POL 3540 The Politics of Immigration and Citizenship (2024)

Argumentative Essay Assignment

You will write a short argumentative essay in which you will argue in favour of a position
regarding an ethical dilemma to do with migration, borders, or citizenship.

The purposes of this assignment are for you to:

 think deeply, at a theoretical level, about an ethical dilemma to do with migration,
borders, or citizenship,
 exercise your critical thinking and reasoning skills,
 develop your capacity to construct coherent and persuasive arguments, and
 build background knowledge that will inform discussion later in the course.

Note:
The purpose of this course is to learn about, and think about, big questions about which there are
unresolved public disagreements and conflicts. The positions listed involve difficult ethical
questions and trade-offs to which there may not be a “right” answer that most reasonable people
would agree on. Indeed, different countries approach these questions differently as a matter of
policy. The issues discussed may also have personal meaning for you. While you may construct
an argument you personally believe in, this does not have to be the case. It is normal to not have
settled opinions on complicated matters.

To be clear, you will not be assessed on the direction of your argument, only on the quality of
your research, the precision and coherence of your reasoning, and the quality and
persuasiveness of your writing.

Requirements:
• You may draw on course readings and other academic sources (journal articles, books,
and book chapters identified through library research). Use at least three academic
sources beyond the course readings.
• Length: 5 double-spaced pages, not including title page or bibliography.
• All ideas of others should be properly cited.
• Cite all discussed and quoted works using in-text author-date-page format, not footnotes.
For a model, see: https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide/citation-
guide-2.html.

Value: 15%
Argue in favour of one of the following positions within your assigned group.
Some statements are phrased positively, others negatively. This is arbitrary.

To ensure that we collectively develop “for” and “against” arguments for each position, the class
is divided into groups. You will choose a position to write on from your group’s list. Your group
is assigned based on the last four digits of your student number.

Group 1 (last four digits of your student number between 0 and 2499)
• “Non-citizen residents should have the right to vote in national elections.”
• “Children born to non-citizens should automatically acquire the citizenship of the country
where they are born.”
• “Non-citizen residents should not have the right to use publicly funded services, including
health care, education, and income support.”
• “Sovereign nation-states should have no limitation on their ability refuse entry to migrants.”

Group 2 (last four digits of your student number between 2500 and 4999)
• “Non-citizen residents should have the right to use the same publicly funded services as
citizens, including health care, education, and income support.”
• “Children born to parents who live permanently outside their country of citizenship should
not automatically acquire their parents’ citizenship.”
• “Countries should not be able to select or refuse prospective immigrants based on personal
characteristics, including educational attainment and language.”
• “Non-citizen residents should not have the right to vote in national elections.”

Group 3 (last four digits of your student number between 5000 and 7499)
• “Children born to parents who live permanently outside their country of citizenship should
automatically acquire their parents’ citizenship.”
• “Temporarily admitting non-citizens with limited rights to fill gaps in the national labour
market is morally justifiable.”
• “Non-citizen residents should have the right to use the same publicly funded services as
citizens, including health care, education, and income support.”
• “Passing a test that assesses detailed knowledge of a country’s history, institutions, and laws
should be a condition of obtaining citizenship.”

Group 4 (last four digits of your student number between 7500 and 9999)
• “Children born to non-citizens should not automatically acquire the citizenship of the country
where they are born.”
• “Passing a test that assesses detailed knowledge of a country’s history, institutions, and laws
should not be a condition of obtaining citizenship.”
• “Temporarily admitting non-citizens with limited rights to fill gaps in the national labour
market is not morally justifiable.”
• “Non-citizen residents should not have the right to use publicly funded services, including
health care, education, and income support.”