The changing geography of metropolitan opportunity: The segregation of the poor in U.S. metropolitan areas, 1970 to 1990

Abstract

This analysis uses census tract data to measure the segregation of the poor in U.S. metropolitan areas in 1970, 1980, and 1990. Two measures of segregation are used: the indices of dissimilarity and isolation.

In 1990 the mean dissimilarity of the poor in the 100 largest U.S. metropolitan areas was 36.1, which is substantial but below the 60.6 dissimilarity of blacks. The 1990 isolation of the poor was 21.0. From 1970 to 1990, the dissimilarity of the poor increased by 11 percent, and the isolation of the poor rose by 9 percent; in contrast, racial segregation declined. Exploratory regression analyses reveal that income segregation in metropolitan areas was significantly greater in 1990 and increased more from 1970 to 1990 in the Northeast than in the South and West. Midwest areas generally were not significantly different from Northeast areas in 1990 segregation levels or in changes from 1970 to 1990.     

Reinventing the central city as a place to live and work

Abstract

Public policies for urban development have traditionally emphasized investment in physical infrastructure, the development of large‐scale commercial facilities, the construction of new housing, and the renewal of existing neighborhoods. Most efforts to revitalize central cities by building new facilities for visitors have focused on suburban commuters and tourists. At the same time, many housing initiatives in central cities have concentrated on low‐income communities because outlying suburban areas have attracted traditional middle‐income households.

This article argues that emerging demographic and cultural trends—combined with changes in the structure of business organizations and technological advances—provide new opportunities for cities to retain and attract middle‐class households. Using gay and lesbian populations as an example, it focuses on the role that nontraditional households can play in urban redevelopment. In light of the rise of nontraditional households and the growth of self‐employment and small businesses, cities should adopt policies that make them attractive places in which to live and work.     

Book Reviews

Comparative Civil (Private) Law. G. Eoersi. Budapest. 1979. Akademiai Kiado 651 pp. 850 ft.

Recherches sur l'Histoire des Institutions et du Droit. Ed. late G. Herlea. Association d'Histoire Comparative des Institutions et du Droit de la République Socialiste de Roumanie. Bucharest, vol. II (1978) 195 pp, vol. III (1979) 207 pp.

Manual of Law French J. H. Baker. Amersham; Avebury Publishing Co. 1979,207 pp. £7.50.     

Democratic legitimacy and direct elections to the European parliament

The theme of ‘democratic legitimacy’ and the way it affects the institutions and development of the European Community is a recurrent one both in the literature on Western European integration and especially in debates amongst European politicians and parliamentarians. This article examines the theme within the context of the direct elections to be held to the European Parliament in 1979. It is argued that the European Parliament has certain legitimacy problems which stem from the nature of its authority, intelligibility, visibility, and the way in which it acts as the European Community's ‘grand forum’. The holding of European elections will not in themselves overcome these problems, and a number of suggestions are offered as to how the European Parliament and the European Community can achieve democratic legitimacy.¹     

In search of enduring information effects: Evidence from a ten-week panel experiment

The extent to which the electorate uses issue information to update their candidate evaluations over the course of political campaigns has often raised questions about citizen competence. Using a ten-week panel experiment designed to capture the low-information context of most congressional races this study contributes to our understanding of when and by what processes issue information produces enduring effects. Findings reveal that when voters need to assess an ideologically moderate candidate, they rely less on partisan cues but instead of storing issue information in long-term memory – either via a memory-based or on-line process – considerations in short-term memory remained one of the most powerful predictors of candidate evaluation, particularly when new issue information deviated from partisan norms.     

Transnationalism,neo-liberalism,and the rise of the shadow state

This paper examines the processes through which a neo-liberal agenda is broadened and entrenched through time. The case study focuses on a federal immigration policy in Canada in the 1980s, which encouraged the rapid entry of wealthy entrepreneurs and investors from Hong Kong. One of the many impacts of the arrival of this Chinese business élite in British Columbia was the rapid growth of a key volunteer organization in Vancouver dedicated to social service provisioning for immigrants. With the donations and volunteerism of the new Chinese arrivals, this organization grew from a small, narrowly focused social service institution, to one of the largest and most extensive providers in the lower Mainland, supplying numerous goods and services formerly controlled primarily by the province and the federal government. As a result of the actions of this voluntary organization, a type of interstitial organization that some scholars have termed under the rubric, 'the shadow state', conservative politicians in the 1980s were able to roll back many welfare state programmes in British Columbia without a corresponding loss of legitimacy occurring from the immediate truncation of services. The Business Immigration Programme thus aided in the entrenchment of a neo-liberal agenda both through the increased circulation of capital and articulation with Asian networks, and also through the devolution of direct welfare-state governance. I argue that this immigration programme thus represents one good example of the multiple ways that seemingly simple policy shifts can have much broader effects, and can entrench neo-liberal policy socially,culturally and institutionally as well as economically.     

