State Practices, National Identity and Anti-Immigrantism in Western Democracies This study critically examines the various practices of anti-immigrantism in three Western democracies—the United States, the United Kingdom, and France—within the context of globalization. The study draws upon the works…
The Farm Killings Shortly after South Africa’s first democratic elections were held in 1994, White agricultural associations raised the cry that their members were being killed in increasing numbers by predatory criminals. A…
Competitive Intervention and its Consequences for Civil Wars This project explores two interrelated puzzles about external intervention and internal war. The first asks why rebels, governments, and third-party interveners often continue to invest in costly and protracted conflicts…
Grassroots Peace: Postconflict Reconstruction in Rural Colombia This project focuses on grassroots peacebuilding efforts across 182 rural villages in Eastern Antioquia, Colombia. For nearly a decade, these villages were caught on the frontlines of the civil conflict…
Private Gun Ownership in Modern China, 1912–1949 This dissertation examines private gun ownership and its sociocultural and political implications in modern China from 1860 to 1949, a period characterized by foreign invasion, constant military conflicts, and political…
Contested Narratives: A Genesis of State Violence in Post-Revolutionary Iran (1979-1988) The study explores dynamics of violence in Iran in relation to state formation after the 1979 revolution. It focuses on episodes of large-scale collective violence against political opponents and mass…
When the Rebels Win: State Power and Public Interests after Civil Wars …political transformation, spurring attempts to expand state reach over and through territory and society. More opportunistic organizations primarily desire power and private wealth, and are uninterested in public goods provision….
“Social Disruptions Reveal Who We Are”: A Conversation with Jeffrey Butts …shined a spotlight on the enduring legacies of racism in the American justice system. These protests have added fuel to a number of local political movements—to close Rikers Island, to…
“We Have a Lot of Damage to Undo”: A Conversation with Jeremy Travis …state legislature to increase our taxes to pay for more police officers. It was a remarkable political moment when you think about it. There was deep concern about our city’s…
The Polarization Project …appear that little can be done about this, a broad range of thinkers and organizations of differing political stripes are in fact attempting to address these divisions. In The Polarization…