YorkSpace

YorkSpace is York University's Institutional Repository. It supports York University's Senate Policy on Open Access by providing York community members with a place to preserve their research online in an institutional context.

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Recent Submissions

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    The Development and Characterization of Ubiquitin Variants as Molecular Probes of E3 Ligase HUWE1
    (2026-08-26) Angelo Vivona; Sheng, Yi
    Mutations in the ubiquitin E3 ligase HUWE1 have been linked to XLID. However, the large size of HUWE1 poses challenges for studying the mechanisms and functions of its domains using current technologies. In this study, two Ubiquitin Variants (UbVs) were developed via a collaboration with Dr. Wei Zhang’s lab (University of Guelph) to bind to the UBM1 and HECT domains of HUWE1 specifically, and their targeted binding affinities and cross-interactions were investigated. Additionally, the interactions of the HUWE1 protein with both UbVs and a fusion of these two UbVs were further validated in cells. Lastly, the effect of UbVs on endogenous HUWE1 was assessed by comparing HUWE1 substrate levels in the proteasome inhibitor MG132 treated and untreated cells. Our findings reveal that both HUWE1 UbVs interact strongly with their respective targeted domains; both HUWE1 UbVs and the fusion UbV interact with HUWE1 protein and modulate its function in cells.
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    Collective Self-Determination and Externalized Border Control
    (Global Justice Network, 2025-05-09) Sharp, Daniel
    According to a common argument in defense of border control, legitimate states have a right to exclude on grounds of collective self-determination. I argue that the value of self-determination can also serve as a basis for criticizing states’ immigration policies. Specifically, I contend that the externalization policies of states in the Global North often undermine the self-determination of peoples in the Global South. I identify five pathways by which externalization policies undermine self-determination. I conclude by tentatively suggesting some potential implications of this argument for broader debates about the governance of migration.
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    Can States Resist Migration Blackmail While Protecting Migrants?
    (New York University Abu Dhabi, 2025-04) Sharp, Daniel
    Migration blackmail occurs when one state threatens to engineer a “migration crisis” on the borders of a target state by creating or permitting an irregular migration flow unless political or economic concessions are made by the target state. States may have legitimate interests in resisting migration blackmail. However, migrants have strong interests in accessing international protection and avoiding harm. These goals may seem to stand in tension and generate a dilemma: it may seem that there is no way for target states to effectively resist and deter blackmail while adequately respecting migrants’ interests. This paper explores what is problematic about migration blackmail and how states may permissibly respond to it. I argue that target states are not permitted to close their borders in response to migration blackmail but instead must respect the right to seek asylum. I offer four complementary arguments for this conclusion: (1) not all cases of migration blackmail are dilemmatic; (2) target states have often contributed to the circumstances that give rise to migration blackmail and so may bear some responsibility for the situation; (3) the interests of migrants in accessing protection and avoiding harm outweigh states’ interests in resisting blackmail; and (4) states have options available to resist migration blackmail without contravening the right to asylum.
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    What is wrong with denationalization: Citizenship revocation and social equality
    (Sage Journals, 2026-07-30) Sharp, Daniel
    In recent years, states have expanded their formal legal powers to strip their subjects of citizenship. But should states have the power to revoke citizenship? If so, how may this power be permissibly exercised, and how ought it to be constrained? This article argues that some standard critiques of denationalization face some important limitations. These limitations stem from the fact that these critiques fail to identify the distinctiveness of citizenship as a status, and, thus, fail to identify an objection that is directly connected with citizenship loss. To supplement these critiques, I offer a framework for understanding the value of citizenship, which draws attention to the egalitarian functions of citizenship. This yields a novel interpretation and defense of the charge that denationalization is problematically inegalitarian: viz., denationalization threatens to impair the egalitarian functions of citizenship.
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    Research Report on the Local Integration Experiences of Young Afghan Women in the Greater Toronto Area
    (Centre for Refugee Studies, York University, 2026-05) Castilla, Cesar; Ludin, Adela
    This research, conducted between January 2024 and May 2026, examines the local integration (LI) challenges faced by young Afghan women newly arrived in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Despite institutional efforts to promote integration, persistent structural constraints continue to limit women’s agency across the legal, cultural, social, and economic dimensions of settlement. Accordingly, the study analyzes how these women navigate integration within these interconnected dimensions, with particular attention to the structural challenges shaping their lived realities.