Immigration and Refugees: Punctuations in the Commonwealth Policy Agenda

In April 2013, Australia's population reached 23 million. Up to 60 percent of population growth in Australia comes from immigration and 40 percent of population growth comes from natural increase. It is therefore not too surprising that the issue of immigration receives a considerable amount of attention in the overall Commonwealth policy agenda. However, immigration policy is a complex policy area that is vulnerable to sudden increases in policy attention. Such increases in policy attention may be related to external shocks, wars or changing global economic conditions. This article charts some of the contextual factors, which result in high‐salience punctuations and intense policy activity in the area of immigration.     

Working from strengths to assess changes in gender equality

This paper describes an empirical application of a strengths-based approach (SBA) to assess changes in gender equality, and draws out implications for research, evaluation, and wider development practice. We outline what constitutes a strengths-based approach and present a case study where a participatory methodology informed by appreciative inquiry was used to investigate gender outcomes of two water, sanitation, and hygiene-focused development initiatives. We consider the value and limitations of taking an explicitly strengths-based approach to assessing gender outcomes, and also propose that there are important arguments for why SBAs might be usefully applied in addressing (not just assessing) gender equality.

Travailler à partir des forces pour évaluer les changements sur le plan de l'égalité entre les sexes

Ce document décrit une application empirique d'une approche fondée sur les forces (AFF) pour évaluer les changements sur le plan de l'égalité entre les sexes, et en tire les implications pour les recherches, l'évaluation et les pratiques plus générales en matière de développement. Nous décrivons ce qui constitue une approche fondée sur les forces et présentons une étude de cas dans laquelle une méthodologie participative éclairée par une enquête appréciative a été utilisée pour examiner les résultats sur le plan du genre de deux initiatives portant sur l'eau, l'assainissement et l'hygiène. Nous considérons la valeur et les limites de l'adoption d'une approche expressément fondée sur les forces pour évaluer les résultats sur le plan du genre, et avançons par ailleurs qu'il y a des arguments importants concernant les raisons pour lesquelles les ABS pourraient être utilement appliquées au moment de tenter d'obtenir (et pas seulement d'évaluer) l'égalité entre les sexes.

Evaluando cambios en la igualdad de género a partir de las fortalezas

El presente artículo examina la aplicación empírica de un enfoque basado en fortalezas (SBA por sus siglas en inglés), destinado a valorar cambios en la igualdad de género y a analizar sus implicaciones en la investigación, la evaluación y las prácticas más generales relacionadas con el desarrollo. Las autoras hacen un bosquejo de lo que constituye un SBA. Presentan un estudio de caso en el que se utilizó una metodología participativa a partir de una investigación apreciativa, con el objetivo de realizar una pesquisa en torno a los resultados vinculados al género obtenidos en dos iniciativas de desarrollo enfocadas en agua, saneamiento e higiene. Asimismo, examinan el valor y las limitaciones implicadas en el uso explícito de un SBA para valorar los resultados relacionados con el género, sosteniendo que existen razones importantes para defender la utilización del SBA con el fin de obtener (y no sólo valorar) la igualdad de género.

Trabalhando a partir dos pontos fortes para avaliar mudanças na igualdade de gênero

Este artigo descreve uma aplicação empírica de uma abordagem baseada nos pontos fortes (SBA) para avaliar mudanças na igualdade de gênero e extrai as implicações para a pesquisa, avaliação e prática de desenvolvimento mais geral. Esboçamos o que constitui uma abordagem baseada nos pontos fortes e apresentamos um estudo de caso onde uma metodologia participativa com informações de uma investigação apreciativa foi utilizada para examinar os resultados de gênero de duas iniciativas de desenvolvimento focalizadas no fornecimento de água, saneamento e higiene. Consideramos o valor e as limitações de se adotar uma abordagem explicitamente baseada nos pontos fortes para avaliar os resultados de gênero e também propomos que há argumentos importantes que explicam por que as SBAs podem ser utilmente aplicadas na abordagem da igualdade de gênero (não apenas avaliando).     

Municipal services and the judiciary: the immunity doctrine in the service delivery process

During the past decade residents have sought judicial redress against municipalities alleging discrimination in the delivery of services in their neighborhoods. Recent court activity in this area has expanded to include the issues of municipal government and public servant immunity and liability. After anda brief discussion of how the municipal bureau cracy impacts the service delivery process and municipal service equalization suits, this paper provides a legal perspective on immunity and liability issues affecting the municipality and its personnel. The paper also addresses the topic of municipal protection against liability losses and concludes with a summary discussion of arguments for and against imposing strict liability upon municipalities and their representatives.