Alternative Title
La implementación del derecho de asilo: los efectos de la criminalización de inmigración en el resultado de los casos de asilo in los Estados Unidos y España
Abstract
This Independent Study (I.S.) analyzes the effect that the criminalization of immigration in political discourse has on the outcome of asylum cases in Spain and the United States (U.S.). With the increased numbers of asylum applications to both countries, it is becoming increasingly important to understand what factors influence why asylum cases are rejected. As identified throughout this research, criminalization frames immigrants to be criminals. When immigrants are framed as criminals, it impacts how as a group are perceived and treated. The criminalization framework extends and influences the experiences of asylum seekers in the system.
In this I.S., I analyze the history of immigration policy and asylum law in both countries. This conceptualizes how immigrants have been treated differentially based on race, nationality, and ethnicity, and lays the groundwork for understanding the right to seek asylum. One of the most important aspects of this I.S. is to address how asylum law is written to solidify human rights, but upon implementation those rights are not always upheld. Further, this I.S. analyzes presidential speeches in the U.S. and Spain for the severity of criminalization rhetoric to compare to the number of asylum cases rejected the following year to see if there is a correlation between the two.
Immigrants are not always treated as human beings when they immigrate to another country. Regardless of their legal status in Spain and the U.S., immigrants are people with human rights protected under domestic and international law. If the severity of criminalization rhetoric in political discourse has an impact on the implementation of asylum law, that could be detrimental to asylum seekers human rights.
Advisor
Leiby, Michele
Second Advisor
Medina, Hernán
Department
Political Science; Spanish
Recommended Citation
Libby, Danielle E., "Implementation of Asylum Law: The Effect of the Criminalization of Immigration on the Outcome of Asylum Cases in the United States and Spain" (2026). Senior Independent Study Theses. Paper 13533.
https://openworks.wooster.edu/independentstudy/13533
Disciplines
Comparative and Foreign Law | Human Rights Law | Immigration Law | Latin American Languages and Societies | Rhetoric | Spanish Literature
Publication Date
2026
Degree Granted
Bachelor of Arts
Document Type
Senior Independent Study Thesis
© Copyright 2026 Danielle E. Libby