Employer Recruitment and Hispanic Labor Migration: North Carolina Urban Areas at the End of the Millennium

The North Carolina Hispanic population has grown at a rapid pace in recent years. Before 1980, the majority of Hispanics in North Carolina were engaged primarily in migrant agricultural work. Hispanics who are part of the new influx are arriving in urban areas and are working at nonagricultural pursuits. Previous research and anecdotal evidence suggest that Hispanic newcomers come from other U.S. jurisdictions and from abroad. Labor migration occurs in response to demand for labor, and labor demand is meditated by employers’ preferences and hiring practices. However, focusing solely on employer demand for labor ignores the role of past U.S. immigration policy and the large growth in services employment in the Sunbelt that have fueled the Hispanic in–migration. This research project explored the attitudes and recruiting behavior of employers in the Triangle region of North Carolina. A newspaper content analysis was undertaken, and interviews were conducted with selected intermediaries and a group of employers. Qualitative analysis of the data collected revealed that these employers utilize the social networks of their immigrant Hispanic employees to recruit new workers. They also use a variety of other recruiting methods to recruit Hispanics both locally and from abroad. If this practice is widespread, it may be fueling the influx of Hispanic immigrants to North Carolina. Employers interviewed extolled the work ethic of Hispanic workers and often bypassed native–born workers, whom they felt were inferior employees. These findings have ramifications for future immigration policy and for the success of welfare–to–work programs. Employer demand for labor is one factor that must be considered when formulating new immigration policy.     

A Review of “Spatial and Environmental Injustice in an American Metropolis: A Study of Tampa Bay,Florida”

The North Carolina Hispanic population has grown at a rapid pace in recent years. Before 1980, the majority of Hispanics in North Carolina were engaged primarily in migrant agricultural work. Hispanics who are part of the new influx are arriving in urban areas and are working at nonagricultural pursuits. Previous research and anecdotal evidence suggest that Hispanic newcomers come from other U.S. jurisdictions and from abroad. Labor migration occurs in response to demand for labor, and labor demand is meditated by employers’ preferences and hiring practices. However, focusing solely on employer demand for labor ignores the role of past U.S. immigration policy and the large growth in services employment in the Sunbelt that have fueled the Hispanic in–migration. This research project explored the attitudes and recruiting behavior of employers in the Triangle region of North Carolina. A newspaper content analysis was undertaken, and interviews were conducted with selected intermediaries and a group of employers. Qualitative analysis of the data collected revealed that these employers utilize the social networks of their immigrant Hispanic employees to recruit new workers. They also use a variety of other recruiting methods to recruit Hispanics both locally and from abroad. If this practice is widespread, it may be fueling the influx of Hispanic immigrants to North Carolina. Employers interviewed extolled the work ethic of Hispanic workers and often bypassed native–born workers, whom they felt were inferior employees. These findings have ramifications for future immigration policy and for the success of welfare–to–work programs. Employer demand for labor is one factor that must be considered when formulating new immigration policy.     

Rethinking “Diversity” Through Analyzing Residential Segregation Among Hispanics in Phoenix,Miami, and Chicago

Hispanics are an internally diverse population, yet residential segregation within census-defined groups is often overlooked. Census data are used to examine evenness and exposure segregation among Hispanics in Chicago, Miami, and Phoenix along the lines of national origin, race, year of arrival, and income. Results suggest that segregation exists in Miami where there is more national origin diversity, between white and black Hispanics in Chicago, in all three cities for foreign-born Hispanic recent arrivals, and especially between high- and low-income Hispanics. Attempts to theorize immigration, social capital and solidarity, and the future of democratic society have inadequately conceptualized “diversity”; our work critically employs quantitative analysis to suggest an enriched and more nuanced socio-spatial understanding of the term.     

The Emergence of New Hispanic Settlement Patterns in Appalachia*

This article evaluates the emerging Hispanic population in Appalachia, which nearly tripled in size to 465,000 between 1980 and 2000. Using 1980, 1990, and 2000 census data, changes in the geographic distribution of Hispanics and in the economic characteristics of counties with growth in Hispanic population are assessed. Results suggest that high‐growth counties are clustered in peripheral areas in the northern and southern subregions and are characterized by higher per capita income and greater economic viability than those areas with relatively low Hispanic population growth.     

RESIDENTIAL SEGREGATION BY SOCIOECONOMIC CLASS IN METROPOLITAN MIAMI: 1990

This paper investigates the proposition that socioeconomic status explains a significant amount of the residential segregation between Hispanics, non-Hispanic Whites, non-Hispanic Blacks, and non-Hispanic others (mainly Asians) in metropolitan Miami. First, we test to determine if there is significant segregation within each of the four ethnic groups and we find that there is, except for Blacks. Although the index of dissimilarity suggests that there is segregation by socioeconomic status within Miami's Black population, map analysis reveals that this is not the case. Furthermore, we find that socioeconomic status is not an important factor explaining metropolitan Miami's segregation patterns between these four ethnic groups. When it comes to residential segregation, Miami is similar to most other American cities. This is a significant finding because several recent studies have suggested that standard assimilation theory does not apply to Miami, and segregation is one aspect of assimilation.     

