Report finds reduction of Chicago’s “food desert” between 2006 and 2009
July 13, 2009 at 9:07 pm | Posted in food deserts, grocery stores, health, neighborhoods, organizational density, poverty, what to read | Leave a commentThe Mari Gallagher Research and Consulting Group has released a follow-up of its 2006 report on “food deserts”—areas deprived of grocery stores selling high quality foods—in Chicago. The researchers find that, on average, the total Chicago food desert became smaller by 1.4 square miles. However, the change was uneven, and in some neighborhoods conditions worsened. The study finds that most neighborhoods deprived of quality grocery stores are located on the West and South sides.
Study finds racial difference in prevalence of political advocacy organizations
July 9, 2009 at 10:26 am | Posted in immigrants, non-profits, organizational density, political organizations, social movements, what to read | Leave a comment
Sarah Reckhow’s “The Distinct Patterns of Organized and Elected Representation of Racial and Ethnic Groups,” published in Urban Affairs, uses data from Melissa DATA and newspaper accounts. She finds that, for Latinos and Asian-Americans, the group’s proportion in the population increases the number of political advocay organizations; for African-Americans, however, the pattern does not hold. From the abstract: Studies of minority political incorporation have demonstrated that advocacy organizations are critical for advancing minority electoral success and policy change. Drawing on an original data set of 30 midsized U.S. cities, the author evaluates the extent of organized representation of racial and ethnic groups and the effect of organized representation on elected representation. Latinos and Asian-Americans both have greater numbers of local advocacy organizations as the groups’ proportion of the population increases. Yet many cities with sizable African-American populations have a lower density of advocacy organizations than cities with fewer African-Americans. A smaller field of organizations increases elected representation for African-Americans but not for Latinos.
Min Zhou publishes book on incorporation of Chinese into U.S. cities
June 5, 2009 at 12:12 am | Posted in amenities, immigrants, neighborhoods, new books, organizational density, social organization, what to read | Leave a comment
Min Zhou, a sociologist of immigration who has written on immigrant entrepreneurship and on schools as community institutions, has published a new book, Contemporary Chinese America. From the book description: Contemporary Chinese America is the most comprehensive sociological investigation of the experiences of Chinese immigrants to the United States—and of their offspring—in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. In this volume, [Zhou] collects her original research on a range of subjects, including the causes and consequences of emigration from China, demographic trends of Chinese Americans, patterns of residential mobility in the U.S., Chinese American “ethnoburbs,” immigrant entrepreneurship, ethnic enclave economies, gender and work, Chinese language media, Chinese schools, and intergenerational relations.
Joe Galaskiewicz receives NSF funding to study Phoenix organizations and their impact on the urban community
May 21, 2009 at 7:34 pm | Posted in amenities, barbershops, beauty salons, churches, grocery stores, neighborhoods, news, non-profits, organizational density, organizational networks, social service agencies, supermarkets | Leave a comment
Joe Galaskiewicz at the University of Arizona recently received $162,274 from
the National Science Foundation to fund his project, “Organizations and their
Impact on the Urban Community.” This funding helps Joe continue his research on
the distribution of organizational resources across the Phoenix metropolitan
area, their effect on what children do in the free time on the weekends, and
how organizations migrate across the metropolitan community in response to
demographic shifts, changes in zoning laws, and competition among
organizational providers. The research looks at a broad range of
establishments that serve community residents including parks, recreation
centers, churches, retail outlets, restaurants, bowling and fitness centers,
barber shops, department stores, malls, theatres, and many, many more local
establishments. For some of Joe’s preliminary results, go to:
http://www.childresearch.net/RESOURCE/RESEARCH/2007/GALASKIEWICZ.HTM
New book by Scott Allard
November 27, 2008 at 11:05 am | Posted in neighborhoods, new books, organizational density, social service agencies, what to read | Leave a comment
Out of Place: Poverty, Place and the New American Welfare State. Sweeping changes in welfare programs since 1996 have transformed the way America cares for its poor. Today, for every dollar spent on cash welfare payments, some twenty dollars are spent on service programs targeted at the working poor—job training, adult education, child care, emergency assistance, mental health care, and other social services. This important book examines our current system and the crucial role that geography plays in the system’s ability to offer help.
Drawing on unique survey data from almost 1,500 faith-based and secular service organizations in three cities, Scott W. Allard examines which agencies are most accessible to poor populations and looks at the profound impact of unstable funding on assistance programs. Allard argues that the new system has become less equitable and reliable, and he concludes with practical policy recommendations that address some of the more pressing issues in improving the safety net.
Study finds Chicago low-income black neighborhoods lack supermarkets
November 13, 2008 at 10:00 pm | Posted in amenities, food deserts, neighborhoods, organizational density, supermarkets, what to read | Leave a commentDaniel Block, Noel Chavez, and Judy Birgen find that low-income black neighborhoods in Chicago cities and suburbs have lower access to supermarkets than other neighborhoods. Their work adds to a growing literature on “food deserts,” neighborhoods with a scarcity of supermarkets and other suppliers of fresh or healthful foods. For the report, click here.
New paper on organizational density in poor neighborhoods
January 15, 2008 at 6:00 am | Posted in neighborhoods, organizational density, what to read | Leave a commentMario Small’s “Is There Such a Thing as `The Ghetto’?” published in City, questions the theory, advanced in Loic Wacquant’s Urban Outcasts, that poor neighborhoods exhibit low organizational density. Earlier draft.
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