Persistent inequalities in the well-being of peoples and places continue to characterize advanced capitalist societies. Here a complex web of entrenched forces-- business cycle fluctuations, uneven development at diverse spatial scales, differential access to status and wealth across populations--have generated deeply rooted inequalities that continue to defy simple capitalist policy prescriptions. Indeed, their observable manifestations (inner-city neighborhood decay, growing poverty, a widening wealth gap, the sustained racial and gender discrimination in the workplace) suggest to some that many of these societies are now teetering on the brink of crisis. Whether this point is correct is certainly worthy of debate; it is sufficient to note in this introduction that in the face of this reality growing inequality has recently been put back on the mainstream agenda in the social sciences.

These social and geographical divisions materially affect the life chances of individuals who have been unjustly marginalized on the basis of their race, ethnicity, gender, or class. If we are to redress these inequalities effectively, it is essential that we first understand the mechanisms by which such inequalities are societally generated and maintained. A key premise of this book is that the social construction of inequality is intimately bound up with processes that divide . . .