Los Angeles became diverse before the nation as a whole did. In 1970, Latinos already made up 17% of the population, and by 2010, Asians made up 16%. By 1990, the Los Angeles metropolitan area was majority-minority.

The early onset of diversity in Los Angeles might have contributed to the large share of quadrivial neighborhoods in the Los Angeles metro. In the Los Angeles metro nearly an equal percentage of neighborhoods followed a quadrivial compared to stable White trajectory (20% vs. 22%).

On the other hand, the early growth of the Latino population led to more concentrated Latino segregation in Latino enclaves than the other three metro areas. Unlike the other metros, the Latino enclaves expanded into the segregated Black ghettos. Of all neighborhoods that followed the post-immigration reform Black to Latino succession across the four metropolitan areas, nearly three-quarters were neighborhoods in South Central.

The growing number of Asian immigrants led to a large number of neighborhoods gradually changing from White to Asian. In this, they are like another common port of entry for Asian immigrants: New York. The new enclaves are not concentrated in the city, but are dispersed throughout the entire metropolitan area.

In summary, Los Angeles shows both the promise and peril of the future: a large percentage of durably integrated neighborhoods with increasing immigration leading to a new suburban segregation.

Distribution of Trajectories

Description of Neighborhood Change