Attracting Hispanics to an African American Recreation Center: Examining Attitudes and Historical Factors

The majority of the existing research on leisure among racial and ethnic minorities has examined the leisure constraints of people of color, predominantly addressing why racially marginalized groups display divergent leisure patterns from their White counterparts. The past four decades of research demonstrate that people of color are inhibited in their leisure participation by factors such as socioeconomics (Dunn, Kasul, & Brown, 2002; Washburne, 1978), subcultural differences (Edwards, 1981; Shinew, Floyd, & Parry, 2004; Washburne, 1978), and discrimination (Blahna & Black, 1993; Sharaievska, Stodolska, Shinew, & Kim, 2010; West, 1989). Although this literature is extensive, Shinew et al. (2006) asserted that the field has yet to explore the changes in racial stratification occurring due to "massive migration and mobility of groups" (p. 403). For example, current national demographic trends suggest that the non-Hispanic White population will only compose approximately 53% of the population by year 2050 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2010a). Since 2010, racial and ethnic minorities have already exceeded the White population in several areas of the United States (Texas, California, Hawaii, New Mexico, and the District of Columbia), with Hispanics driving the majority of the growth (U.S. Census Bureau).Dramatic increases in the population of racial minorities have led scholars to foresee a new racial structure to replace the traditional black-white color line. For example, Bonilla-Silva (2010) has predicted the emergence of a three-tiered structure where Whites would occupy the first tier along with "assimilated White Latinos and Native Americans, some multiracials, and a few select Asian-origin members" (p. 180). The second tier would consist of "light skinned Latinos, Asian Americans, Middle Easterner Americans, and most multiracials," followed by a bottom tier composed of the "collective blacks" (i.e., dark skinned Latinos, blacks from all sources, etc.) (p. 180).While contemporary leisure research has addressed the interracial conflict occurring between African Americans and non-Hispanic Whites, less emphasis has been placed on the interactions between the different people of color (e.g., African Americans and Hispanics). Scholars in various fields have documented the conflicts related to competition over scarce resources as well as the social distance maintained between African Americans and Hispanics (Hernandez, 2007; Mindiola, Niemann, & Rodriguez, 2002; Straus, 2009). In the field of leisure, the intergroup conflict between Hispanics and African Americans has received less attention (e.g., Sharaievska et al; Stodolska & Shinew, 2010). In lieu of the demographic shifts occurring in the U.S., it appears that the ethnicity, marginality, and discrimination frameworks have been beneficial to understanding the leisure constraints of minorities but are overdue to include instances of horizontal discrimination, which occurs between racial and ethnic minorities.In addition to horizontal discrimination, historical factors have often been overlooked as an explanation of contemporary minority leisure patterns and behaviors. For example, Floyd ( 1998) noted the role of poverty and historical discrimination implied in frameworks such as the marginality theory. Other investigators have focused on variables such as income or availability of resources with little focus on how these factors developed (Erickson, Johnson, & Kivel, 2009; Floyd). Historical factors may help explain current leisure behaviors and preferences among minority group members (Nadel, 1951; Woodard, 1988), including why some places have become racialized (Bobo, 1987; Schuman, Steeh, & Bobo, 1985).An opportunity to further explore issues related to horizontal discrimination and historical factors presented itself when the Milton Recreation Center (MRC) Director asked for assistance in recruiting Hispanic children to the facility which had historically primarily served African Americans. …