Hispanic Immigrants' Vulnerabilities to Flood and Hurricane Hazards in Two United States Metropolitan Areas

Research reveals that disasters are disproportionately debilitating for marginalized social groups. Numerous studies have examined racial/ethnic dimensions of disaster vulnerability, but few have focused on Hispanic immigrants. More research on Hispanic immigrants is needed, since they constitute a major component of the Hispanic population—the largest and fastest‐growing minority group in the U.S.—and because they experience distinctive cultural and immigration status disadvantages. We examine the flood/hurricane vulnerabilities of Hispanic immigrants in comparison to U.S.–born Hispanics and non‐Hispanic whites. Using mixed methods to analyze data from 429 surveys and 31 interviews with residents living in flood zones, we examine differences in self‐protective action, risk perception, and hazard knowledge between the three groups in Houston and Miami. Hispanic immigrants exhibited lower levels of self‐protection and hazard knowledge, and higher perceptions of risk, which reflects their heightened vulnerability. Risk‐reduction programs should target the particular vulnerabilities of Hispanic immigrants, and future studies should examine their vulnerabilities in other contexts.     

Black–White and Hispanic–White Segregation in U.S. Counties

Residential segregation in metropolitan areas has been the subject of much research, but this article analyzes patterns of white–black and white–Hispanic segregation in counties across the United States. Our purpose was to understand county variations in this one dimension of inequality. Conceiving of segregation as relative inequality of access to neighborhood resources, we measured segregation in 2000 by the index of dissimilarity (D) calculated by blocks, mapped the index values, and correlated them with census variables. Three filters enabled us to eliminate counties with characteristics that could have corrupted the analyses, leaving us with more than 1,000 counties in each analysis. Both minority groups were less segregated from whites in the West and South and in metropolitan counties. Lower segregation was strongly associated with higher minority socioeconomic status and higher percentages of minorities living in housing built in the 1990s, and Hispanic–white segregation was lower where more Hispanics were U.S.-born or English proficient. The racial threat hypothesis was supported only weakly and inconsistently. Mapping made it possible to identify regional and local patterns of high and low segregation as well as the lower segregation of suburban counties in some large metropolitan areas.     

The Council at Work

Abstract

Through analysis of census data, these lessons cover geographic concepts dealing with migration and population change in the United States. Students discuss the historical push and pull factors of immigration to the United States. By focusing on the recent influx of Hispanic immigrants, students look at the geographic concepts of assimilation, discrimination, and time-decay. Students also create graphs and maps to examine the recent increase in the United States Hispanic population and geographic patterns of Hispanic settlement.     

The changing geography of U.S. Hispanics, 1850-1990

"In 1930, the majority of Hispanics were of Mexican descent and lived in the five Southwestern states of Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas. After World War II the Latino migrant stream began to diversify and include large numbers of Caribbeans, and Central and South Americans who generally settled in the Eastern states and California.... The U.S. Hispanic population has increased from approximately one million in 1930, to approximately 32 million in 1997. County maps chronicle the changing distribution and numbers of Hispanics from 1850 to 1990."     

DEFINING THE RURBAN SETTLEMENT: PLANNING MODELS AND FUNCTIONAL REALITIES IN ISRAEL

The growth in the number of rurban communities has been a major feature of the changing settlement space in western societies. Attempts to define these communities according to traditional criteria is problematic, owing to the mixture of "rural" and "urban" features. This problem is all the more difficult in Israel, where rigid institutional and organizational criteria provide an added dimension to settlement definition. A study of 75 new rurban communities in Israel shows that while the public agencies responsible for the development of the rurban settlements have attempted to predefine idealized models according to traditional rural-based criteria, their models prove to be incompatible with the functional categories which best describe the operational norms of these communities.     

