Segregation 1 Flashcards
Definitions, Measurement, Trends (8 cards)
What is the definition of residential segregation?
Residential segregation refers to the physical separation of different racial or ethnic groups into distinct neighborhoods. This segregation can be a result of historical policies, economic factors, and social dynamics. It is often measured in terms of the spatial distribution of populations.
What is the Isolation Index, and how is it calculated?
The Isolation Index measures the degree to which individuals from one group (e.g., African Americans) are likely to** live in neighborhoods where their racial or ethnic group constitutes a high share of the population**. It is a weighted average of the neighborhood’s racial share for a given group, adjusted by the share of that group in the entire city population.
What is the Dissimilarity Index, and how is it calculated?
The Dissimilarity Index measures the percentage of individuals from one group (e.g., Hispanic) who would have to move to a different neighborhood to achieve perfect integration. It reflects how evenly two groups are distributed across neighborhoods.
What are the trends in residential segregation from 1890 to 2010?
- Segregation peaks in 1970.
- Tremendous decline to lowest level since 1910.
- Dissimilarity is 55%, so half of African American population would need to move to achieve complete integration.
- Isolation is 33%. So average African-American lives in neighborhood where share African American exceeds average by 33 percentage points.
- This is NOT a normative statement. Lowest since 1910 can still mean highly segregated.
Dissimilarity Index (1970): 55% (indicating that half of the Black population would need to move to achieve complete integration). Isolation Index (2010): 33% (indicating that on average, Black Americans live in neighborhoods where their share exceeds the city’s average by 33 percentage points).
How segregated are we based on the isolation and dissimilarity indexes?
- Dissimilarity Index (2010) for African Americans is 55%, meaning over half of the African American population would need to move to achieve perfect integration.
- Isolation Index (2010) for African Americans is 33%, meaning that African Americans, on average, live in neighborhoods where their share exceeds the city average by 33 percentage points.
Although segregation has declined, there is still significant residential segregation, especially for African Americans.
What are the main explanations for the decline in segregation since 1970?
African American Suburbanization:
* Movement to suburbs and urban areas with more diverse populations. The near-eradication of all-white neighborhoods played a key role.
- In 1960, 20% of tracts have zero black households. In 2010, 0.6%.
**Depopulation of High Poverty Urban Neighborhoods: **
* In 1960, many African Americans lived in neighborhoods with over 80% African American populations. Now 20%.
- Movement to Sun Belt and suburbs. Access to credit has fostered mobility, as has ability to move.
- HOPE VI and destruction of public housing.
- Gentrification and immigration made inroads into
ghetto.
HOPE VI is a U.S. government program launched in the 1990s to revitalize distressed public housing. It focused on demolishing aging, low-income housing projects and replacing them with mixed-income communities to reduce poverty concentration. However, it also displaced many low-income residents during the process.
How has segregation changed for different racial/ethnic groups (e.g., Black, Hispanic, Asian)?
Black Segregation: The Isolation Index for Blacks has declined from 0.610 in 1980 to 0.463 in 2010, indicating a decrease in segregation.
Hispanic Segregation: The Isolation Index for Hispanics has remained relatively stable but decreased slightly from 0.383 in 1980 to 0.425 in 2010.
Asian Segregation: Asians have the lowest segregation, with the Isolation Index rising from 0.169 in 1980 to 0.225 in 2010.
