BLACK MALE UNEMPLOyMENT IN U.S. METROPOLITAN AREAS: THE ROLE OF BLACK CENTRAL CITy SEGREGATION AND JOB DECENTRALIZATION*

Housing segregation has been suggested as an important cause of high unemployment among black Americans, because segregation restricts the black population to living in those central city areas which are losing jobs. Previous studies have not offered a conclusive test of this hypothesis, as they present conflicting findings and have a number of methodological difficulties. Using regression analyses on data from U.S. SMSAs, it is shown that the differential in unemployment rates between blacks and whites in U. S. SMSAs (and particularly SMSAs outside the South) is substantially influenced both by segregation patterns restricting blacks to the central city and by job decentralization. This black/while unemployment differential and the overall unemployment rate in an area determine the level of black unemployment in the area. Thus, central city segregation and job decentralization have important indirect effects on the black unemployment rates of U. S. metropolitan areas.     

Poverty,Race, and US Metropolitan Social and Economic Structure

This research evaluates the link between social and economic structural features of US urban areas and the poverty rates of black and white residents in 1990. Using a sample of 112 metropolitan areas (with poverty rates ranging from 9.4% to 45.4% for blacks, and 3.5% to 16.0% for whites) and multiple regression analysis, we find that metropolitan location in the Northeast lowers poverty rates of blacks and whites compared to metropolitan areas in other regions. Moreover, population growth, higher percent black, increased black high school graduation rates, the presence of immigrants, a high percentage of workers employed in manufacturing and relatively few in retailing, low black unemployment, and an older black population are related to lower black poverty rates. For whites, lower poverty rates are related to high racial residential segregation, increased white high school graduation rates, low white unemployment, a large black population, and a high percentage of workers employed in manufacturing and fewer employed in retail sales and professional services.     

HOUSING SEGREGATION IN THE SCHOOL AGE POPULATION AND THE LINK BETWEEN HOUSING AND SCHOOL SEGREGATION: A ST. LOUIS CASE STUDY

The age distributions of the black and white populations vary, as do the ways in which blacks and whites of differing ages are distributed geographically in metropolitan areas. The nature of these differences is such that, in racially mixed neighborhoods, black families with children are often mixed with childless or elderly white adults. For this reason, it is hypothesized that the school-age (5 to 17 years of age) population is more residentially segregated by race than is the total population. To test this hypothesis, segregation indices based on census tract data were computed for the St. Louis SMSA for 1980, for the total population and the school-age population. This analysis confirmed that the school-age population was somewhat more segregated than the total population. The implications of this finding for the problem of school segregation are discussed, as is the interrelationship between housing segregation and school segregation.     

Black Residential Segregation in the City and Suburbs of Detroit: Does Socioeconomic Status Matter?

According to ecological theory, the socioeconomic status of a minority group is inversely related to the group's level of residential segregation from the majority group. This article determines whether the level of black socioeconomic status is related to the level of black residential segregation in the city of Detroit and Detroit's suburbs. Data were obtained from the U.S. Bureau of Census, 1990 Summary Tape Files 4‐A. The methods employed to measure residential segregation were the indexes of dissimilarity D and isolation P*. Indexes were computed by census tract to measure segregation and isolation between blacks and whites at the same level of occupation, income, or education. The results revealed that residential segregation between blacks and whites remained high (i.e., above 50%) in both the city and the suburbs despite comparable socioeconomic status. Blacks in the suburbs were more segregated and isolated than blacks in the city at each socioeconomic level.     

Whites' neighbourhood racial preferences and neighbourhood racial composition in the United States: evidence from the multi‐city study of urban inequality

Within the housing segregation literature major disagreements have developed over two fundamental issues: (1) the role that whites' aversion to racially mixed neighbourhoods plays in causing modern segregation in the US; and (2) the factors that underlie this aversion, including the effects of inter‐racial contact on whites' neighbourhood racial preferences and whether these preferences reflect neighbourhood stereotyping as opposed to pure racial prejudice. Extant evidence on these issues is either old or indirect. This paper provides direct evidence on these issues using new data from the Multi‐City Study of Urban Inequality. The results suggest that (1) whites' neighbourhood racial preferences play an important role in explaining the racial composition of their neighbourhoods; (2) inter‐racial contact in neighbourhoods and workplaces leads to a greater willingness among whites to live with blacks; and (3) although younger and more educated whites express a stronger taste for integration than other whites, the magnitude of these differences leads to only a small increase in the black percentage of the neighbourhood. In addition, the results provide no evidence in support of the hypothesis that whites stereotype black neighbourhoods rather than blacks per se.     

