Nonwhite Communities Research Articles

Democracy's Deficit: The Role of Institutional Contact in Shaping non-White Political Behavior

AbstractThis paper examines the effect of institutional contact on political participation among non-White communities. While both formal and informal institutions help shape community citizen participation, their effects vary on the historical inclusion (or exclusion) of certain racial groups. Formal institutions, like political parties, have historically excluded or neglected non-White and immigrant voters. We argue that for the excluded or neglected, non-traditional political institutions, like community based organizations, serve as supplements to facilitate political incorporation and engagement. These informal institutions help develop skills and resources among their constituents, and offer routine opportunities to participate. We use the 2008 Collaborative Multi-racial Post-Election Survey (CMPS) to test the differential effects of self-reported voter mobilization through nonpartisan and partisan institutional contact to explain variations among racial groups by the intensity of contact, occurrence of co-ethnic outreach, and type of institutional mobilization. We find that while contact by a partisan/political institution, like a political party or campaign, has an overall positive effect on political participation for all voters, contact by a nonpartisan/civic or community group is substantively more important for Latino and Asian American voter mobilization. Our analysis therefore offers cohesive evidence of how voters interact with and are affected by mobilization efforts that attends to differences across racial and ethnic boundaries, and variations in institutional contact.

Not Fit to Stay: Public Health Panics and South Asian Exclusion by Sarah Isabel Wallace

132 OHQ vol. 120, no. 1 conflict, how tribal diplomacy fared, and how application of theoretical lenses can help readers understand this conflict in greater context. To accomplish these aims, Colley interviewed thirteen Grand Ronde tribal members, eleven Warm Springs tribal members, and two non-member employees from each community . These thirty interviews took place over ten years of research, and the tribal voices that appear in this work are among the book’s most important contributions to Native American Studies and gaming scholarship. Native scholars, Native community members, and non-Indigenous scholars know how difficult it can be to locate Native and Indigenous voices in order to make space for them as tellers of their own stories. Colley reminds readers that this methodology centers the values of Indigenous research practices. As an extension of this methodological approach, I would have liked a discussion of where these interviews and transcripts are held. Do the recordings and transcripts remain with the author, are they held in tribal locations, are they at her alma mater, did interviewees retain them or copies of them? As Native and Indigenous scholars strive to work with and within our communities , it is helpful to learn how other scholars practice their research and also whether scholars can access the invaluable resources she collected. This small suggestion aside, this is an important first work. As the first study of Indian casino gaming focused on the Pacific Northwest , it can also be read as a companion to Oregon histories, including scholarship by Katrine Barber, David R.M. Beck, and Andrew H. Fisher. Gaming scholarship is enhanced by the methodology, the perspectives, and the content within this complex narrative of Tribes and tribal leaders working on behalf of their communities even when those efforts might injure other Tribes. I look forward to seeing more from Brook Colley. Laurie Arnold Sinixt Band Colville Confederated Tribes Gonzaga University NOT FIT TO STAY: PUBLIC HEALTH PANICS AND SOUTH ASIAN EXCLUSION by Sarah Isabel Wallace University of British Columbia press, Vancouver, B.C., 2017. Illustrations, tables, notes, bibliography, index. 292 pages. $39.95 paper. Sarah Isabel Wallace’s book, Not Fit to Stay: Public Health Panics and South Asian Exclusion , details the history of early Indian-ancestry migration to the Pacific coastal regions of Canada and the United States. This transnational project offers a comprehensive account of exclusionary practices and legislation that limited the settlement of Indian-ancestry migrants and their disenfranchisement on the North American West Coast. Drawing on an array of archival data, including newspaper articles; health inspection reports; legislative hearings, debates, reports, orders in council and regulations; and personal correspondences, oral history narratives, and key informant interviews with descendants, Not Fit To Stay provides substantive evidence of anti-Indian “panic” and early colonial ideologies that have had a far-reaching impact on the Indian diaspora in both countries. Furthermore, this book makes a meaningful contribution to the general history of Canada and the United States and addresses a significant gap in the public health, post-colonial, and critical race literature regarding colonial, racialized constructions of South Asian ancestry migrants and citizens in North America. A wide range of interdisciplinary health scholars, healthcare providers, and students would benefit from reading this invaluable text to understand how non-white communities have been historically racialized and continue to face racially motivated panic regarding their presence in diaspora homelands. This book is organized into thematic chapters that provide a historiography of how racialized, Orientalist ideologies permeated in the early to mid 1900s, with emphasis on how racial hierarchies positioned British Indian subjects as inferior to “white” communities. Chapter One, titled “‘Leprosy and Plague Riot 133 Reviews in Their Blood’: The Germination of a Thesis, 1906,” details early migration history with emphasis on government agencies, policies, and laws enacted to monitor and limit the influx of Indian-ancestry migration. Most significantly, the chapter outlines climate, germ, morality, labor, and eugenics theories to exclude “Hindus ” as inferior and dangerous to the physical, social, and moral well-being of existing European settlers. The following chapter, “Riots, Plague, and the Advent of Executive Exclusion ,” comprehensively narrates the ongoing social-political sentiment of 1907 as well as the “sick immigrant...

