Democracy

Our ‪#‎hbsMigration‬ study tour participants on Germany, immigrant integration, and why they still believe in the American dream.

In the aftermath of the Paris and San Bernadino attacks, Colorado House of Representatives Majority Leader Crisanta Duran calls for bipartisan dialogue and compassion for those fleeing violence. 

With a backlog of more than 350,000 asylum applications, Germany is under pressure to speed up the asylum process. But efforts to quickly process Syrian refugees have resulted in asylum decisions on the basis of nationality rather than case-by-case. That’s good for Syrians, but it shortchanges Afghanis and others fleeing violence and conflict. 

It was a roller-coaster of an election that redefined what was possible in Canadian politics.  On October 19, when the votes were counted, Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau ousted Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper.  What does this historic election mean for Canadian progressive politics? 

Just as US presidential candidates – with the notorious exception of Donald Trump – know that they cannot win without the support of minority voters, the upcoming Canadian parliamentary elections are seeing parties doggedly courting the support of Canada’s minority and immigrant communities. As the Toronto Star predicts, “the big battlegrounds in 2015 will be where the immigrants to Canada have made their new homes in this country.” But who are Canada’s immigrants and why do they have so much influence in the October 19th elections?

Ahead of the 19 October election, there is a tight, three-way race to run Canada – the world’s second largest country (in terms of land mass) and 11th largest economy.   The embattled incumbent -- conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper – is running neck-in-neck with two contenders:  Tom Mulcair, Leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP) and Justin Trudeau, Leader of the Liberals.

For Europe, the current refugee crisis presents a two-fold challenge: Will we uphold our humanitarian values, that is, do we view the refugees as people in need and with a right to a safe haven? And will the EU, in the face of this challenge, act as one – or will national selfishness erode European unity?

Canada votes on October 19. We spoke with Elizabeth May, Member of Parliament for the Canadian Green Party, about Canada’s climate performance, the state of Canadian democracy, and the prospects for her party in the upcoming elections. Elizabeth May enjoys widespread recognition across the political spectrum, and was voted Parliamentarian of the Year in 2012, Hardest Working MP in 2013, and Best Orator in 2014.

On June 24, the Heinrich Böll Foundation together with the Center on the United States and Europe (CUSE) and the Brookings-LSE Project on Internal Displacement hosted a panel discussion examining Europe’s migration crisis featuring Cem Özdemir, co-chairman of the German Green Party. An audio recording of the event is now available.