Disentangling the Segregation Patterns of Immigrants in Suburbia

Eric Fong, University of Toronto
Tracy Matsuo, University of Toronto
Rima Wilkes, University of Toronto

This paper attempts to understand the segregation process of immigrants in suburbia, an emerging residential pattern in major North American cities. Recent studies document that large proportion of immigrants, including those who arrived recently, are not only residing in suburban areas, but also segregated in suburbia. This pattern seemingly challenges the spatial assimilation perspective. In this paper, we argue that the spatial assimilation perspective is still able to help us understand the pattern. However, we also argue that further specifications are needed. We used 1996 Canadian census - Profile B, which provides detailed information on the census tracts. Our analysis focused on the patterns in Toronto. We analyzed residential patterns of five major immigrant groups: South Asians, East and Southeast Asians, Southern Europeans, Eastern Europeans, and blacks. The results of our analyses confirmed the arguments. Implications of our results are also discussed.