This study addresses the significance of residential integration for racial groups. It questions the meaning of multiculturalism and further the meaning of residential integration as a term used by scholars in association to multi-ethnic and multi-cultural communities. There are various viewpoints and assumptions among scholars that racial segregation is a social problem and therefore it can be solved through residential integration of racial minorities. This study will argue that there are disconnections of the assumed link between racial segregation and poverty. It also argues that residential integration, as a tool to provide equality and socio-economic resources for racial minorities is not a solution to the complexities of past racial discrimination. This study concludes, that residential integration fails to address the assumed goals of intermixing different racial groups because social, political and economic advantages cannot be accomplished merely through physical integration. / Department of Urban Planning

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Residential racial segregation has been perennially viewed as a major urban problem in the United States. Meanwhile, the single-family mortgage market has been an influential factor in determining segregation since at least the 1930s. Although many prior studies rightly have focused on the very real individual and social costs of subprime loans and related loan features, the greater leverage they afford also may have allowed some, especially minority, homebuyers to purchase properties they otherwise would not have been able to afford. Limited loan-to-value and payment-to-income ratio requirements have constrained borrowers from prime, conventional lenders, and relaxing these standards might allow some borrowers to purchase more expensive homes, possibly in higher quality neighborhoods. Additionally, if minority borrowers disproportionately obtained high-leverage loans, the effect of these loans on neighborhood choice may be greater for minorities than non-Hispanic whites. Since higher-quality neighborhoods are disproportionately non-Hispanic white or racially diverse, the increase in high-leverage mortgages might mitigate the neighborhood quality gap between minorities and non-Hispanic whites and reduce levels of racial/ethnic segregation. Accordingly, this dissertation focuses on two research questions: 1) whether high-leverage home purchase loans enabled borrowers to purchase more expensive homes and homes in higher-quality neighborhoods; and 2) whether these loans affected the racial/ethnic segregation of homebuyers at the metropolitan level. Since blacks and Hispanics comprise significant minorities in many metropolitan areas in the 2000s, I examine the questions for three racial/ethnic groups: non-Hispanics whites, blacks, and Hispanics. To answer the first question, household housing demand and neighborhood quality models are estimated using the American Housing Survey data. To answer the second question, metropolitan area segregation models are estimated primarily using the American Community Survey and the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act. Both cross-sectional and fixed-effect panel segregation models are estimated using a two-stage least squares approach with chosen instruments. I find that the use of high-leverage loans increases housing demand and neighborhood quality, holding other household characteristics constant. I also find that high-leverage loans have a substantial, negative effect on black segregation, while the effect on Hispanic segregation is somewhat ambiguous. The findings suggest that policymakers should consider the impact of regulations affecting allowable loan-to-value and payment-to-income ratios on borrowers' residential choice and urban form, as well as on default risk.

Reported research has suggested that poor persons and/or minorities are disproportionately exposed to environmental hazards such as incinerators, landfills, pesticides, and poor air quality. One accepted form of an environmental hazard is a waste management facility. This present research examined the variables minority percentage and median household income of the population surrounding each waste management facility under scrutiny within Lake County, Indiana. The two variables were each correlated with distance from the center of each waste management facility (as determined through a geographic information system) to a distance of three kilometers. The materials and methods used in this particular research provided for a more precise analysis of such correlations than has typified most of the earlier studies. Three significant correlations were found. First, the Gary landfill rendered a positive relationship between distance from the center of the site and increased income. Second, the Munster landfill revealed a negative relationship between distance to the center of the site and increased minority percentage of the population. Lastly, the Munster landfill also had a negative relationship between income and distance from the center of the landfill. Data showed that the large proportion of minority households surrounding the Munster landfill earned an income that would easily allow for social mobility. Such social mobility, arguably, allows a household to move away from an environmental hazard. It was concluded that no support for a claim of environmental racism could be found. Further, a call for a re-examination of the definition of environmental racism is made based upon the large number of wealthy minorities residing around the Munster landfill. / Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Management

By the year 2030, 20% of the U.S. population will be 65 years of age or older. An increase in the demand for supportive health and social services is expected with the aging of the population. Demand for senior housing is expected to grow, too. This study explores what the social environment offers to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) seniors who relocated to LGBT retirement communities. Previous research asked LGBT seniors who did not live in LGBT senior housing about their housing preferences. The present study, for the first time, asked residents of existing LGBT senior living communities to explain why they chose to live in an LGBT retirement community. Focus groups were conducted at three retirement communities. Thirty-eight residents at the three study sites participated. Seven focus groups were conducted; each was audio recorded and transcribed verbatim. The analysis found common categories across the focus group data that explain the phenomenon of LGBT senior housing. The average age of the participants was 71. Demographic differences were found between generations, with the older participants being more likely to have revealed their sexual orientation late in life, and more likely to have been married and have children. The findings showed that acceptance by other residents of one's sexual orientation and gender identity allows LGBT seniors to feel comfortable in what several residents called their "domestic environment." The questions asked about housing choice and were open ended; respondents chose to focus on the social aspect of their living environments. Acceptance, as opposed to tolerance, was a strong theme. Acceptance by others reduced stress and fostered a feeling of safety and a sense of community. Social networks were strong and expansive, contrary to the theory of socioemotional selectivity theory, which would argue that the total number social relationships diminishes with age. Participants emphasized the social context of their living environment as the reason they chose to live in LGBT senior housing. Participants noted past discrimination, but it was the positive aspects resulting from acceptance that were emphasized as the reason for their choice of LGBT specific retirement housing.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Virtually every society can, at some point, be affected by homelessness. In recent years in the United States, homeless rates have hovered around three percent of the entire population. Although this marginalized population has been studied before, little is known regarding the possible characteristics that can keep an individual in homelessness or affect their living conditions while being homeless. This thesis provides an in-depth look at specific characteristics that could be factors in the length of the homeless experience, as well as how these same characteristics could impact the shelter status while an individual is homeless. The study reveals that homelessness in Indianapolis was mostly experienced by those who were male, African-American, and between the ages of 31-50. Furthermore, the majority were found to live in shelters and be homeless for twelve months or less.