Civilization in 19th Century Latin America: The “Modernization” of Cities and the Use of Prisons as a Form of Racial Control

In the mid to late 19th century, Latin American states adopted European ideals of “civilization.” These ideals were foundational for several state projects that looked to “improve” the aesthetics of Latin American major cities, which were modelled after Paris, the epitome and embodiment of modernization. This “civilizing” reform of the cities caused the ghettoization of non-white communities, given that modern cities were conceptualized as white cities. Thus, to “Europeanize” Latin American cities, Indigenous, Black and Asian peoples needed to be contained and displaced. This was achieved through the creation of the prison system, which came to represent a new form of slavery and a state mechanism for the continuous control of racialized communities. This presentation will examine how criminality was socially constructed to justify the imprisonment of a specific “type” (or race) of person, which is evident given the prison demographics of the time. It will also analyze the theories of eugenics which provided justification for the project of civilization, which only served to worsen the social ills

Wood Waste and Race: The Industrialization of Biomass Energy Technologies and Environmental Justice.

In the 1980s, engineers developed new ways to use one of humanity's oldest fuel sources-wood-to create electrical power. This article uses envirotechnical analysis to examine the development of a wood-burning power plant in Flint, Michigan, and argues that when public officials began working with major energy corporations to build industrial biomass facilities in the 1980s and 1990s, new energy technologies designed to run on renewable fuels became part of an entrenched fossil fuel-based power structure that maintained deep historical inequalities. Like other examples of environmental injustice, the burdens of industrial-scale biomass power systems tended to fall on poor, nonwhite communities. By exploring the creation of the Genesee Power Station as part of an envirotechnical regime in Flint, this research seeks to develop conceptual bridges between the history of technology, environmental history, and environmental justice, and demonstrates the use of history to inform contemporary debates about sustainability.

SHIFTING POWER

AbstractWhile prisoners cannot vote, they are counted as residents of the often rural legislative districts where they are incarcerated rather than their home districts. We examine the extent to which incarceration shifts the balance of a representative democracy by considering its impact on legislative apportionment. Drawing on data from the Census, Pennsylvania Department of Corrections, and Pennsylvania Redistricting Commission, we develop a counterfactual framework to examine whether removing and returning prisoners to their home districts affects equal representation. Because prisoners are disproportionately African American, we also employ this counterfactual to assess racial differences in the impact of prison gerrymandering. Findings indicate that incarceration shifts political power from urban districts to suburban and rural districts through legislative apportionment. Moreover, non-White communities suffer the most. We conclude by considering how our findings fit a growing literature on the role of mass incarceration in [re]producing racial inequalities in the contemporary United States.

