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Putting Activism in Its Place: The Neighborhood Context of Participation in Neighborhood-Focused Activism
Journal article   Peer reviewed

Putting Activism in Its Place: The Neighborhood Context of Participation in Neighborhood-Focused Activism

Megan E Gilster
Journal of urban affairs, Vol.36(1), pp.33-50
02/01/2014
DOI: 10.1111/juaf.12013
PMCID: PMC3925640
PMID: 24554811
url
http://doi.org/10.1111/juaf.12013View
Open Access

Abstract

Neighborhood-focused activism is one way residents enact their vision for their community. This study examines the neighborhood socioeconomic antecedents of participation in neighborhood-focused activism in a diverse sample of residents of Chicago neighborhoods to test three theories of neighborhood socioeconomic context and participation: (1) affluence affords participation, (2) activism addresses neighborhood needs associated with disadvantage, and (3) socioeconomic inequality creates contention that necessitates participation. Measuring neighborhood socioeconomic status as two unique dimensions-neighborhood affluence and neighborhood disadvantage-and accounting for both individual and neighborhood characteristics, I find support for each theory. Neighborhood socioeconomic context matters for participation, regardless of individual socioeconomic characteristics. Only when these three perspectives are considered jointly can they fully capture the socioeconomic context of participation in neighborhood-focused activism.

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