In recent posts, I noted that while Fall River is well regarded as being one of the top 10 least segregated cities in the county for blacks, it is at the same time infamous for appearing second on the list of most segregated cities in the nation for Latinos. All this is based on census information, and examines eveness, exposure, concentration, centralization, and clustering. Why study this now?
For the most part, sociologists are interested in residential segregation, which simple means refers to the racial/ethnic mix of blocks, neighborhoods, cities, and metropolitan areas. We tend to be less concerned with segregation as a legal concept, and it seems that a minority of sociologists studying segregation focus on school segregation or segregation in other social institutions such as churches and families.. I suspect that we don’t focus as much of school segregation because it is so highly correlated with residential segregation. I think too often people start by looking at school segregation, but they ignore the fact that more integrated neighborhoods would lead to more integrate schools. I suspect that people don’t focus on residential segregation because it is much harder to challenge, and it’s much more firmly entrenched (at least it is in recent history).
The reason why Fall River made this Latinos list is simple. It is the government’s fault. The State of Massachusetts made a great deal of money by bringing in, or importing, Latinos to Fall River and putting them in low income housing. These folks are not from the area. They were brought to the city in busses and planted here.
So this black eye of Latino segregation in Fall River is not because the people of Fall River are segregating the Latino population, it is the government who has created the segregation!
Fall River has a rich long history of absorbing minorities and immigrants into the fold. Portuguese and Irish live side by side with English and African American neighbors. But then the State steps in and literally creates a segregated community! What could be a worse reputation for a city? Segregation of this nature reflects badly on the city and its people and gives prospective businesses and newcomers the impression that the people of Fall River are a bigoted bunch—-a perfect way to further depress an already depressed economic situation.
By the way, this importing of low income housing residents has come under federal scrutiny recently, as possibly being a big payoff for some. The former governor Mit Romney was instrumental in creating the housing by providing “tax credits, grants and low-interest loans to produce over 548 rental apartments.†(source: Office of Gov, 8/25/2003). I read, but cannot locate, a Boston Globe article claiming that some of this section 8 housing was involved in some illegal practices.
So who suffers from this segregation problem? The community at large, who has become a dumping ground for low income families from other areas and becomes known for being number two in the nation for segregating Latinos.
