Borders in Times of Instability

In this special episode of The History-Politics Podcast, we share a recording of LCHP’s recent event, “Borders in Times of Instability: A Cross-Disciplinary Conversation with Luwei Ying and Hiroshi Motomura.” This conversation is a continuation of our previous episode where political scientist Luwei Ying drew upon her work as an LCHP grantee to discuss her co-authored paper "Historical Border Insecurity and the Rise of Populism." In this event, David Myers welcomes legal scholar Hiroshi Motomura to join Luwei and explore the complex role of borders in shaping politics, conflict, and belonging. Ying explains how historical border instability, especially in regions like Alsace and Eastern Europe, have had long-term effects on the populations of these regions, including decreased trust in the government and greater support for populism. She also examines modern border fortifications, showing that while walls may reduce nearby cross-border violence, their overall effectiveness is mixed, as militant groups often adapt their strategies. Motomura expands the discussion by reframing borders as more than physical lines, emphasizing their legal and social functions in defining inclusion and exclusion. Hiroshi Motomura is the Susan Westerberg Prager Distinguished Professor of Law at the UCLA School of Law and the Faculty Co-Director of the UCLA Center for Immigration Law and Policy. He is a scholar of citizenship and immigration, influencing across a range of academic disciplines as well as federal, states, and local policy making. He has written multiple award-winning books including Americans in Waiting: The Lost Story of Immigration and Citizenship in the United States (Oxford 2006) and Borders and Belonging: Toward a Fair Immigration Policy (Oxford 2025). He is also the co-host of the podcast series: Unsettled: Immigration in Turbulent Times. For his collaboration on an overview of U.S. immigration law, see The Try Guys Try Immigrating to America.Luwei Ying is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Los Angeles. She received her Ph.D. in political science at Washington University in St. Louis in 2022. She received the 2022 Peace Science Society Walter Isard Award for the best dissertation in Peace Science. Her work has been awarded the Best Paper in International Relations Award, the Pi Sigma Alpha Award for the best paper presented at the 2019 MPSA Conference, and the Best Poster Award at the PolMeth XXXVII Summer Meeting. Her published work has appeared in American Political Science Review, Political Analysis and the Journal of Conflict Resolution.