Race, Ethnicity & Migration

Scholars in this area study how racial, ethnic, and national identities are salient and stratifying forces in people’s lives and across societies. Processes of immigration, migration, and colonialism shape racial and ethnic diversity, inequality, and settlement in Canada and other nations. Studies by UBC faculty focus on experiences of migration, settlement, dispossession, and discrimination as well as the ways difference and hierarchy are politically constructed and historically produced. Studies focus on histories of colonial dispossession, the experiences of undocumented and stateless peoples, the lived experiences of racialized refugees settling in Canada, and attitudes toward immigration and political trust among different racial and ethnic groups.

Prof. Amanda Cheong recognized by ASA section awards

Prof. Amanda Cheong recognized by ASA section awards

She has received two awards and multiple honourable mentions for three of her articles from American Sociological Association.

Infrastructure and Integration Lab explores experiences of immigrants with social service organizations

Infrastructure and Integration Lab explores experiences of immigrants with social service organizations

The Infrastructure and Integration Lab, run by Prof. Sean Lauer, released a new evidence brief on their recent scoping review.

Making health disparities visible: Prof. Neda Maghbouleh’s research on the MENA category and COVID-19

Making health disparities visible: Prof. Neda Maghbouleh’s research on the MENA category and COVID-19

The insights gleaned from her team’s analysis of Toronto Public Health data illustrate the importance of ethnoracial data.

MA student Caitlin Chong wins 2025 CCHSBC Wickberg Graduate Prize

MA student Caitlin Chong wins 2025 CCHSBC Wickberg Graduate Prize

Caitlin received the award for her thesis research on Chinese activism in Vancouver through the fight for 105 Keefer.

Prof. Neda Maghbouleh examines central paradox in research on MENA populations

Prof. Neda Maghbouleh examines central paradox in research on MENA populations

She argues that past scholarship has advanced sociology in three key areas: identity, racialization, and integration.

Statelessness by design: Prof. Amanda Cheong examines Myanmar’s erasure of the Rohingya

Statelessness by design: Prof. Amanda Cheong examines Myanmar’s erasure of the Rohingya

Bureaucracies that “fail” to document every citizen may be deliberately creating statelessness for populations like the Rohingya.

Profs. Aryan Karimi and Rima Wilkes investigate how to assign social groups to ethnic and racial categories

Profs. Aryan Karimi and Rima Wilkes investigate how to assign social groups to ethnic and racial categories

Karimi and Wilkes analyze ethnic and racial models and whether they settle the questions of who is race and who is ethnicity.

More people may flee to B.C. after Trump’s immigration clamp down: Prof. Irene Bloemraad on CBC News

More people may flee to B.C. after Trump’s immigration clamp down: Prof. Irene Bloemraad on CBC News

Prof. Irene Bloemraad was interviewed about President Trump’s anti-immigration offensive and what it could mean for Canada.

Prof. Irene Bloemraad comments on the realities of undocumented people in Canada for the CBC

Prof. Irene Bloemraad comments on the realities of undocumented people in Canada for the CBC

She expects the number of undocumented people in Canada will grow due to the federal government’s plan to reduce spots for permanent residents.

Prof. Amanda Cheong examines the postcolonial history of statelessness among communities of Filipino descent

Prof. Amanda Cheong examines the postcolonial history of statelessness among communities of Filipino descent

In a new article for Ethnic and Racial Studies, Prof. Cheong draws on household interviews and ethnographic fieldwork to examine the case of statelessness for Filipino communities in Sabah, Malaysia.