THE AEROSPACE INDUSTRY IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA FROM THE 1960S TO 2000S: AN INVESTIGATION INTO DEMOGRAPHIC IMPLICATIONS AND ECONOMIC PROSPERITY

This thesis explores the intersection of race, labor, and economic mobility within the aerospace industry of Southern California, focusing on the experiences of African American workers from the 1960s through the early 2000s. By analyzing secondary sources and primary sources such as the oral histories of Larry Kibble and Shelby Jacobs, this paper examines how systemic racial discrimination shaped the opportunities and challenges faced by African Americans in aerospace. It examines the role of government policies, such as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Fair Housing Act, which contributed to increased representation of minorities in the workforce, particularly in blue-collar jobs. Despite significant barriers to managerial roles, the aerospace industry's growth provided African Americans with access to stable employment, homeownership, leisure status, and upward social mobility. The thesis argues that while the aerospace sector in Southern California played a key role in the economic advancement of many African Americans, the impact of this growth was uneven, and racial inequalities persisted throughout the industry. This work contributes to the understanding of how African American workers navigated the challenges of a historically white-dominated field and how their contributions reshaped the aerospace industry’s legacy.