Annual Lewinson Lecture
2025-2026 Lewinson Lecture Theme: Immigration
'Legalized Inequalities' book cover
The Lewinson Center for the Study of Labor, Inequality, and Social Justice is pleased to announce that the 2025-2026 Lewinson Lecture will be delivered by Shannon Gleeson, Ph.D.
When: 5:15 p.m., Wednesday, November 5
Where: Bethany Hall - Room C
Followed by reception in Bethany Hall - Room B
'Legalized Inequalities: Immigration and Race in the Low-wage Workplace'
Shannon Gleeson will discuss her forthcoming co-authored book, Legalized Inequalities: Immigration and Race in the Low-wage Workplace. In the United States, low-wage work is marked by exploitation, danger and systemic inequality, with immigrants and workers of color disproportionately trapped in precarious jobs. In this lecture, sociologist Shannon Gleeson explores how U.S. labor, immigration and civil rights policies intersect to reinforce workplace inequalities, leaving vulnerable workers with little recourse against abuse. Drawing on extensive research with Haitian and Central American workers, Gleeson and her co-authors reveal how employer-friendly regulations, at-will employment and immigration enforcement mechanisms disempower workers. However, low-wage and immigrant workers are not entirely powerless. Gleeson highlights their acts of resistance, from filing complaints to collective organizing. In this lecture, Gleeson will explore and expand upon this research and offer constructive solutions and policy proposals for moving forward.
Shannon Gleeson is the Edmund Ezra Day Professor at the Cornell University School of Industrial and
Labor Relations and the Brooks School of Public Policy. She has authored or co-authored
five books, edited six volumes or special issues, and published over fifty peer-reviewed
articles and chapters.