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Residential segregation is both durable and dynamic. That is, many residential patterns are stable and have existed for decades, while others have emerged recently with immigration and intra-metropolitan migration patterns. For example, in the United States, the growing Latino immigrant population has increasingly been segregated from whites. In 2000, Latinos were found to be segregated from whites to an even higher degree in new destination locations (i.e. where Latino population was negligible in 1990) than in established gateway cities. Krysan and Crowder (2017) lamented the persistence of segregation in North American cities. However, some research suggests that segregation levels in major American cities have been declining since 1970, the largest decline occurring in Chicago. Reardon and Owens (2014) found a similar pattern of decline in residential segregation from 1980 to 2000 in small local geographic areas which contributed to the decline of within-school segregation during the same period. In other words, people from different racial groups become more likely to share neighborhoods than they were in the past, which in turn leads to a more racially diverse student body over time. Indeed, Glaeser and Vigdor (2012) claim that the end of the segregation era has finally arrived.

The study of residential segregation can be divided into work that describes and work that explains the causes of residential segregation. This book will cover both. Descriptive work uses various measures to convey the extent of segregation and describe how it is patterned in urban space. These measures may be indices of segregation that seek to take a lot of data about where groups live and summarize it into a single number. Descriptive approaches may also include visual depictions of segregation patterns using color-coded maps, a powerful tool for conveying the patterning of groups. In this book, we will review different descriptive measures of segregation. Descriptive “facts” about residential segregation are important in and of themselves for gauging potential problems of inequality and stratification. Descriptive measures are also essential for the explanation of segregation, because they provide the context through which we can generate and test hypotheses about its causes.

What factors explain observed patterns of residential segregation? Chapter 2 lays out a variety of answers to this question, providing a typology of social forces ranging from macro to micro. For now, let us limit ourselves by saying that one of simplest and most important factors is whether individuals sought to be segregated or not. Distinguishing whether residential segregation is voluntary or involuntary is one of the simplest ways to explain it (but difficult to measure). Some groups, new immigrants in particular, cluster in specific areas by choice. They maintain relationships and social interactions largely within their own groups. In other words, they are socially segregated. In Canada, Richmond in the Greater Vancouver Area and Richmond Hill in the Greater Toronto Area have high concentrations of Chinese. There you will see neon signs in Chinese characters displayed on storefronts for many blocks. Community malls with shops and restaurants are full of Chinese consumers enjoying social gatherings and cultural activities. In central Los Angeles, Korean immigrants concentrate in Koreatown. These communities have many ethnic churches. Residents of these communities are largely immigrants, who stay together for social support and maintain strong social boundaries between themselves and others.

Although these groups can choose to maintain a high level of interaction within their boundaries, they are sometimes socially segregated from other groups involuntarily. For example, it has been documented that there is a high level of occupational segregation in employment opportunities and exclusion from better jobs for Hispanic and Asian men. Some groups have almost no representation in senior management or supervisory positions. These patterns of involuntary segregation have been found in a variety of places, ranging from Canada to Spain to Hong Kong. Friendships in neighborhoods, schools, and workplaces tend to develop along racial or class lines.

These observations lead us to ask a series of questions: What are the current patterns of residential and social segregation in the United States and other countries? Have the levels of residential and social segregation increased, decreased, or remained the same over the last few decades? What is the relationship between residential segregation and social segregation? Why do we find residential and social segregation among different social groups in almost every city? These questions are not simply asking, “Is there segregation?” but, “How much segregation is there in the city, and why?” More importantly, “Why do we need to be concerned about segregation?” To answer these and other questions, we first need to investigate some fundamental issues: What is segregation? Why are people segregated? What are the consequences of segregation? These are the key questions that will be addressed in this book.