Segregation, Race, and the Social Worlds of Rich and Poor

Abstract

Residential segregation has been called the "structural linchpin" of racial stratifi cation in the United States. Recent work has documented the central role it plays in the geographic concentration of poverty among African-Americans as well as the close connection between exposure to concentrated deprivation and limited life chances. Here we review trends in racial segregation and Black poverty to contextualize a broader analysis of trends in the neighborhood circumstances experienced by two groups generally considered to occupy the top and bottom positions in U.S. society: affl uent Whites and poor Blacks. The analysis reveals a sharp divergence of social and economic resources available within the social worlds of the two groups. We tie this divergence directly to the residential segregation of AfricanAmericans in the United States, which remains extreme in the nation's largest urban Black communities. In these communities, the neighborhood circumstances of affl uent as well as poor African-Americans are systematically compromised.

The Paradox of Inequality: Income Inequality and Belief in Meritocracy go Hand in Hand

“…Scholars and politicians have been puzzled by the lack of popular concern about the rising level of income inequality across the West. In this article I provide an explanation by theorizing, and inability to see what separates them from their fellow citizens, is that the lives of the rich and poor are increasingly divided between separate institutions: people live in neighborhoods, go to schools, and pick romantic partners and friends that fit their education and income level (Logan, 2011;Massey and Tannen, 2016;Musterd, 2005;Reardon and Bischoff, 2011;Reardon and Owens, 2014;Tammaru et al, 2016). Housing segregation, school stratification and social homogamy mean that one's chances of getting to know someone from a different socioeconomic background, let alone developing an understanding of another person's privilege or plight, are slim.…”

“…With regard to theorizing about income inequality, my findings suggest that we may want to pay more attention to the role of experiences in reinforcing inequality (cf. Merolla et al, 2011;Edmiston, 2018;Massey and Tannen, 2016;Dawtry et al, 2015). Looking at politics and policy preferences through an experiential lens helps understand when and why rising inequality does not lead to popular concern.…”

“…Growing levels of income inequality mean that experiences and interactions with people across income, wealth and racial fault lines are becoming more seldom. Research suggests that income inequality creates greater spatial and social distance between the wealthy and the poor, as they live their lives in different institutions: children grow up in poor or wealthy neighborhoods, attend different (public or private) schools, find friends and romantic partners in their own circles, and come to work in increasingly polarized labor markets (Kalleberg, 2009;Massey and Tannen, 2016;Musterd, 2005;Neckerman and Torche, 2007;Owens, 2016;Reardon and Bischoff, 2011;Tammaru et al, 2016). Consequently, I argue, people on either side of the income divide are unable to see the breadth of the gap that separates their lives from those of others: as the gap grows larger, other people's lives fade out of view.…”

The paradox of inequality: income inequality and belief in meritocracy go hand in hand

“…Growing levels of income inequality mean that experiences and interactions with people across income, wealth and racial fault lines are becoming more seldom. Research suggests that income inequality creates greater spatial and social distance between the wealthy and the poor, as they live their lives in different institutions: children grow up in poor or wealthy neighborhoods, attend different (public or private) schools, find friends and romantic partners in their own circles, and come to work in increasingly polarized labor markets (Musterd, 2005;Neckerman and Torche, 2007;Kalleberg, 2009;Reardon and Bischoff, 2011;Massey and Tannen, 2016;Owens, 2016;Tammaru et al, 2016). Consequently, I argue, people on either side of the income divide are unable to see the breadth of the gap that separates their lives from those of others: as the gap grows larger, other people's lives fade out of view.…”

Research Apprenticeship and Its Potential as a Distinct Model of Peer Research Practice

“…Community members from low resource communities have few opportunities to enhance their educational attainment and skill level(25,26). As “a job in which an individual is paid to learn a set of skills through on-the-job training” the apprenticeship offers respite to the twofold cost deterrent (tuition price and need to forgo income while pursuing instruction) to post-secondary education.…”