Ethnic segmentation in the American metropolis: Increasing divergence in economic incorporation 1980-1990

Based on the industrial sectors in which group members are concentrated, th e ethnic economies of various racial anti ethnic groups became more distinc tive From one another during the 1980s. Non-Hispanic whites continued to do minate key sectors in every metropolitan area studied. Their withdrawal fro m some others, however, left openings for other groups in apparel manufactu ring and in a variety of trade and personal service activities. The void wa s filled by selected immigrant groups who had already begun to establish en clave economies by 1980: especially Koreans, Chinese, and Cubans, As many a s two-thirds of these groups members worked in their enclaves in some regio ns. At the same time, other immigrant and minority groups, especially black s, Puerto Ricans, Mexicans, and Filipinos remained highly dependent on empl oyment niches in the public sector or working for other groups in the priva te sector. The model of a dual city (with a mainly white core economy and a minority periphery) is losing its descriptive power due to the divergent p aths taken by different nonwhite groups.