The Ambiguous Roles of Suburbanization and Immigration in Ethnic Segregation: the Case of San Antonio1

The traditional spatial assimilation model, though still operative, has proven inadequate to explain new trends in urban residential location in which, for example, disadvantaged and newly arrived groups move directly to the suburbs where they may re-segregate rather than disperse. Understanding residential patterns after 1990 often benefits from a micro-level approach, looking at specific cities and disaggregating traditional measures (e.g., the dissimilarity index) to examine changes within areas and neighborhoods of the city. This study takes such an approach. It analyzes segregation by means of the residential micro-patterns that give rise to it, and examines their relationship to suburbanization and immigration in greater San Antonio (Bexar County) during the 1990s for four ethnic groups: Hispanics, Blacks, non-Hispanic Whites, and Latino immigrants. The results reveal that segregation patterns in San Antonio have deep historic roots—the result of ongoing processes of urban job and housing availability, minority political power, and economic mobility. They show that the dissimilarity index declined for all groups in the 1990s, a decline chiefly attributable to deconcentration (lessening overrepresentation) in the inner city. By contrast, in the outer suburban city, incursion (moving into new areas) was offset by hyper-concentration (concentrating with fellow ethnics) such that the dissimilarity index neither increased nor declined. A typology is developed to explain the different pathways by which the dissimilarity index may increase or decrease in a metropolis. Finally, the results show that Latino immigration increased the overall dissimilarity index for Hispanics as well as for other groups in San Antonio.     

Probabilistic Prediction Models for Aggregate Quarry Siting

Weights-of-evidence (WofE) and logistic regression techniques were used in a GIS framework to predict the spatial likelihood (prospectivity) of crushed-stone aggregate quarry development. The joint conditional probability models, based on geology, transportation network, and population density variables, were defined using quarry location and time of development data for the New England States, North Carolina, and South Carolina, USA. The Quarry Operation models describe the distribution of active aggregate quarries, independent of the date of opening. The New Quarry models describe the distribution of aggregate quarries when they open. Because of the small number of new quarries developed in the study areas during the last decade, independent New Quarry models have low parameter estimate reliability. The performance of parameter estimates derived for Quarry Operation models, defined by a larger number of active quarries in the study areas, were tested and evaluated to predict the spatial likelihood of new quarry development. Population density conditions at the time of new quarry development were used to modify the population density variable in the Quarry Operation models to apply to new quarry development sites. The Quarry Operation parameters derived for the New England study area, Carolina study area, and the combined New England and Carolina study areas were all similar in magnitude and relative strength. The Quarry Operation model parameters, using the modified population density variables, were found to be a good predictor of new quarry locations. Both the aggregate industry and the land management community can use the model approach to target areas for more detailed site evaluation for quarry location. The models can be revised easily to reflect actual or anticipated changes in transportation and population features.     

HISPANIC MIGRATION AND POPULATION REDISTRIBUTION IN THE UNITED STATES*

The US Hispanic population has grown rapidly over the last two decades and remains geographically concentrated in nine states. Redistribution away from core states through internal migration has been largely offset by heavy immigration to traditional areas of Hispanic concentration. Geographical patterns of Hispanic miration show broad similarities to overall patterns of population redistribution in the United States. New York and California serve as key spatial redistributors or pivots in the Hispanic migration system.     

珠三角流动人口社会融入与生活满意度期望

近年来有关流动人口社会融入和生活满意度的研究成为我国学者广泛关注的研究主题，较高的社会融入水平已成为流动人口获得生活满意度的根本。基于珠三角流动人口问卷调研数据建立两个结构方程模型，探究社会融入各维度及其影响因素的路径效应，进一步分析社会融入如何影响流动人口实现“生活满意度期望”，即感受到本地生活满意度高于老家的路径机制。结果显示：珠三角地区社会融入可分为经济融入和非经济融入两部分，但经济融入的基础作用不凸显；个体、家庭与制度等因素对社会融入各维度存在较大影响差异；社会融入影响“生活满意度期望”可归纳为“经济融入-生活满意度期望”的直接影响路径和“非经济融入-生活满意度-生活满意度期望”的间接影响路径；提高流动人口市民化和社会融入水平，不仅要关注流动人口的经济收入问题，还应注重流动人口与本地人邻里关系建设，以形成良性的城市更新与和谐的社区环境。     

ETHNIC RESIDENTIAL CONCENTRATIONS IN UNITED STATES METROPOLITAN AREAS

ABSTRACT. Although residential concentrations of immigrant ethnic groups in cities were common a century ago, it is not clear to what extent members of more recently arrived groups live near each other. We attempt to determine how common such clustered settlement is today, using 2000 census data to measure concentrations of Asians, Hispanics, and their larger ethnic subgroups in fifteen large metropolitan areas. The percentage of an ethnic group that is residentially concentrated correlated significantly with the group's proportion in an area. With metropolitan areas weighted equally, 38 percent of Hispanics and 13 percent of Asians were concentrated. However, when we analyzed eight specific nationality groups, the residentially concentrated proportion ranged from 14 to 59 percent. Level of cultural assimilation appears to explain group differences in level of concentration. Although ethnic concentrations were more pronounced in the largest metropolitan areas, important concentrations were also found in many of the smaller areas in our study.     

