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Title: The Occupational Ranking of Racial and Ethnic Groups in New York, 1880-1970

Citation Type: Working Paper

Publication Year: 1999

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Abstract: Current discussions of the incorporation of immigrants and minorities in the American metropolis are partly framed in terms of theoretical models of how such groups fared in previous eras. This historical experience is most often interpreted as a process of assimilation. An ethnic queue naturally sorts ethnic groups in a hierarchy favoring older groups over those who have more recently arrived. But mobility of the second generation substantially reduces the initial disadvantages of new groups, and ethnic differences decline steadily with the passage of time. Analternative view is that ethnic boundaries are more deeply rooted within American society and disparities between groups tend to be reproduced over time in spite of processes of individual mobility. Evidence for the latter thesis is found here in a study of the relative occupational standing of white ethnic groups, African Americans, Latinos, and Asians in New York over nearly a century, 1880-1970. A clear hierarchy of groups was well established in 1880. However, it did not correspond closely to groups initial time of arrival, it placed even northern-born African Americans at a great disadvantage, and it changed little over the following 90 years.

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Authors: Logan, John R.

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Publication Number: 1999-2

Institution: University at Albany SUNY

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Publisher Location: New York, NY

Data Collections: IPUMS USA

Topics: Migration and Immigration, Race and Ethnicity

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