Global is everywhere - recent years have seen a significant proliferation of the adjective global across discourses. But what do social actors actually do when using this term? Written from within the political studies and international relations disciplines, and with a particular interest in the US, this book demonstrates that the widespread use of global is more than a linguistic curiosity. It constitutes a distinct political phenomenon of major importance: the negotiation of and play with the notion of the new world. As such, the analysis of the use of global provides fascinating insights...

How is ethnicity viewed by scholars of different academic disciplines? Can its emergences be compared in various regions of the world? How can it be conceptualized with specific reference to distinct historical periods? This book shows in a uniquely and innovative way the broad range of approaches to the political uses of ethnicity, both in contemporary settings and from a historical perspective. Its scope is multidisciplinary and spans across the globe. It is a suitable resource for teaching material. With its short contributions, it conveys central points of how to understand and analyze...

After slavery, forms of indentured labor met global capitalism's need for cheap, disposable labor. The famous "coolie trade" - mainly Asian laborers transferred to colonial Africa, the Caribbean, and the Americas, as well as to the Arab world - was one of the largest migration movements in global history. Indentured contract workers are perhaps the most revealing example of bonded labor in the grey area between the poles of chattel slavery and free' wage labor. This interdisciplinary volume addresses historically and regionally specific cases of unfree labor relations from the 18th century to...