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Abstract

Joseph Carens’ argument for open borders is evaluated in this article and concludes that it rests upon an unelaborated conception of liberalism that he does not himself defend. This raises the question of whether 1) it simply describes a position to which, in Carens's view, liberals are committed, or 2) it really is intended as an argument for open borders, addressed to all countries regardless of their philosophical commitments. Either way, the argument seems incomplete: if the former is true, then Carens should respond more fully to other liberals who disagree about liberalism's implications; and if the latter is true, then he must offer some further defense of liberalism itself before nonliberal countries can reasonably be expected to endorse his proposal.

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Liberalism and Open Borders: The Argument of Joseph Carens

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