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The Passport

Laurie Taylor explores the cultural history of a document that has given citizens a licence to travel. Also, the trade in 'golden passports' for wealthy elites.

THE PASSPORT: Laurie Taylor explores the cultural history of an indispensable document which has given citizens a license to travel and helped to define the modern world. Patrick Bixby, Professor of English at Arizona State University, delves into the evolution of the passport through the tales of historical figures, celebrities, artists, and writers, from Frederick Douglas to Hannah Arendt. How has the passport become both an instrument of personal freedom as well as a tool of government surveillance? They’re joined by Kristin Surak , Associate Professor of Political Sociology at the LSE and author of a new study which investigates the routes taken by wealthy elites in pursuit of a ‘golden passport’. Through six years of fieldwork on four continents, she discovered how the sale of passports has transformed into a full-blown citizenship industry that thrives on global inequalities.

Producer: Jayne Egerton

Available now

29 minutes

Last on

Mon 22 Jan 2024 00:15

Guests and further reading

- Patrick BixbyÌý- Professor of English at Arizona State University.Ìý License to Travel: A Cultural History of the PassportÌý(University of California Press)

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-ÌýKristin Surak - Associate Professor of Political Sociology at the LSE

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Book: The Golden Passport: Global Mobility for MillionairesÌý(Harvard University Press)

Broadcasts

  • Wed 17 Jan 2024 16:00
  • Mon 22 Jan 2024 00:15

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´óÏó´«Ã½ Thinking Allowed is produced in partnership with The Open University

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