State of Disaster - by Maria Cristina Garcia

About the Book

"Focusing on Central America and the Caribbean, State of Disaster traces the development of U.S. refugee, humanitarian, and immigration policies in response to the 1995-2004 series of volcanic eruptions in Monserrat in the Leeward Islands, Hurricane Mitch in Honduras and Nicaragua in 1998, and the back-to-back Hurricanes Irma and Maria of 2017 that devastated the U.S. territories of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. The case of Irma and Maria reveal afresh the neocolonial realities that sentence citizens of U.S. territories to a liminal and unequal political status that makes economic growth difficult and recovery from natural disaster especially daunting. Reflecting what technical social science and science studies indicate but also obscure, Garcia argues that it is high time that U.S. policymakers create desperately needed new policies and suggests ways to amend or create new law altogether. She reminds us that while natural disasters are impossible to prevent, much of the devastation that occurs in the wake of natural disasters is artificial and can be mitigated"--

Book Synopsis

Natural disasters and the dire effects of climate change cause massive population displacements and lead to some of the most intractable political and humanitarian challenges seen today. Yet, as Maria Cristina Garcia observes in this critical history of U.S. policy on migration in the Global South, there is actually no such thing as a "climate refugee" under current U.S. law. Most initiatives intended to assist those who must migrate are flawed and ineffective from inception because they are derived from outmoded policies. In a world of climate change, U.S. refugee policy simply does not work.

Garcia focuses on Central America and the Caribbean, where natural disasters have repeatedly worsened poverty, inequality, and domestic and international political tensions. She explains that the creation of better U.S. policy for those escaping disasters is severely limited by the 1980 Refugee Act, which continues to be applied almost exclusively for reasons of persecution directly related to politics, race, religion, and identity. Garcia contends that the United States must transform its outdated migration policies to address today's realities. Climate change and natural disasters are here to stay, and much of the human devastation left in their wake is essentially a policy choice.

Review Quotes

"Garcia's study is a welcome addition to the discipline. . . . The research is timely in that it centers climate change as a push factor, differentiating it from previous studies and providing a framework and methodology for subsequent research in this area."--Ethnic and Racial Studies

"Provocative and powerful. . . . [Garcia's] book advances trenchant criticisms of the limitations--and abject failures--of migration policy for people fleeing the harms of natural hazards, particularly in the United States but also in a broader international context. . . . Her succinct and impassioned study deserves a wide readership, among disaster studies scholars and policy makers alike."--Journal of Disaster Studies

"State of Disaster is well researched and will generate interest for multiple audiences. It is a wake-up call for US voters and policy makers, and the book is sure to shine among humanistic and hemispheric monographs on climate change. It could not have come at a better moment."--Journal of American Ethnic History

"State of Disaster provides concrete examples to illustrate the intricate challenges of displacement caused by disasters and the shortcomings of existing policies. As a result, it significantly contributes to existing research on migration driven by environmental and climate change. This timely book will be appreciated by students, scholars and practitioners interested in understanding how ad hoc policies and recovery efforts fall short of addressing the growing challenges of the climate crisis."--International Migration

"A forthright work of research and witness . . . State of Disaster is a learned and fervent exposé that holds out hope that impacts can 'be minimized with strategic planning, sustainable practices, and responsible, accountable and transparent governance.'"--Foreword Reviews

"An essential discussion of climate-driven migration in the Caribbean and Central America. . . . This outstanding book raises many questions and avenues for further research . . . [and] boldly asks a timely question: What policies should the United States adopt in response to the growing number of climate refugees worldwide?"--H-Diplo

"Maria Cristina Garcia's timely book helps us make sense of the roots of recent migrations from the global South, and it reveals climate change's political and humanitarian challenges. . . . [State of Disaster] is accessible to a general readership and will be welcomed in undergraduate classrooms."--Journal of American History

"This book is critical for understanding how climate change intersects with hemispheric political history and regional inequality to increase immediate suffering in the wake of natural disasters and undermine longer-term safety and security. . . . Essential."--CHOICE