Suburbanization and the Persistence of High Racial Segregation: Hmong and Other Southeast Asian Americans in the Twin Cities Metro Area from 1990 to 2020

This paper uses recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau to examine the suburbanization and extent of residential segregation among Southeast Asian Americans, including Hmong, Lao, Cambodians, and Vietnamese. The evidence from the 2016-2020 American Community Survey shows that between 1990 and 2020, Southeast Asians in the Minneapolis-St. Paul Metropolitan Statistical Area (Twin Cities Metro Area) experienced substantial suburbanization. However, the evidence also shows that residential segregation, which was in decline during the previous decade (2000-2010), has seen a resurgence for all Southeast Asian ethnic groups, raising concerns about inequality in terms of opportunities and outcomes for these groups.