Urban Churning: The Transformation of Black, Latino, and White Enclaves in Houston, 1960-2010

• In Event: 267 - Section on Sociology of Population Paper Session. Demography and Inequality

Abstract

To extend research on urbanization and the persistence of socially homogenous urban zones, we examine how such zones have formed and shifted over time and space in one of the nation’s fastest growing and now most diverse metropolitan areas. Applying concepts and measures of racial “enclaving” to data from historically standardized census tracts, we follow the relative concentration of Whites as well as Blacks and Latinos. We find that as racial groups grow and compete for residential space within the same urban core and as the socially dominant group recedes numerically and spatially, enclaving becomes more, not less, common. How this process occurs varies by group position in the US racial hierarchy. For Whites, it occurs largely through contraction, concentration, and fortification. For Blacks and Latinos, enclaving tends to extend outward along and between major transportation and industrial corridors into adjoining tracts that are declining in homeownership and income. After discussing our findings and their implications, we conclude with suggestions for future research.

Authors

• Elizabeth Korver-Glenn, Rice University

• James R. Elliott, Rice University