Black‐White Income Inequality and Metropolitan Socioeconomic Structure

Abstract We draw on leading theories about the structural causes of racial inequality in the US to investigate inter‐metropolitan differences in white and black per capita income. The analysis, which is based on a sample of 112 metropolitan areas and uses 1990 census data, examines the influence of spatial, economic, and demographic factors on black‐white income inequality. Our results show severe income inequality between blacks and whites in most metropolitan areas, with black per capita income being 55% of white per capita income, on average. We find that racial educational inequality and unemployment differences were the strongest predictors of racially based income inequality. We also find that metropolitan areas that are highly ranked on a business and financial dominance hierarchy have the most interracial income inequality. However, when a metropolitan area has a high level of manufacturing employment vis‐a‐vis low service employment it has less income inequality. We discuss the implications of these and other findings for theories about, and public policy regarding, urban inequality.     

BARRIERS TO A BETTER BREAK: Employer Discrimination and Spatial Mismatch in Metropolitan Detroit

ABSTRACT: This article discusses key findings from a survey-based employer study designed to evaluate the relative merit of race, space, and skill-based explanations for growing wage and employment gaps between blacks and whites. The author found that black employers hired a greater percentage of black workers for their firms than white employers matched on the basis of firm size, location, and product produced, but black-owned firms paid lower wages, even though there seemed to be no major differences in skills required for the jobs studied. However, suburban black-owned firms, as well as white-owned firms with strongly enforced anti-discrimination programs, hired much higher percentages of black workers than white-owned firms that did not have such programs. The author presents the findings of disparate wages paid to workers in black- and white-owned firms in the context of the spatial mismatch literature.     

RACE AND SPACE: HIRING PRACTICES OF LOS ANGELES ELECTRONICS FIRMS

ABSTRACT: Some spatial mismatch theorists have incorporated racial discrimination in employment into their quantitative models as a causal factor, in addition to spatial barriers, in explaining the unemployment problems of Blacks. They generally argue that racist employers are more likely to locate in the suburbs, rather than the inner city, which helps to explain why Blacks are less likely to be employed there. We take a qualitative approach to the spatial mismatch question on the basis of personal interviews with employers in the electronics industry in Los Angeles. We found that employers in black neighborhoods were just as likely as employers in non‐black neighborhoods to discriminate in their hiring practices and hold preferences for workers from other racial and ethnic backgrounds. Consequently, black residential proximity to firms is unlikely to completely overcome barriers associated with racial discrimination in employment. We argue that spatial mismatch models face limitations to analyzing racial discrimination in employment that are inherent in their quantitative models.     

RACIAL CHARACTERISTICS OF CENTRAL CITY SCHOOLS,FAMILY INCOME,AND THE SUBURBANIZATION OF BLACK AND WHITE FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN

This paper examines the effects of racial characteristics of central city schools on decisions by individual white and black families with children to move to the suburbs. The extent to which these variables are dependent on the level of total family income is also considered, as well as the effect of income itself. The school characteristics are changes in segregation of central city schools, terminal level of segregation and percent black in the school district. Using logit analysis, terminal level of segregation seems to be more important than either of the other school variables. It appears that whites flow away from relatively desegregated school systems, while blacks are much less likely to move away from them, regardless of income. When the system is relatively segregated, the reverse pattern is observed.     

Holding the Line: Housing Turnover and the Persistence of Racial/Ethnic Segregation in New York City

Abstract: This article uses a panel data set of paired observations of housing units for the most recent inter‐censal period to examine the micro‐level mobility dynamics that maintain disproportionately high levels of white/black segregation in New York City. Multinomial logistic regression models reveal an unmistakable pattern of white avoidance of mixed and predominantly non‐white areas, and areas dominated by blacks, countered by significantly increased odds of Hispanic and particularly black in‐movement to these same areas. Coupled with evidence of enhanced odds of white out‐movement from these same kinds of areas, the results overall indicate that “white flight” as well as white avoidance help to maintain extreme levels of white/black segregation. The pattern of areal effects on the odds of mobility incidence and racial/ethnic turnover also reveal the dynamics that have produced predominantly non‐white areas composed almost exclusively of blacks and Hispanics.     

