Neighborhood Development Organizations, Machine Politics, and Neighborhood Poverty

• In Event: 189 - Section on Community and Urban Sociology Refereed Roundtable Session and Business Meeting

Abstract

Poverty rates in Chicago’s neighborhoods increased by over 12 percent on average between 2000 and 2010. What led to changes in neighborhood poverty in this time and during the Great Recession? I focus on two factors that go beyond traditional explanations: the effect of civic organizations and of a neighborhood’s political connection. Civic organizations gained new effectiveness in recent decades as urban governance has increasingly relied on them to tackle structural issues. Here I focus specifically on neighborhood development organizations, which are resident initiated, building community and developing their neighborhood. Connections to the political machine are also important for these organizations and their poverty reduction efforts. Neighborhoods who are represented by aldermen who are part of the political machine are more likely to receive favor, which is important in this new system of community development through nonprofit organizations. To analyze how neighborhood development organizations and machine politics impact change in neighborhood poverty, I analyze an original dataset on Chicago’s neighborhoods from 2000-2010.

Author

• Bryant Crubaugh, Pepperdine University