Immigration and Democratic Backsliding in the Americas

Lindsey Carte 
Assistant Professor, School of Politics and Global Studies, Arizona State University 

Helena Olea
Deputy Director, Alianza Americas

In this session of the Democracy in Dialogue Series, Lindsey Carte and Helena Olea will examine how restrictive migration policies and border enforcement intersect with democratic erosion and inequality across the Americas. The discussion will address current migration trends and their drivers, the diffusion of migration policies throughout the region, and the consequences of these policies for migrants and their countries of origin. The conversation will be moderated by Abby Córdova, associate professor of global affairs and Kellogg faculty fellow.

Co-presented with the Institute for Latino Studies

Lindsey Carte is an assistant professor in the School of Politics and Global Studies. She holds a doctorate in geography and a master’s degree in Latin American studies from The University of Texas at Austin. Her research explores the dynamics of (im)migration in Latin America, how migration is linked with agrarian and environmental change, and how restrictive migration policies impact migrants, their journeys and their sending communities.

Helena Olea currently serves as Associate Director for Programs at Alianza Americas. She is an international human rights lawyer with advocacy and litigation experience before intergovernmental bodies and governmental agencies. Helena is an attorney authorized to practice law in Colombia, with an L.L.M. from the University of Notre Dame. She has over 12 years of teaching and research experience on human rights, migration, refugees, and gender. She has also worked for non-governmental organizations in Colombia and Chile. Helena has dedicated her professional life to the human rights of migrants, refugees, internally displaced persons, and women, combining advocacy and academia.