Black Migration to the West, 1930-2000

Internal migration reshaped the African American population throughout the twentieth century and, as a result, it strongly influenced racial dynamics in the South and non-South, alike. This project investigates a significant, but thus far understudied, aspect of this broader demographic phenomenon – African American migration to the West from 1910 through 2000.   We rely primarily on existing Public Use Microdata Samples (PUMS) from the decennial censuses for 1930 through 2000.  The findings resulting from this project will advance our understanding of an important aspect of the Great Migration of African Americans during the twentieth century, and the growth of the black population in the West. They will also provide valuable evidence for the investigation of theoretically-important issues related to relations among racial and ethnic groups in the West, growth of the black ghetto in the West, racially- and ethnically-determined occupational hierarchies in the West; and the effects of group size on individual socioeconomic outcomes for minority group members.