"The Impact of Mexican Immigration to the Southeastern United States on Black/White Race Relations"

a presentation by

Monica McDermott

Thursday, May 5, 2005
Board Room, Stanford Humanities Center, 4:00-6:00 PM

Abstract: Between 1990 and 2000, the Mexican-American population increased dramatically in many cities and rural counties in the Southeastern United States. This trend is notable because many of the areas most affected by this "new" immigration are located in parts of the country that have not been traditional immigrant receiving communities. Throughout most of its history, the Southern US has had a strictly dichotomous system of racial classificationÑone is either "black" or "white". I am especially interested in exploring the relationship between local context, interracial interactions, and the experiences of racial identity in the wake of this dramatic demographic change. Since it is notoriously difficult to ask respondents directly about their experiences with race, and there are problems of data quality when relying solely upon the recollections of respondents to construct histories of interracial interactions or identity formation, I plan to conduct a year-long ethnographic study of communities that have been significantly impacted by recent, rapid immigration, comparing these areas to communities that have remained demographically unchanged during the same time period. I am especially interested in receiving feedback on the design of the project at this early stage from workshop members.

Monica McDermott is an assistant professor of Sociology at Stanford University where she teaches courses on race and ethnicity, urban sociology, qualitative methods and theory. Her primary research interests involve race and ethnic relations in the U.S., especially white identity, racial attitudes, and race/class interactions. She is currently completing a book manuscript based on her participant observation research on interracial interactions in Atlanta and Boston, where she worked as a convenience store clerk for a year.