Constructing insignificance: critical race perspectives on institutional failure in environmental justice communities

ABSTRACT Environmental justice (EJ) literature rarely offers an explicit theory of race to explain processes of disparate environmental exposure and recourse in non-white and low-income communities. Failing to do so, analyses of environmental inequality risk eliding a central driver of environmental racism. Based on a case study of a contested birth defect cluster in California, this article traces the ways in which the evidence of environmental health harms are rendered conceptually invisible by the institutions mandated to protect public health and the environment. Turning to a theoretical model of contested illness mobilization, I demonstrate the value of critical race perspectives to clarify the production and maintenance of intersecting, cumulative harms without recourse in communities of color. Centered on racially veridical analyses, EJ scholarship can more precisely analyze the recalcitrance of dominant group interests. Ultimately, this enables theorization of the distinct landscape of exposure and recourse in subaltern versus favored bodies and space.

Indigenous perspectives on violence risk assessment: A thematic analysis

Violence risk instruments are widely employed with at-risk minority clients in correctional and forensic mental health settings. However, the construction and subsequent validation of such instruments rarely, if at all, incorporate the perceptions, worldviews, life experiences, and belief systems of non-white communities. This study utilized a culturally informed qualitative approach to address the cross-cultural disparities in the forensic risk literature. Cultural perspectives on violence risk assessment were elicited from a sample of 30 American Indian and First Nations professionals from health, legal, and pedagogical sectors following an inspection of the Structured Assessment of Violence Risk in Youth instrument. Generally, participants believed that the Structured Assessment of Violence Risk in Youth instrument was not culturally appropriate for use with American Indian and First Nations youth in its current form. Recurrent themes of concern included the instrument’s negative labeling capacity, lack of cultural contextualization, individualized focus, and absence of cultural norms and practices. Recommendations to improve the cross-cultural applicability of the Structured Assessment of Violence Risk in Youth are discussed within.

Flood risk and inequalities between ethnic groups in the floodplains of England and Wales.

Previous research has shown that many vulnerable communities experience disproportional exposure to flood risk. This paper, though, is the first to look at broad ethnic/racial group differences in the United Kingdom. It contends that differences in culture and language, especially those of new immigrants, bestow vulnerabilities on such communities, resulting in a lack of knowledge that enables people to be aware, to be prepared, or to recover expediently after a flood emergency. Using UK 2011 Census data and Environment Agency flood maps, the paper demonstrates that it is the non-white communities in Wales that confront the most disproportionate level of flood risk: 23 per cent as compared to 11.4 per cent of their white neighbours. In contrast, the difference in flood risk between white and non-white ethnic/racial groups in regions of England is within a range of plus or minus two per cent, except for in Yorkshire and The Humber where white populations face a much greater risk of flooding.

Why majority-minority cities form: non-White municipal incorporation in the United States, 1990–2010

ABSTRACTForty-four majority-minority cities formed in the United States between 1990 and 2010. Why did these cities form in Black, Hispanic, Asian, Native-American majority and other non-White communities? Do these cities form to escape annexation, improve services, and control land use, as most new cities do? Or are other factors at play, such as race and social justice? Using a detailed content analysis, we explore the genesis of newly incorporated municipalities in non-White communities. Our findings reveal that while most majority-minority cities form due to standard stimuli, some majority-minority cities form in direct response to racism (rebound incorporations, environmental racism, and under-provision of services). Moreover, when compared to all new cities, majority-minority cities form more often due to nuisances and less often due to annexation threats and growth control, thus illuminating the role institutional racism plays in municipal incorporation.

