's Web site.