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New Immigrant Communities: Finding a Place in Local Politics

Kristi Andersen
New Immigrant Communities: Finding a Place in Local Politics
ISBN: 978-1-58826-722-1
$45.00
2010/133 pages/LC: 2010006849
"Of interest and very valuable to researchers on political incorporation and urban politics."—Rodolfo O. de la Garza, Political Science Quarterly

"A fantastic new book.... One of the few studies of immigrant political incorporation that goes beyond the individual level in terms of measurement and addresses more than one "national origin" group. This book is a must-read for interdisciplinary scholars of immigration."—Jane Junn, University of Southern California

"A timely, carefully argued, and important assessment of immigrant incorporation in newer destinations and smaller cities."—Karthick Ramakrishnan, University of California, Riverside

DESCRIPTION

How do US immigrants, who settle in places with varied political and social characteristics, find a place at the table in local politics? In particular, how do arrivals to smaller, less-established immigrant communities become politically incorporated? Drawing on rich interview data and cases from across the United States, Kristi Andersen compares communities to reveal what types of environments provide opportunities—and challenges—for recent arrivals.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kristi Andersen is professor of political science at the Maxwell School at Syracuse University. She is author of After Suffrage: Women in Partisan and Electoral Politics Before the New Deal and The Creation of a Democratic Majority, 1928-1936.

CONTENTS

  • Introduction.
  • Immigration and Local Environments.
  • Understanding Political Incorporation.
  • Assessing Incorporation in Six Cities.
  • The Role of Political Parties.
  • Community Organizations as New Channels for Political Incorporation.
  • The Geopolitics of Immigrant Incorporation.
  • Conclusion.