Monday, January 14, 2002

Steve Cutri / Associated Press The Cleveland suburb of Shaker Heights has remained stable in its racial makeup, thanks in part to programs promoting integrated neighborhoods.

Detroit slow to find ways to integrate
Chicago, Cleveland build more stable neighborhoods

By Gordon Trowbridge / The Detroit News

Will segregation end on it's own? Do you think segregation in Metro Detroit will eventually go away on it's own, without the intervention of government, business or other groups? Comment on this story Send this story to a friend Get Home Delivery

   For all the similarities between Metro Detroit and other highly segregated regions, there is much that sets Detroit apart -- and more than just a few points on a segregation index.
   "Race in Detroit has predominated as in no other major northern city -- and it may still," said James Whitbeck, a state Court of Appeals judge who worked in federal integration efforts in the 1970s.
   A look at the rest of the top five metro areas in The News' analysis of the nation's most segregated metro areas shows more differences:
   
No. 5: Cleveland
   A revival has pumped new life into Cleveland's downtown, but residents -- especially whites -- still are leaving. The city's white population fell 21 percent in the 1990s.
   Unlike Metro Detroit, the Cleveland area has a history of efforts to combat segregation. The suburbs of Shaker Heights and Cleveland Heights have remained relatively stable in their racial makeup, thanks in part to programs promoting integrated neighborhoods. "What these suburbs have said is that we must attract white residents while also being open to minorities," said W. Dennis Keating, a Cleveland State University professor.
   
No. 4: Chicago
   Another massively segregated metropolis with a history of racial tension, Chicago also has much more history of efforts toward integration than Detroit.
   Experts point to the Gautreaux Project, the outcome of a 1976 lawsuit by Chicago public housing residents. A portion of the city's minority public-housing population was given a chance to move to new facilities in the suburbs, resulting in better economic, educational and social circumstances for those residents. Also, the suburb of Oak Park has, like some of those in Cleveland, sought to build stable, integrated neighborhoods.
   
No. 3: Milwaukee
   The area has seen even less movement of blacks to the suburbs than Detroit: Only 5 percent of the region's black population lives outside the central city. Still, the city itself remains about 50 percent white, a much higher percentage than Detroit and many other large northeastern cities, meaning whites are more likely to live in the same community, if not the same neighborhood as blacks.
   
No. 2: Gary, Ind.
   Though much smaller than Detroit, Gary mirrors many of Metro Detroit's characteristics: A nearly all-black city, surrounded by white suburbs, is largely dependent on one industry (steel) for the bulk of its economic strength.
   One area of optimism for Gary: Segregation fell in the 1990s faster than in other highly segregated areas. Segregation levels fell by about 6.5 percent in Gary, compared to about 2 percent in Detroit.