Race and Digital Inequalities: Policy Implications

Objectives: As Internet use rises in the United States, Pew Research Center reports that only 12% of Americans were not online in 2016. Those offline are disproportionately from groups with lower incomes, lower educational qualifications, as well as from rural communities and communities of color. Distressed urban neighborhoods are disproportionately digitally excluded. In Detroit, for example, 63% of households with incomes below $35,000 did not have Internet access at home in 2015. And while any Internet access can be deemed better than none, only 73% of Americans had access to broadband at home. The proportion of households with broadband is considerably higher among White Americans (78%) than Hispanics (58%) or African Americans (65%), as well as among households with higher incomes and higher educational qualifications. In this paper, we will examine digital inequalities and intersectionality using secondary survey data and primary qualitative data. While race has previously been investigated as one of many factors that have an impact on digital inequalities, intersectionality has rarely been the focus of digital inequality studies. Methods: To shed light on this topic, we will analyze secondary survey data from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the Pew Research Center to provide a broad overview of digital inequalities in the US. We will also conduct an analysis of the NTIA county level data (Form 477) for a number of US cities. In addition, we will use primary qualitative data from a recent study of community-based organizations, across these same cities, that are working to promote digital inclusion, as case studies that highlight the intersectionality of digital divides. In addition to socio-economic factors — such as age, education, and income — digital inequalities are also highly impacted by race. This characteristic is significantly more pronounced in the US than in other highly developed countries and should be investigated to further understand how race intersects with other identities. Novelty: According to a recent report from the Free Press, race is a strong factor explaining digital inequalities, even when controlling for income and education. At the same time, systemic discrimination in the US means that non-White communities, particularly in urban areas, are more likely to have lower incomes and lower educational qualifications, which exacerbates inequalities, both online and offline. The combination of quantitative and qualitative data will enable a deeper analysis of the intersectionality of these factors. Relevance: As digital inequalities persist--especially in distressed urban areas — the intersectionality of race, gender, income, education, and other factors is under-researched in digital inequality studies. Results from this study will have an impact on potential policies that aim to tackle these inequalities. Policies that work for more affluent and predominantly white rural areas, for example, are unlikely to have a positive impact in distressed urban areas. Analyzing the intersectionality of digital inequalities will enable the formulation of policy recommendations that are tailored to specific contexts in which these inequalities occur.

The associations between neighborhood constructs, physical activity, and childhood obesity: Understanding race and income disparities

ABSTRACTScholars suggest that children’s built and social environments play key roles in their physical activity (PA) levels and subsequent propensity toward obesity. This study examines the associations between neighborhood constructs and the race and income disparities in PA and health among children ages 10–17 years in the United States. Using the 2011–2012 National Survey of Children’s Health and a series of logistic and ordinary least squares regressions, this study compares obesity and PA levels of Black, Hispanic, and low-income children with their White and more affluent counterparts, interacting demographic and neighborhood characteristics with one another. Findings reveal that non-White respondents report having more amenities and more detractions; low-income respondents report having fewer amenities and more detractions; and non-White and low-income respondents report having less social cohesion. Additionally, though amenities and cohesion improve PA and health and detractions have the reverse effect, these effects are opposite for Black, Hispanic, and low-income children. Black children with more cohesion and Hispanic children with more amenities and fewer detractions have greater odds of being obese. Findings underscore the need for improved physical and social environments in non-White and low-income communities, as well as targeted initiatives to educate parents and children on obesity and healthful activities.

Socio-demographic Differences in Toxic Release Inventory Siting and Emissions in Metro Atlanta.

Prior research has found that low socioeconomic status (SES) populations and minorities in some areas reside in communities with disproportionate exposure to hazardous chemicals. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the relevance of socio-demographic characteristics on the presence of Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) facilities, air releases, and prevalence and resolution of air quality complaints in the 20-county Atlanta Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). We found that there were 4.7% more minority residents in census tracts where TRI facilities were located. The odds ratio (OR) for the presence of a TRI facility was 0.89 (p < 0.01) for each 1% increase of females with a college degree and 2.4 (p < 0.01) for households with an income of $22,000–$55,000. The estimated reduction in the amount of chemicals emitted per release associated with population of females with a college degree was 18.53 pounds (p < 0.01). Complaints took longer to resolve in census tracts with higher Hispanic populations (OR = 1.031, 95% CI: 1.010–1.054). Overall, results indicate that SES and race/ethnicity are related to TRI facility siting, releases, and complaints in the Atlanta area. These findings have not been documented previously and suggest that lower SES and non-White communities may be disproportionately exposed.

