Description
Book SynopsisThis is the first comprehensive political history of national ID card proposals and developments in identity policing in the United States. Examining how national ID card proposals have been woven into political conflict across a variety of policy fields, the book focuses on the period from 1915 to 2016.
Trade Review'This is without question the most thorough and comprehensive study of identification documents in American life ever to have been executed. It is likely to remain the standard study for a long time to come.' John Torpey, The Graduate Center, City University of New York
'Krajewska offers a comprehensive account of the history of identification documents in the modern United States, showing not only how Americans have argued about identification documents, but also how such documents have been used to police citizens and immigrants alike. In a historical moment of mounting anti-immigrant sentiment, this book is essential reading.' Kunal Parker, author of Making Foreigners
Table of ContentsIntroduction; 1. Identification documents and the book's findings: an overview; 2. Identification documents in the United States in the first half of the twentieth century; 3. Identification documents in the United States in the second half of the twentieth century; 4. Identity policing in the post-9/11 United States: the changing patchwork; 5. Identity policing in the post-9/11 united states: drivers and obstacles; Conclusion.
