Courses

In U.S. policy and strategy documents, Transnational Organized Crime (TOC) has been identified as a threat to American national security. The growing consensus is that globalization with its associated revolutions in communications and transportation has greatly enhanced the capabilities and power of Transnational Criminal Organizations (TCOs). Understanding the diverse criminal groups, their methodologies, and their networks is the critical first step in developing effective policies to confront them.

U.S. Immigration policy is vast and complex. Passed at the federal and state level and implemented at the local level, immigration policies have a myriad of consequences- intended and unintended. We will explore the various types of immigration policies, their goals, and consequences with an eye toward evaluating their efficacy. In particular, we will consider immigration policy from the perspective of border flows- who and what flow across our borders and the ability of the U.S. government to control those flows.  We will also consider the historical and political context underpinning immigration policy today as well as explore the feasibility and need for reforms in the future.

Latin America is a region that faces multiple political, social, and economic challenges. Some of these are cross-cutting, including the very real problems of crime and violence. In Latin America, crime and violence are common occurrences. They have multiple sources and have wide ranging impact. We will consider the causes of crime and violence, as perpetrated by state and non-state actors, as well as violence toward particular groups. We will also examine how countries address crime and violence and the extent to which reform is possible.

This course will discuss how the management of other natural resources in Latin America affect or are likely to affect international security in the forthcoming decades. Latin America is a large geographical area well-endowed with natural resources that are usually poorly regulated, which results in high levels of domestic and international conflict among myriad actors, both governmental and non-governmental.

Mexico and the United States have always shared a complex relationship. The current one is full of hope for expanding economic opportunity and plagued by fears driven by internal violence. Mexico is the third largest trading partner with the US with nearly 270 billion in trade in 2014; that amounts to a million dollars crossing the border every minute. Conversely, the fight against organized crime has claimed more than 60,000 lives since 2006 and there are nearly 25,000 people reported as disappeared. 2015 also marked a historic change in international engagement, with President Enrique Pena Nieto announcing a new peace keeping mission for the Mexican armed forces. Understanding the unique Mexican security situation and the Mexican perspective of security policy is critical for academics and policymakers that deal with this complex US-Mexican relationship. The course will include lecturers from the Mexican academic community and Mexican security forces.