| This study, which is rooted in the historical materialist theory and method, adds to the theoretical construct of globalization by illustrating how the systemic processes of globalization are unfolding in a unique urban setting, the District of Columbia. Globalization is the qualitative structural transformation of the world economy, from one rooted in nation-based industrial capitalism to a global economy, rooted in information technology and electronics. This new global economic order is the latest stage of capitalist political and economic development.; This study contextualizes the increasing inequality among District residents in the transformation to advanced global capitalism, the breaking of the social contract between capital and labor, and the subsequent erosion of the government sector of the District's economy. This specific consequence of globalization---the breaking of the social contract---had a unique and profound effect on the District. These effects were similar to those experienced by manufacturing-based cities in the 1980s, but are rooted in a different component of the globalization process.; Two research questions guide this study. The first examines structural changes to the economy of the District from 1970 to 2000. The second examines how these structural changes affected white, black, Hispanic or Latino, and other racial minority residents, as measured by several indicators of inequality.; The findings of this study reveal significant shifts in the economic structure of the District, from 1970 to 2000, with expansion in the high-paying service sub-sector, substantial contraction in the government sector, and to a lesser degree, the low-paying service sub-sectors, along with worsening economic conditions as measured by unemployment, poverty, and income inequality. The findings reveal white District residents disproportionately benefited from the expansion of certain sectors and racial and ethnic minority residents shouldered the negative consequences of the contraction of other sectors. |
