Contributors to concentrated poverty of Blacks and Hispanics in metropolitan America, 1980–2020

Abstract

ABSTRACTA longstanding debate asks why African Americans have been disproportionately concentrated in poor neighborhoods. All sides agree that a key contributor is the high level of poverty among Blacks, but they differ on other sources. Has the exodus of a growing Black middle class from the inner city (raising income segregation among Blacks) left the Black poor more isolated? Does persistent high racial segregation hold both middle class and poor Blacks in neighborhoods that are depressed by the high rate of Black poverty? Is poverty in Black neighborhoods mainly due to the presence of poor Black households or poor non-Black neighbors? This study addresses these questions with data for 1980–2020, and extends the analysis also to the case of Hispanic poverty exposure. Longitudinal models and detailed analysis of neighborhood composition by race and income show that the group’s own income composition is the most important predictor of poverty exposure. This effect is compounded by high racial segregation. Within-group income segregation adds to poverty concentration for Blacks but not for Hispanics. Blacks and Hispanics of all income levels live in poorer neighborhoods mainly because of the large share of their Black and Hispanic low-income neighbors, while their white neighbors tend to have higher incomes than they do.KEYWORDS: Segregationpoverty concentrationraceneighborhood Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).Additional informationFundingThe work was supported by the National Institutes of Health [1R01HD075785-01A1]; National Science Foundation [SES-2147919]; Russell Sage Foundation [G-2104-31472].Notes on contributorsJohn LoganJohn R. Logan is professor of sociology at Brown University. Much of his research focuses on urban and racial inequality in the U.S., including both contemporary patterns and historical developments since the late 19th Century. He is co-author with Harvey Molotch of Urban Fortunes: The Political Economy of Place (1987). In addition to his own research, he has been active in developing and disseminating census data and maps for public use through projects at Brown University: the Urban Transition Historical GIS Project and the Diversity and Disparities Project.Brian StultsBrian J. Stults, PhD, is a professor in the College of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Florida State University. His research addresses the general issues of race, crime, and community in urban areas, with a particular focus on segregation, racial threat, and spatial and temporal patterns of crime. His work has been published in such journals as the American Journal of Sociology, Criminology, and Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency.Rachel McKaneRachel McKane is an assistant professor of sociology and the Jack Meyerhoff Chair of American Environmental Studies at Brandeis University. They were previously at Brown University’s Population Studies and Training Center as a postdoctoral research associate in the Spatial Structures in the Social Sciences program. Rachel’s primary research explores the connection between environmental (in)justice and processes of urban change rooted in racial capitalism, city development, and present and historic housing inequality. You can find some of their research in Environmental Research Letters, Environmental Justice, Environmental Sociology, and Cities.