NCJ Number
220081
Journal
Sociological Spectrum Volume: 27 Issue: 5 Dated: 2007 Pages: 507-535
Date Published
2007
Length
29 pages
Annotation
This article examines African-American-White residential segregation in micropolitan areas across the South.
Abstract
Using the most recent Census of Population and Housing data for 1990 and 2000, it was found that the dynamics of residential segregation in the sample of micropolitan areas (urban clusters with a core population ranging from 10,000 to 50,000) reflected both important opportunities and constraints. In contrast to their counterparts in metropolitan areas, African-Americans in the nonmetropolitan South face “only” moderate levels of segregation. Southern micropolitan areas afford greater opportunities for spatial assimilation to the least economically advantaged African- Americans, as well as those who are more advantaged. Residential segregation represents one of the most egregious forms of racial apartheid historically facing African-Americans in the United States. The nonmetropolitan South remains an important terrain for African-American-White relations in the post-Civil Rights era. In recent decades, return migration, as well as other developments have fueled the growth of the African-American populations in this historically important region. Micropolitan areas, according to the analysis are among those places that have witnessed this resurgence. However, scholars have failed to systematically track patterns of residential segregation and spatial assimilation in theses areas, focusing instead on metropolitan areas. This study provides the first large scale assessment of African-American-White residential segregation in micropolitan areas. Tables, figure, and references