Cosmopolitans’ Dilemma: (Open?) Borders and Migration

Abstract

It is frequently assumed that cosmopolitans must be committed to open (or more open) borders and to policies aimed at reducing restrictions on immigration. But this is not always the case. In this paper I will show, first, that some cosmopolitans are not supporters of open state borders when the issue of immigration is at stake; second, I will give a possible account of this stance, holding that it might derive either from the objectives pursued by their theories (i.e., global social justice, global democracy) or from their philosophical sources (i.e., Kant, Rawls), or, more generally, from a dilemma inherent in the cosmopolitan project itself.