The role of ‘race’ in the likelihood of city participation in the United States public and section 8 existing housing programmes

Research on US housing and politics provides evidence for persistent racial discrimination, dual housing markets (one for whites and one for blacks in particular) and racial segregation. Research also shows the relationship between government subsidised low‐income housing programmes and continued segregation. This work focuses on an additional aspect of racial discrimination in housing: local officials, capitulating to the housing industry, consider the possible effect government subsidised housing will have on racially segmented markets before entering some programmes. This paper explores the relationship between the size of the black population, as one indicator of the racial composition of a city, and the likelihood of city participation in public housing and Section 8 Existing housing. The quantitative analyses of US cities shows a negative relationship between the size of the black population and the likelihood of city participation in Section 8 Existing housing, a programme that provides participants the possibility of crossing segmented market boundaries. The results also suggest that the relationship between race and public housing is different than that between race and Section 8 Existing housing. Public housing does not necessarily provide participants the opportunity to cross boundaries. Rather it concentrates people, giving local officials more control over the location of poor racial minorities. Finally, the paper argues that the negative relationship between the size of the black population and the likelihood of city participation constitutes yet another form of racial discrimination in housing.     

Effects of race on property values: The case of Dallas

Conclusions This study was undertaken to test whether race has a significant effect on property values. We have assumed that the price paid for a housing unit is a function of its assessed value and either the race of the buyer (Model I) or the race of both buyer and seller and the state of the housing market (Model II). On the basis of these models, the evidence from our sample is that (1) blacks have a positive influence on housing prices and (2) the races of both buyer and seller and the state of the housing market are significant in explaining housing prices.The results obtained, of course, pertain only to Dallas an may be peculiar to the particular time period used. The black population of Dallas increased from 19% in 1960 to 25% in 1970. The rapid increase in black population, if taken as a fairly accurate measure of increase in housing demand, indicates a relatively large increase in black housing demand during the period. In addition the two black areas provided the first major supply of middle-income housing to blacks in the southern half of the city--easing the suppressed demand for black middle-income housing. These two factors help to explain how black demand (25% of the population) was able to more than make up for the loss of white demand (75% of the population) in the areas studied. Another factor which may have affected the results was the unstable Dallas housing market during the 1960's. The market fluctuated between oversupply and undersupply rather than reaching equilibrium.Mrs. Cooper, Research Economist, United Banks of Colorado, would like to thank M. K. Carney and P. A. Hayashi, both Associate Professors of Economics at the University of Texas at Arlington, for their suggestions in developing the models used in this paper.     

An Analysis of Black Occupancy of Mobile Homes

Mobile homes represent one potential source of new housing for low-income populations. Current data show that this type of housing has become in creasingly attractive to households within the $5,000–10,000 income range. Given that black family incomes are generally lower and housing conditions poorer compared to whites, we would expect that levels of black occupancy of mobile homes would be relatively high.

This research examines these levels of black occupancy in mobile homes for twelve states and, taking into account important social, economic, and demographic variables affecting the probability of living in a mobile home, generates an expected level of occupancy for blacks. Actual levels of occupancy are found to range from 4 to 45 percent of these expected levels, indicating a severe under representation of black households in this form of low income housing. Two general explanations for this under representation are discussed: differences in housing preferences between blacks and whites and racial discrimination in the sale, financing, and location of mobile homes.     

Getting a full-time job as a part-time unemployed: How much does spatial context matter?

This paper investigates the extent to which differences in the probability to exit from part-time unemployment to a full-time job are accountable for by spatial contextual factors and individual characteristics. To correctly incorporate contextual effects, a multilevel analysis is applied using a mixed-effects model to explore whether contextual factors account for differences in the probability of transition to full-time employment between individuals with different characteristics. The results indicate that there is a contextual effect and that there are some spatial spill-over effects from neighbouring municipalities, and that the unemployment rate partly explains the context variability. Furthermore, the contextual effect is found to be especially large for individuals without a university degree.     

