The Impact of Immigrant Deportations on Latino Segregation

Matthew Hall , Cornell University
Jacob S. Rugh, Brigham Young University

In this paper, we assess the connection between local enforcement policies to deport immigrants and patterns of residential segregation among Hispanics. To do so, we develop a quasi-experimental framework that exploits variation in the implementation of local 287(g) agreements that give police officers authority to enforce immigration law. By comparing patterns of Hispanic segregation in counties that implemented the program with those that applied for, but did not implement, we are able to generate plausibly-causal estimates of the effect of local enforcement. Our estimates reveal that the implementation of 287(g) is associated with substantially smaller declines in Hispanic-white segregation, particularly in counties that adopted the policy in the latter part of the 2000s. We find no evidence that the program altered patterns of segregation for non-Hispanics.

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 Presented in Session 5. Immigration Policy