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Who cares what the people think? Public attitudes and refugee protection in Europe

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  • Martin Ruhs

Abstract

This paper discusses why and how public attitudes should matter in regulating asylum and refugee protection in rich democracies, with a focus on Europe. Taking a realistic approach, I argue that public views constitute a soft feasibility constraint on effective and sustainable policies towards asylum seekers and refugees, and that a failure to take seriously and understand the attitudes of the host country’s population can have a very damaging effect on refugee protection and migrants’ rights in practice. Bringing together insights from political philosophy, the politics of asylum, and research on public attitudes, I develop my argument by discussing why ‘what the people think’ should matter in asylum and refugee polices; how public views can and should matter given the well-known challenges with measuring attitudes and policy preferences; and what the prevailing public views might mean for the reform of asylum and refugee policies in Europe.

Suggested Citation

  • Martin Ruhs, 2022. "Who cares what the people think? Public attitudes and refugee protection in Europe," Politics, Philosophy & Economics, , vol. 21(3), pages 313-344, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:pophec:v:21:y:2022:i:3:p:313-344
    DOI: 10.1177/1470594X221085701
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