Immigration as a Democratic Challenge: Citizenship and Inclusion in Germany and the United States

Immigration raises a number of important moral issues regarding access to the rights and privileges of citizenship. At present, immigrants to most Western democracies must satisfy a range of conditions before achieving citizenship. This book argues that this is unjust and undemocratic, and that there should be a time threshold after which immigrants should either be granted full citizenship rights, or should be awarded nationality automatically, without any conditions. The author contrasts her position with the constitutional practice of two countries with rich immigration traditions: Germany and the United States.