Blog Response #8
Why do people move where they do, when they do?
This is a very fasinating question. To answer this question I will break it down into two questions.
First, Why do people move when they do? There are a endless number of reasons for why people move when they do, but some of the most common reasons, some of which Sampson mentioned, are because of job changes, changes in family status, such as death in the family, loss of employment, change of income, change in marital status,etc. Another big reason why some families move when they do is because they have a family member in the military and they are being restationed somewhere else, which in turn dictates that the family will have to move. There are many times when a family or a person has to move, because for one reason or another they are being forced out of their home, whether by forclosure, the end of a rental lease, the inability to afford the rent or house payment on their home due to loss of employment, or they are renting a home and the owners have asked them to move so they can move in or actually sell the home. There are many more reasons why a family or person may move when they do, but I can not list them all now.
I was born and raised in Las Vegas, Nevada and I have known many friends and acquaintances who had to move for a wide variety of reasons. Even the recent recessions, when countless numbers of people were force to move due to forclosure, have had a big impact on communities and why people have moved when they have.
Second, Why do people move where they do? This an even larger question when it comes to discussing neighborhoods and communities. As Sampson mentions constantly throughout his book, there alot of reasons why people move where they do. Many of the most common reasons pertain to financial status or income level, race, their health status, skills and training status, education levels, etc. The ultimate reason why people move where they do can be expressed in two words: 'Comfort Zone'. People move where they do because they want to live in a community or neighborhood that is comprised of people who are of the same or similar race, income level, class level, financial status etc. They also move where they do because they have to move to where they can afford to move too and to where they won't feel intimidated people who are of a high income or class level. They want to be with people who have the same values and status as they do as well they race, in many areas. In Las Vegas there are areas of town and neighborhoods that are very distinctly hispanic, african american, asian, etc. Some of these areas are much larger and more distinct then others but nevertheless, they are there.
How much upward/downward mobility is involved when people change neighborhoods?
From what I have seen in my experience of living in Las Vegas, there really isn't alot of upward or downward mobility involved because if a family has to move they generally move a similer class level neighborhood and as soon as one family moves out, another family of the same class level seems to move in immediately. Sampson states in his book that amount of upward or downward mobility involved when people have to move and change neighborhoods is actually very low and is not really much of a problem.
How is it possible that all this "churning" as he calls it at one point, doesn't actually wipe out the distinct neighborhoods of "separate Chicagos"?
Well to sum this up, as I mentioned above distinct neighborhoods don't get wiped out because about as soon as one family moves out, another family of the same class level seems to move in immediately.Therefore, there never seems to be a problem with more people moving out and less moving in. It always seems to stay about the same which I have always found to be very interesting to think about.
My emphasis areas of Art and VT would come in handy here help unit new families in communities to feel accepted and be comfortable in their new community and maybe even help them find new abilities within themselves and new ways to better things for themselves and their families.
I agree with you about the endless number of reasons why people move. But that is why Sampson's data is so intriguing. We often think we move for individual circumstances and reasoning, but his data proclaims that most people stay because of conditioning effects. Kind of weird to think that our neighborhoods and communities condition our lifestyle in such a way that we stay put. I think it comes down to the fact that people like to be comfortable and we usually place ourselves in the most comfortable situations. If we are poor and black, we will probably be more comfortable living in a poor black neighborhood.
ReplyDeleteAnyways, I liked your post and the examples you brought in from Las Vegas. Good stuff. Thanks.
Sarah, my favorite point that you brought to attention is "comfort zone". I think this is the perfect example for why people move and where. If you think about it, this can be applied anywhere in a class neighborhood, event neighborhood any type of neighborhood. People always go in their comfort zones and the people that break out of their comfort zones are the ones who make a big impact.
ReplyDeleteI think you summed up the reasons why people move very clearly. Obviously it would be very hard to imagine every circumstance that would cause people to move but I think you forgot a very important one. Education is one of the most important things we can dedicate our lives to. Dedication to gaining an education can bring people out of the slums and educated people may make the rich look highly ignorant. So as we look at education I feel that it is the driving force to enable people to escape the ghetto.
ReplyDeleteI also feel that many people in the ghetto do not live in their comfort zone. Because they do not live in their comfort zone they are constantly looking to relocate and destroying collective efficacy and social altruism because they make no effort to change theirs or anyone else's beliefs.
Sarah, I love the point you make towards the end of your post. The reason why the churning doesn't wipe out these distinct communities is because as soon as someone moves out, they are replaced by another person just like them. I hadn't really connected those pieces until I read your response. Great reasoning! And like you said, it is a very interesting thing to think about. It's difficult to break the cycle of disadvantage in a community when it's so repetitive in nature.
ReplyDeleteI think you did a great job bring in your examples from Las Vegas. You really got me thinking when you mentioned the recession and all the foreclosures at happened during that time. I wonder what kind of impact that had on communities as people moved out of neighborhoods and not many moved in. I don't remember if Sampson directly talks about the recession and what it did to Chicago neighborhood. It would be interesting to see how the recession impacted neighborhoods and how neighborhoods have started to transform since it has passed.
ReplyDeleteI think you had great points and did good summarizing what Sampson mentioned throughout chapter 12. However, it would have been really interesting to read more about your thoughts on how Art and VT could impact people's choice to move.