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Michele Waslin

Program Coordinator and Adjunct Professor, Institute for Immigration Research, George Mason University
Chapter Member: Minneapolis-St. Paul SSN
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(703) 993-5833

About Michele

Waslin’s research focuses on immigration policy with a specialization in federalism, enforcement, legislative and administrative processes, and the role of interest groups. Overarching theme’s in Waslin’s writings include bridging academia and policy, the role of state and local government in immigration policymaking, the power of the executive, the impact of recent policies on immigrant communities, and the contributions of immigrants. In her capacity as Program Coordinator at the Institute for Immigration Research at George Mason University, Waslin tracks and analyzes immigration research and policy, writes on related topics, coordinates the work of the IIR, and builds relationships between academics, policymakers, and advocates. 

Contributions | No Jargon Podcast | In the News | Publications

Contributions

How State and Local Governments Affect Federal Immigration Enforcement

Key Findings Brief,

Publications

"Driving While Immigrant: Drivers's License Policy and Immigration Enforcement" in Outside Justice and the Criminalizing Impact of Policy and Practice, edited by Daniel Stageman, David Brotherton, and Shirley Leyro (Springer, 2013).

This chapter explores the evolution and convergence of driver's license laws at the state level and federal policies regarding collaboration with local law enforcement agencies. These two policies combined have resulted in higher numbers of arrests and deportations for driving-related violations.

"The Impact of Immigration Enforcement Outsourcing on ICE Priorities" in Social Control and Justice: Crimmigration in the Age of Fear, edited by Maria Joao Guia, Maartje van der Woude, and Joanne van der Leun (Eleven International Publishing, 2012).

Discusses how the Obama administration's efforts to demonstrate how committed it was to removing criminals and others who remain in the country without proper documentation - in order to gain support for comprehensive immigration reform - exacerbated the potential for profiling and pretextual arrests, which in turn took the focus off of serious criminals and led to the arrest of large numbers of people for minor offenses. In part, this was because the administration lost the ability to fully control their own enforcement priorities and enforcement outcomes, and the results demonstrated that the state and local partners were not necessarily committed to the same priorities. Other factors at the state and local level also removed ICE from the decision-making process at the critical early stages.