Do Farmers' Markets Increase Access to Healthy Foods for All Communities? Comparing Markets in 24 Neighborhoods in Los Angeles

Problem, research strategy, and findings: Farmers' markets provide one option for remedying the startling decline in fresh vegetable and fruit consumption in the United States, particularly in low-income, non-White neighborhoods where opportunities to access these components of a healthy diet are often limited. We lack empirical research on whether farmer's markets provide fresh vegetables and fruits consistently across locations. We audited product offerings at 24 farmers' markets in Los Angeles at two points in time and interviewed a sample of market managers to compare market offerings across neighborhoods to determine whether farmers' markets alleviate disparities experienced by low-income and non-White communities. Farmers' markets in low-income and non-White communities are smaller and provide fewer fresh fruits and vegetables than markets situated in more affluent communities. Managers suggest that their first priority is to stock fresh produce, but other factors such as competition and farmer recruitment and retention often influence market offerings.Takeaway for practice: Planners cannot count on farmers' markets to fully remedy disparities in the availability of fresh vegetables and fruits. We need additional research to understand the range of social, ecological, and health benefits created by farmers' markets in a neighborhood. Planners should begin working with other agencies to conduct community food assessments to better evaluate strategies for addressing inequalities seen in neighborhood access to healthy food.

Gentrification in the Revanchist Suburb: The Politics of Removal in Roswell, Georgia

Desde la crisis inmobiliaria de 2007–2009, los gobiernos de toda la suburbana metropolitana de Atlanta se han asociado cada vez más con los desarrolladores de bienes raíces en los intentos de revitalizar espacios suburbanos desinvertido. Muchos de estos desarrollos se dirigen a las comunidades no blancas de clase trabajadora ubicados dentro de los municipios predominado por los propietarios blancos ricos, desplazando a algunos de los residentes más política y social-mente marginadas de la zona. Examinamos los procesos políticos que rodean uno de esos proyectos en Roswell, Georgia, sostenemos que a raíz de la gran recesión, es probable que los suburbios históricamente blancos, ricos y reaccionarios que se enfrentan a cambios de paisajes socioeconómicos y raciales/étnicos emplearán una política revanchistas para “recuperar” espacios suburbanos primos. Por otra parte, nos argumentamos que (sub) emprendedurismo urbano y Nuevo Urbanismo se complementan y son totalmente compatibles con revanchista (sub) urbanismo. En lugar de una inversión progresiva del desarrollo suburbano convencional, nuestro análisis expone este caso del Nuevo Urbanismo como la manifestación más reciente de un largo trayecto político reaccionario característica de esta región.

Inequality in the “Cradle of Liberty”: Race/Ethnicity and Wealth in Greater Boston

New data collected for the Boston Metropolitan Statistical Area provide detailed information on financial assets that allow analysis to extend beyond the traditional black–white divide. Targeting US-born blacks, Caribbean blacks, Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, and other Hispanics, findings from the National Asset Scorecard for Communities of Color survey underscore the large racial and ethnic disparities in financial wealth, even after controlling for demographic and socioeconomic status. Further, some notable differences between Boston’s communities of color highlight the importance of detailed analyses for research on the racial wealth gap. In particular, among non-white communities Dominicans report comparatively low asset and high debt amounts, while Caribbean blacks report relatively higher levels of wealth. Altogether, these findings point to the need for wealth building opportunities in communities of color and further investigation of the causes and consequences of financial disparities between groups of color disaggregated by specific ancestral origin.

