Race, place, and fate in the City of Angels: commentary on “The trajectory of the color line in a US immigrant gateway: hyperdiverse spatialization in Los Angeles” by Min Zhou and Nicholas V. DiRago

Abstract

ABSTRACT Zhou and DiRago significantly update and advance our understanding of immigrant life in Los Angeles. One primary contribution: their insistence that older models of assimilation do not likely describe the new norm and that researchers should pay careful attention to the emerging patterns revealed by the Latinization of South L.A. and the emerging ethnoburbs of the San Gabriel Valley. I suggest that a fuller picture should also take into account how the asymmetry of Black-Latino exposure problematizes a sense of “shared fate” at the regional level. I also note the key role of social movements in promoting immigrant integration in the Los Angeles metro and suggest that the polycentric nature of the region requires that these movements develop a deeper reach into immigrant-heavy suburbs.