THE SIGNIFICANCE OF RACE AND CLASS IN RESIDENTIAL SEGREGATION

Some observers believe that the significance of race as a factor in residential segregation has declined since passage of the Federal Fair Housing Act of 1968, which declared racial discrimination in housing illegal. Thus, the present segregation is seen as more the result of class differences than racial differences. This belief, however, can be empirically tested. The objective of this paper is to determine whether residential segregation between blacks and whites declines once socioeconomic status differences are controlled. Data for this paper were obtained from the U.S. Bureau of the Census's 1980 Summary Tape File 4. The Kansas City, Missouri SMS A is the study area. The method employed to measure residential segregation is the index of dissimilarity. Indices of dissimilarity were computed by census tracts between blacks and whites at the same level of occupation, income and education. The results suggest that race remains the most significant factor in residential segregation.     

The direct and indirect effects of housing segregation on employment opportunities for blacks

Housing segregation directly affects the employment opportunities for blacks by reducing access to jobs. In addition, an indirect effect exists if, holding other factors constant, employers tend to hire workers who reflect the racial composition of the surrounding area. This tendency implies that a change in the distribution of black residences (with an offsetting change in the distribution in white residences) will have an impact on the spatial distribution of employment opportunities for blacks who donot move. Empirical evidence is presented for both the direct and indirect effects for the Chicago SMSA in 1970 using the Journey to Work data from the Census.Mr. Elroy M. Leach provided valuable computational assistance.     

CHANGING SETTLEMENT PATTERNS OF BLACK AMERICANS, 1970–1980

Drawn by the attraction of economic betterment and less oppressive social conditions, over six million black Americans left the South between 1870 and 1970 for the major urban centers of the North and West. Over its course, the great migration transformed the black population from a predominantly southern and rural people into a highly urbanized, more nationally distributed, group. In the receiving cities, blacks were confronted with new forms of segregation and virtually excluded from suburbia. A number of important changes in black settlement patterns occurred during the 1970's. First, the century-long exodus out of the South came to an end as opportunities there improved and conditions in the North deteriorated. Second, the Northeast, which had been a major destination of southern blacks for over 100 years, itself became subjected to strong black outmigration tendencies. The Midwest experienced similar trends, but on a smaller scale, and the proportion of blacks residing in the region remained virtually unchanged over the decade. The West continued to draw blacks, and was the only region to register a proportional gain in their numbers. Third, there was a marked shift of blacks to suburban residency, the extent of which varied between metropolitan areas. The exodus was broad enough to produce a net outmigration of blacks from the nation's central cities, a number of which experienced an absolute loss of black residents. Nevertheless, because of the continuing white exodus, the number of large cities gaining black majorities more than doubled during the decade. While enhancing the exercise of black political power in both central cities and suburbs, the changes did little to alter existing patterns of segregated living.     

THE RESIDENTIAL SEGREGATION OF AMERICAN INDIANS IN METROPOLITAN AREAS OF MICHIGAN

American Indian or Native American residential segregation is viewed within the general framework of ecological theory. According to theorists of human ecology, variation in segregation between groups relates directly to measurable differences on social and economic variables. This study uses 1980 census tract data and the index of dissimilarity to measure the extent of residential segregation in Michigan's 12 Standard Metropolitan Statistical Areas. Correlation coefficients were computed to assess whether a strong relationship exists between the residential segregation of American Indians and the spatial distribution of housing value and rent. The findings revealed that Indian-white residential segregation is lower than black-white segregation and that American Indians are more segregated from blacks than from whites. The segregated distribution pattern of American Indians is not strongly related to the cost of housing.     

Does home equity explain the black wealth gap?

Prior literature has shown that blacks have lower rates of homeownership, lower amounts of home equity, and experience lower housing appreciation than whites. This paper examines racial differences in the returns to homeownership using a longitudinal survey of middle-aged homeowners. We find that home equity appreciation is much lower for blacks between 1994 and 2004, however blacks with high incomes do not experience the same home equity gap. While there are regional differences in negative racial effects, high income blacks are able to avoid those as well. We find that among those who acquire the largest increase in home equity, being black is not detrimental. We also find that even when we account for differences in home equity growth, racial differences in wealth growth persist.