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Infrastructures of race? Colonial indigenous segregation and contemporary land values

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  • Baldomero-Quintana, Luis
  • Woo-Mora, L. Guillermo
  • De la Rosa-Ramos, Enrique

Abstract

We investigate the persistent impact of a colonial segregation policy on land values in modern Mexico City. During colonial times, Indigenous communities were confined, with varying degrees of success, to settlements known as pueblos de indios. Using historical records, we exploit quasi-random variation due to the pueblos’ catchment areas and use a Regression Discontinuity Design to estimate the causal effects of pueblos on land prices. We find a 5% land value penalty for areas affected by the colonial policy. The penalty is exacerbated for the pueblos formerly inhabited exclusively by Indigenous populations. Historical evidence and novel digitized maps reveal that these land value penalties have been driven over the past two centuries by low public goods provision, negative economic expectations, and the historical sorting of working-class individuals who built small housing structures that are second-nature factors. Moreover, in contemporary data, we observe discontinuities in housing overcrowding and public goods quality within the pueblos’ catchment areas. Our results underscore the repercussions of colonial policies on contemporary spatial equilibria, clarifying the mechanisms driving historical persistence and offering implications for urban policies.

Suggested Citation

  • Baldomero-Quintana, Luis & Woo-Mora, L. Guillermo & De la Rosa-Ramos, Enrique, 2025. "Infrastructures of race? Colonial indigenous segregation and contemporary land values," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 110(C).
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:regeco:v:110:y:2025:i:c:s0166046224000966
    DOI: 10.1016/j.regsciurbeco.2024.104065
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Urban segregation; Historical persistence; Spatial persistence; Cities and development;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • N96 - Economic History - - Regional and Urban History - - - Latin America; Caribbean
    • O18 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Urban, Rural, Regional, and Transportation Analysis; Housing; Infrastructure
    • J71 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor Discrimination - - - Hiring and Firing
    • N36 - Economic History - - Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy - - - Latin America; Caribbean

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