Disparities in the Availability and Price of Low-Fat and Higher-Fat Milk in US Food Stores by Community Characteristics

BackgroundNational surveillance data identify disparities in low-fat milk consumption by race/ethnicity and income. Some localized studies have shown disparities in access to low-fat milk by community characteristics. ObjectiveOur aim was to assess the availability and price of low-fat and higher-fat milk in food stores throughout the United States and examine associations with community characteristics. DesignWe conducted a cross-sectional study involving observational data collection in 2010, 2011, and 2012. Participants/settingsThe study included 8,959 food stores in 468 communities where nationally representative samples of students attending traditional public middle and high schools resided. Main outcome measuresWe studied the availability and price of whole, 2%, 1%, and skim milk. Statistical analyses performedMultivariate logistic regression and ordinary least squares regression analyses were performed. Models included store type, race/ethnicity, median household income, urbanicity, US Census division, and year of data collection. ResultsLess than half of all stores carried 1% and skim milk, and more than three-quarters of stores carried whole and 2% milk. Regression results indicated that the odds of carrying any type of milk were 31% to 67% lower in stores in majority black and 26% to 45% lower in other/mixed race compared with majority white communities. The odds of carrying specifically low-fat milk were 50% to 58% lower in majority Hispanic compared with majority white communities, and 32% to 44% lower in low-income compared with high-income communities. Some significant differences in milk prices by community characteristics were observed in grocery and limited-service stores. On average, low-fat milk options were more expensive in grocery stores in majority black and rural and suburban communities compared with such stores in majority white and urban communities. ConclusionsThis is the first nationwide study to examine the availability and price of low-fat and higher-fat milk in food stores and show disparities in access by community characteristics. Policies and programs can play a role in increasing accessibility of low-fat milk in stores in nonwhite and low-income communities.

Promoting physical activity through the shared use of school recreational spaces: a policy statement from the American Heart Association.

Most Americans are not sufficiently physically active, even though regular physical activity improves health and reduces the risk of many chronic diseases. Those living in rural, non-White, and lower-income communities often have insufficient access to places to be active, which can contribute to their lower level of physical activity. The shared use of school recreational facilities can provide safe and affordable places for communities. Studies suggest that challenges to shared use include additional cost, liability protection, communication among constituencies interested in sharing space, and decision-making about scheduling and space allocation. This American Heart Association policy statement has provided recommendations for federal, state, and local decision-makers to support and expand opportunities for physical activity in communities through the shared use of school spaces.

Are Minority Areas Disproportionately Targeted for Halfway House Placement?

The geographic placement of halfway houses is an important issue in the field of community corrections. Much research has underscored the social justice issues involved with the subsidization and placement of halfway houses within certain communities. A commonly held belief is that state and local governments actively target lower socioeconomic status, minority communities for the placement of houses, as residents have little power to resist. This article uses data collected on Connecticut towns from 2000 to 2008 and reveals that state-subsidized halfway houses are significantly more likely to be sited in non-White communities with high index crime rates.

Postcolonial Reading of a Colonial Text

The discussion and analysis focuses on the ways colonialist discourse, in this case Maugham’s short story Footbrint in the jungle, positioned the colonized natives into European colonialist socio-cultural hierarchy. This study examines Maugham's depictions of non-white communities - Malay, Chinese and Indian. Hence, we look at how this colonialist writer reinforced and spread the idea of physical and social differences between the Europeans and the non-European races, rendering the latter an inferior position to the former. In this section we see that the distinction made was not only rooted in physically grounds but culturally and socially as well, which go hand in hand with Edward Said’s notion of Orientalism. The analysis shows that Maugham’s narrative represents the Eastern social and cultural practices in an unpalatable manner. For example, the geography and landscape of the colonized territory is sketched as evil, savage, dark, et cetera. We see the forest in Maugham’s The Footprinst in the Jungle as a place where everything becomes dangerous: people lose their sanity; loves takes on the face of violence and hatred.

Public Health and the Epidemic of Incarceration

An unprecedented number of Americans have been incarcerated in the past generation. In addition, arrests are concentrated in low-income, predominantly nonwhite communities where people are more likely to be medically underserved. As a result, rates of physical and mental illnesses are far higher among prison and jail inmates than among the general public. We review the health profiles of the incarcerated; health care in correctional facilities; and incarceration's repercussions for public health in the communities to which inmates return upon release. The review concludes with recommendations that public health and medical practitioners capitalize on the public health opportunities provided by correctional settings to reach medically underserved communities, while simultaneously advocating for fundamental system change to reduce unnecessary incarceration.