Race or Class? Testing Spatial Assimilation Theory for Minorities in Los Angeles

This paper examines whether socio-economic status influences residential outcomes (e.g. proximity to Whites) equally across minority groups. Using tract-level data from 2000 U.S. Census for Los Angeles County, California, this paper investigates the relationship between high income status of a neighborhood and proximity to Whites by mapping residential distribution of major racial groups in comparison to residential patterns of affluent minorities in Los Angeles. The findings have implications for theories of residential segregation and locational attainment.