Download presentation
Presentation is loading. Please wait.
1
Poverty, Inequality and Segregation in Boston
Matt Kaliner October 6, 2015 US 24: Reinventing and Remagining Boston
2
Post industrial crisis
-> Busing Crisis Segregation, Poverty, Inequality, Social Mobility
3
Poverty, Boston Style?
4
Poverty, Boston Style? 1994: US NewS and World Report on “THE WHITE UNDERCLASS”
7
(212/588 families in poverty)
(392/802)88
8
UNDERCLASS? Poverty, Chicago Style
9
UNDERCLASS… Poverty, Chicago Style
10
Wilson vs. Massey Debate Race, Poverty, and the Underclass
William Julius Wilson Doug Massey
11
Wilson vs. Massey Debate Race, Poverty, and the Underclass
William Julius Wilson
12
Wilson vs. Massey Debate Race, Poverty, and the Underclass
1987: debate about poverty, violence, single motherhood, welfare reform, public housing …the urban crisis. Wilson: Structural transformation of the inner city Creates a new form of poverty
13
Wilson vs. Massey Debate Race, Poverty, and the Underclass
Structural transformation of the inner city Creates a new form of poverty What did African-American poverty look like in the 1950’s? What changes in the 1960’s and 1970’s?
14
Wilson vs. Massey Debate Race, Poverty, and the Underclass
Structural transformation of the inner city Creates a new form of poverty Global economy: Factories move to suburbs, overseas Collapse in inner city, low skill employment
15
Wilson vs. Massey Debate Race, Poverty, and the Underclass
Structural transformation of the inner city Creates a new form of poverty Global economy: Factories move to suburbs, overseas Collapse in inner city, low skill employment Spatial mismatch hypothesis Jobs <-> workers
16
Wilson vs. Massey Debate Race, Poverty, and the Underclass
Structural transformation of the inner city Creates a new form of poverty Outmigration of the black middle class Fair Housing Act of 1968 Depopulation collapse of community institutions and organizations, and loss of community leaders
17
Wilson vs. Massey Debate Race, Poverty, and the Underclass
Structural transformation of the inner city Creates a new form of poverty Outmigration of the black middle class Fair Housing Act of 1968 Depopulation collapse of community institutions and organizations, and loss of community leaders Social isolation of the urban poor
18
Wilson vs. Massey Debate Race, Poverty, and the Underclass
Social isolation of the urban poor Concentration of poverty = living in a neighborhood (census tract) that is >40% poor.
19
Wilson vs. Massey Debate Race, Poverty, and the Underclass
Social isolation of the urban poor Concentration of poverty = living in a neighborhood (census tract) that is >40% poor. Question: Why does your neighborhoods poverty matter??
20
(212/588 families in poverty)
(392/802)88
21
Wilson vs. Massey Debate Race, Poverty, and the Underclass
Why does your neighborhoods poverty matter? “Not only are children at risk because of the lack of informal social controls, they are also disadvantaged because the social interaction among neighbours tends to be confined to those whose skills, styles, orientations and habits are not as conductive to positive social outcomes (academic success, pro-social behavior, employment in the formal labor market, etc) as those in more stable neighborhoods. ( )
22
Wilson vs. Massey Debate Race, Poverty, and the Underclass
Why does your neighborhoods poverty matter? “Although the close interaction among neighbors in such areas may be useful in devising strategies, disseminating information and developing styles of behavior that are helpful in a ghetto milieu (teaching children to avoid eye-to-eye contact with strangers and to develop a tough demeanour in the public sphere for self protection), they may be less effective in promoting the welfare of children in the society at large” (485)
23
Wilson vs. Massey Debate Race, Poverty, and the Underclass
Why does your neighborhoods poverty matter? Concentration of poverty -Ghetto-specific behavior. -Codeswitching -“Culture of Poverty” -Soft skills
24
Wilson vs. Massey Debate Race, Poverty, and the Underclass
Doug Massey
25
Wilson vs. Massey Debate Race, Poverty, and the Underclass
Segregation: The Missing Link
26
Wilson vs. Massey Debate Race, Poverty, and the Underclass
Segregation: The Missing Link How does segregation matter?
27
Wilson vs. Massey Debate Race, Poverty, and the Underclass
Segregation: The Missing Link Interaction of poverty and race Continued role of discrimination Redlining Blockbusting Steering (by real estate agents)
29
Great Migration comes late to Boston
30
1940
31
1950
32
1960
33
1970
34
1980
35
1990
36
2000
37
2010
38
2013
39
discrimination
40
Federal Home Owners’ Loan Corporation Maps (“Redlining Map)
those considered desirable for lending purposes — were outlined in blue and known as "Type A". These were typically affluent suburbs on the outskirts of cities. "Type B" neighborhoods were considered "Still Desirable", whereas older "Type C" neighborhoods were labeled "Declining" and outlined in yellow. "Type D" neighborhoods were outlined in red and were considered the most risky for mortgage support.
42
Blockbusting Real estate scare tactics
Hire African- American women to push strollers through white neighborhoods
43
Segregation Dissimilarity index (D): the proportion of each group that would need to move to a new neighborhood to ensure racial balance across the city. In 1880, 51% of African-Americans would need to move to ensure that all parts of Boston have same proportion of African-Americans.
44
Consistent but slow decline in segregation over the past 30 years.
45
Poverty
46
Poverty in Boston (BRA Report)
21.6% of Boston’s population lives in poverty. This percentage has remained fairly consistent since 2000. …the U.S. poverty rate is 15.9% and the Massachusetts poverty rate is 11.9%. College students: Boston’s poverty rate decreases slightly when college students are excluded. Boston’s poverty rate, less college students, is 19%. The poverty rate among Boston’s college student population is 28.2%. 48.6% of college students who are in poverty have children. Immigration The poverty rate for Boston’s native born and foreign born populations are relatively similar at 21% and 23.2% respectively.
47
Poverty by Race Poverty rates according to race: Hispanic 34.8%
Asian % Black/African American 23% White: %
48
Educational Attainment
Among Boston’s 25 and older population, poverty rates according to educational attainment are: Less than a high school diploma: 32% High school graduate and equivalency: 20.8% Some college or Associate’s degree: % Bachelor’s degree or higher: %
49
Current Trends: Suburbanization of Poverty
1990’s: Huge Decline in concentrated poverty 2000’s: Huge increase 1999, 2009??
54
Inequality
58
Mobility
62
“Across the country, the researchers found five factors associated with strong upward mobility: less segregation by income and race, lower levels of income inequality, better schools, lower rates of violent crime, and a larger share of two-parent households. In general, the effects of place are sharper for boys than for girls, and for lower-income children than for rich.”
65
Thursday Ted Landsmark Buy this book
Similar presentations
© 2025 SlidePlayer.com. Inc.
All rights reserved.