He specializes in immigration, ethnicity, race relations, urban social life and the nature of contemporary cities.
He is the author of Caribbean New York for which he won the Thomas and Znaniecki Book Award in 1996.
He is a member of the Historical Advisory Board of the Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation and a former member of the Social Science Research Council’s Committee on International Migration and the Russell Sage Foundation’s committee to study the social effects of 9-11 on New York City.
Kasinitz is frequently quoted in media venues and his work has appeared in CNN On Line, New York Newsday; Dissent; The Nation; The Wall Street Journal; Lingua Franca, and Telos as well as in numerous academic journals.
Prior to coming to the CUNY Graduate Center, Kasinitz taught at Williams College.