City and Community article encourages new thinking on African American residential patterns before the Civil Rights Era
September 29, 2010 at 6:28 pm | Posted in cities, geography, housing, neighborhoods, race, what to read | Leave a commentIn the newly published article, “African American Locational Attainment Before the Civil Rights Era,” (City & Community, volume 9, September 2010), Lance Freeman challenges conventional wisdom that prior to the Civil Rights era, blacks of all classes lived side-by-side due to intense discrimination. According to this view, individual socioeconomic status did not translate into improved locational outcomes. By analyzing individual-level data from the 1910-1950 Public Use Microdata Samples, Freeman reveals how individual-level socioeconomic status translated into neighborhood-level outcomes for blacks. Among blacks, individual-level socioeconomic status played no role in determining residential proximity to whites. However, individual-level socioeconomic status for blacks was an important determinant of other neighborhood outcomes. His ground-breaking research suggests that upper-stratum blacks did indeed live in neighborhoods set apart from poorer blacks.
More information about this article available at:
A new frontier in the analysis of urban nightlife establishments
July 9, 2010 at 2:57 pm | Posted in amenities, cities, consumption, culture, geography, race, reading list, social capital, what to read | 1 Comment
In “The Nightly Round: Space, Social Capital, and Urban Black Nightlife,” sociologist Marcus Hunter uses participant observation and semistructured interviews to consider the ways in which nightlife is used to mitigate the effects of social and spatial isolation, complementing the accomplishment of the daily round. Through an analysis of the nightly round—a process encompassing the social interactions, behaviors, and actions involved in going to, being in, and leaving the club—Hunter demonstrates that understanding the ways in which urban blacks use space in the nightclub to mediate racial segregation, sexual segregation, and limited social capital expands our current understanding of the spatial mobility of urban blacks as well as the important role of extra-neighborhood spaces in such processes. Further, the article highlights the ways that urban blacks use space in the nightclub to leverage socioeconomic opportunities and enhance social networks. While Hunter found that black heterosexual and lesbian and gay patrons used space in similar ways, black lesbians and gays were more likely to use the club as a space to develop ties of social support. The article can be found in the June 2010 issue of City and Community (volume 9, number 2).
Urban, rural areas battle for census prison populace
May 3, 2010 at 11:34 am | Posted in cities, geography, news, prison system | Leave a commentPrison are often in small rural towns, while much of the prison population originates from urban areas. The 2010 census considers the area in which inmates are incarcerated as their community of residence rather than the neighborhoods from which they originate. This increase in population for these small rural towns has significant implications for the largely white populations that reside there. The larger population count often leads to great political representation through the allotment of elected officials and increased funds for schools, roads, and infrastructure investments. Conversely, the plunge in population numbers for the urban, mostly black and Hispanic areas where many incarcerated individuals would normally be counted perpetuates the inadequate resources going to many of these communities. This raises a variety of questions for the viability of urban institutions and the resources that they have at their disposal.
View the following link for more information:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=123663462
Altanta set to eliminate all public housing—what’s next?
December 4, 2009 at 8:44 pm | Posted in cities, economic development, housing, neighborhoods, poverty | Leave a comment
Researchers at Georgia State University file a preliminary report on the consequences of poverty deconcentration in Atlanta. From Deirdre Oakely, one of the authors of the report: “By early 2010 Atlanta is poised to become the first city in the Nation to eliminate all of its traditional public housing stock. The GSU Urban Health Initiative is following approximately 300 relocated residents across six public housing communities earmarked for demolition…. Do they end up in better neighborhoods and have improved and more stable living conditions? How is their health and overall well-being affected by relocation? …Findings suggest that the families are moving to other poor, segregated neighborhoods, but that these neighborhoods are not as poor as the public housing communities. However, our findings also show a pattern of geographic clustering of families which is suggestive of reconcentration. For the seniors, the destination neighborhoods are far poorer and more segregation than the origin ones. This raises some serious concerns about the fate of relocated residents from the public housing senior high rises.” See also, a recent House hearing on the future of public housing (with thanks to Jim Frasier) and a PBS expose on mismanagement in Miami-Dade public housing (with thanks to Andy Beveridge).
Chicago’s mixed-income housing begins its 11th year
October 6, 2009 at 4:14 pm | Posted in cities, economic development, housing, neighborhoods, poverty | Leave a commentTerry Peterson’s legacy with the Chicago Housing Authority may very well lie in his efforts to create viable mixed-income housing. However, the plan has experienced numerous setbacks since its inception. Although the first ten years saw the demise of some of the country’s most notorious complexes, such as Cabrini Green and the Robert Taylor Homes, many of the latest setbacks arrived with the economic downturn. Other issues are more ideological in nature. Ideally, the new mixed-income communities promote cross-class socioeconomic unity while providing access to those citizens traditionally outside the realm of top-notch resources. Chicago Public Radio examined this issue further. The story can be found here.
Group emerges to oppose “creative class” movement in Toronto
July 23, 2009 at 3:19 pm | Posted in amenities, cities, creative class, economic development | 3 CommentsThe Toronto Star reports that an activist group, Creative Class Struggle, has emerged to oppose the influence of Richard Florida and the Martin Prosperity Institute, a think-tank at the University of Toronto. Florida is known for arguing that today’s cities will prosper to the extent they can attract artists, engineers, intellectuals, and other professionals who constitute what he terms the “creative class.” Members of this class are attracted by tolerant environments and a plethora of ammenities, such as cafes, galeries, and restaurants. The activist group complains that Florida’s model ignores that these “glorified professionals” are “supported by an invisible army of low-wage service workers.”
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