Consultas and Socially Responsible Investing in Guatemala: A Case Study Examining Maya Perspectives on the Indigenous Right to Free,Prior, and Informed Consent

Since 2005, more than 78 Maya communities representing approximately one million Guatemalans have held referendums called consultas comunitarias, which ask the community whether they are in agreement with mineral, hydroelectric, and/or other megaprojects in their traditional territory. Participation in the consultas is a form of resistance to the granting of mineral rights to corporate interests. In Canada, where much of the Guatemalan mining investment is based, “socially responsible investment firms” (SRIs) promote corporate respect for Indigenous rights. Based on interviews and participant observation, we highlight the perspectives of Maya consulta organizers in three communities that have undertaken consultas to resist the mining licenses of the Canadian mining company Goldcorp, Inc. We argue that a strict policy of corporate respect for the right to free, prior, and informed consent of affected communities is a minimum requirement for Maya acceptance of SRI legitimacy.     

Anglo Intrusion on the Old Sangre de Cristo Land Grant

Positioned on the northern edge of the Hispano homeland, the southern portion of the old Sangre de Cristo Land Grant (present-day Costilla County, Colorado) provides an interesting empirical study of cultural change. After economically displacing Spanish-American residents from villages throughout the homeland's core, incoming Anglos have adopted the region's rich Spanish culture as their own. On the homeland's periphery, however, the cultural traditions of Hispanos and Anglos have been, for the most part, at odds. Most resident Hispanos desire to maintain ties to their traditional past, while the younger generations embrace Anglo cultural norms. Considering the vital role it plays in the maintenance of culture, religion provides a window to the study area's modified cultural environment. In 1900 the population in this region was predominantly Catholic Hispano; by 1990 Protestant-dominated Anglos comprised a sizeable proportion of the population. Comparisons are made between traditional Hispano and Anglo-influenced religious landscapes. Changes in church affiliation, the distribution of active Penitente moradas, and the characteristics of community cemeteries demonstrate ongoing cultural change. Geographically isolated communities, where Anglo intrusion is limited, retain their strong Hispano cultural integrity.     

The Changing Geography of U.S. Hispanics from 1990–2006: A Shift to the South and Midwest

Abstract

Between 1990 and 2000 the U.S. Hispanic population increased by 14 million, which is the largest decadal population rise in United States history. This increase was not spread evenly throughout the United States, nor was it isolated to locations that already had large Hispanic populations. On the contrary, areas that previously had a relatively small Hispanic population experienced large percentage increases. In this article the regional variability in Hispanic population growth is explored, along with an emphasis on the economic pull factors driving those demographic changes. This analysis illustrates how restructuring in the meatpacking industry, and the associated economic impacts, have created a dependence on a low wage, illegal labor force that has shaped the recent demographic trend in the South and Midwest.     

Anglo Intrusion on the Old Sangre de Cristo Land Grant

Positioned on the northern edge of the Hispano homeland, the southern portion of the old Sangre de Cristo Land Grant (present-day Costilla County, Colorado) provides an interesting empirical study of cultural change. After economically displacing Spanish-American residents from villages throughout the homeland's core, incoming Anglos have adopted the region's rich Spanish culture as their own. On the homeland's periphery, however, the cultural traditions of Hispanos and Anglos have been, for the most part, at odds. Most resident Hispanos desire to maintain ties to their traditional past, while the younger generations embrace Anglo cultural norms. Considering the vital role it plays in the maintenance of culture, religion provides a window to the study area's modified cultural environment. In 1900 the population in this region was predominantly Catholic Hispano; by 1990 Protestant-dominated Anglos comprised a sizeable proportion of the population. Comparisons are made between traditional Hispano and Anglo-influenced religious landscapes. Changes in church affiliation, the distribution of active Penitente moradas, and the characteristics of community cemeteries demonstrate ongoing cultural change. Geographically isolated communities, where Anglo intrusion is limited, retain their strong Hispano cultural integrity.     

Between Environmental Change and Neoliberalism: The Effects of Oil Palm Production on Livelihood Resilience

Rural communities worldwide are increasingly confronted with the simultaneous impacts of environmental change dynamics and processes of economic restructuring that diminish traditional sources of state support while shifting investments toward large-scale intensive production models. A key question in this context is how livelihoods are affected by these interacting forces of change and whether new production models can contribute to resilience at the household and community scales. Here we examine the impacts of oil palm production on marginal rural communities in Mexico that have experienced both the economic changes associated with neoliberal policy reforms and the dynamics of environmental change. We find that oil palm production can contribute to livelihood resilience when community members participate in its management and governance and when production is associated with state support, but that the kinds of neoliberal policies promoting oil palm expansion may exacerbate existing community vulnerabilities in the face of environmental change.