ABSTRACT
Over the past two decades, concentration of Blacks and Latinos in segregated and impoverished urban communities has increased, thus making them more vulnerable to the negative effects of urban restructuring. In many ways, easing their plight, and that of the urban poor in general, depended on urban initiatives aimed at such communities. In this paper, we argue that the success of urban economic development largely depends on the articulation of such initiatives within communities and, in particular, on recognizing the role that racial and ethnic networks play in mobilizing resources around an economic development agenda. In other words, it is the convergence of race and class interests that provides the basis for economic development at the community or neighborhood level. Examples of economic development in Latino communities demonstrate how the understanding of race and ethnicity may contribute to more effective public policy and community strategizing.
