The Segregation Myth: Richard Rothstein Debunks an American Lie | NowThis

Summary

The script addresses the pervasive issue of residential segregation in U.S. metropolitan areas, challenging the myth of 'de facto' segregation as a natural outcome. It reveals that government policies, not private actions,刻意地 created racial boundaries through public housing projects and the Federal Housing Administration's racially explicit mortgage programs. These policies not only segregated communities but also contributed to the significant racial wealth gap, as African Americans were systematically excluded from wealth-building opportunities in suburban areas, leading to lasting economic disparities.

Takeaways

• 🏠 Residential segregation is pervasive in U.S. metropolitan areas, with neighborhoods often being predominantly white or African-American.
• 🌐 The acceptance of segregation as a 'natural' part of society is a myth; it's a result of deliberate government policies.
• 🏢 Public housing was initially intended for middle and working-class families, not just the poor, and was racially segregated from its inception.
• 🛠️ During WWII, the federal government intensified segregation by building temporary housing for African Americans and more permanent housing for whites.
• 📉 In the 1950s, white public housing projects emptied while African-American projects filled, leading to the integration of projects and a decline in maintenance.
• 🏡 The Federal Housing Administration's policies actively promoted racial segregation by subsidizing white-only suburban developments.
• 💼 Developers like Levittown were required to prevent African Americans from buying or renting in their subdivisions, a policy that persists in some deeds.
• 💰 The exclusion of African Americans from suburban homeownership opportunities contributed to significant racial wealth disparities.
• 📉 The wealth gap between African Americans and whites is largely due to historical federal housing policies that have never been adequately addressed.
• 🏛️ The constitutional violation of racial segregation in housing policy has had lasting effects on racial inequalities in the U.S. today.

Q & A

What is the biggest segregation issue mentioned in the script?

The biggest segregation issue mentioned is residential segregation in metropolitan areas across the United States, where neighborhoods are clearly divided along racial lines.

Why do people often accept residential segregation as a natural part of society?

People often accept residential segregation as natural because it is pervasive and has become a part of the societal environment. There is a belief that it is a result of people's preferences or economic factors, rather than acknowledging it as a result of explicit government policies.

What is the national myth about residential segregation that the script discusses?

The national myth discussed is that residential segregation is 'de facto,' meaning it happened by accident or due to private actions, rather than being created by government policies.

How did the government policies contribute to racial segregation in the United States?

Government policies explicitly created racial boundaries through racially explicit policies, ensuring that African Americans and whites could not live near one another, which still determine the racial landscape in many cities.

What was the original purpose of public housing when it was first introduced in the United States?

Public housing was initially intended for middle-class and working-class families during the depression. It was not for poor people, and there was no housing shortage for those who could afford to pay full rent.

How did the government's actions during World War II contribute to racial segregation?

During World War II, the government built temporary housing for African Americans near industrial areas and more stable housing for white migrants in white residential areas, reinforcing racial segregation.

What changes occurred in public housing projects in the 1950s that led to a shift in their demographics?

In the 1950s, white public housing projects began to have large vacancies while black projects developed long waiting lists. This led to the opening of all projects to African Americans and a decline in the ability of the public housing population to afford rent, resulting in government subsidies.

What was the role of the Federal Housing Administration in creating racial segregation?

The Federal Housing Administration played a significant role by subsidizing the construction of single-family homes in the suburbs, explicitly for white families only, through policies that required developers to commit not to sell or rent to African Americans.

How did the policies of the Federal Housing Administration affect wealth accumulation among different racial groups?

These policies prevented African Americans from moving into suburbs and accumulating wealth through home equity, which white families were able to do. This contributed to the significant disparity in wealth between white and African American families.

What is the current status of the racial wealth gap in the United States as mentioned in the script?

The script states that African American wealth is on average 10% of white wealth, and this disparity is attributed to unconstitutional federal housing policies practiced in the mid-20th century that have never been remedied.

Outlines

00:00

🏠 The Myth of De Facto Segregation

The paragraph discusses the pervasive issue of residential segregation in metropolitan areas across the United States, which is often accepted as a natural part of society. The speaker challenges the national myth of de facto segregation, arguing that it is not a result of accidental or private discrimination but was intentionally created by explicit government policies. These policies were designed to establish racial boundaries and prevent African Americans and whites from living near each other. The paragraph also touches on the history of public housing, which was initially intended for middle-class families and was racially segregated from its inception. The government's actions during World War II further intensified segregation, with temporary housing for African Americans and more stable housing for white migrants, setting the stage for the racial landscape seen in cities today.

05:00

💼 Federal Policies and the Creation of Racial Wealth Gap

This paragraph delves into the role of federal housing policies in creating racial segregation and the subsequent wealth gap. It highlights a program by the Federal Housing Administration that explicitly aimed to move white families into suburban homes, reinforcing racial boundaries. The policy required developers to commit to not selling or renting to African Americans, a condition that was enforceable through deeds. This practice, along with the exclusion of African Americans from these subsidized housing opportunities, has had a lasting impact on wealth accumulation. The speaker contrasts the ability of white families to build equity and pass on wealth with the lack of such opportunities for African Americans, resulting in a significant racial wealth gap. The paragraph concludes by linking these historical policies to the ongoing racial inequalities in income and wealth, emphasizing the unconstitutional nature of these practices and their ongoing effects on society.

Keywords

💡Residential Segregation

Residential segregation refers to the physical separation of people into different residential areas based on race or ethnicity. In the context of the video, it is highlighted as a pervasive issue in the United States, where metropolitan areas are divided into areas that are predominantly white or African-American. The script emphasizes that this segregation is not a natural outcome but a result of deliberate government policies, which is central to the video's theme of examining the historical and systemic causes of racial disparities in housing.

💡De Facto Segregation

De facto segregation is a term used to describe segregation that occurs without explicit laws but rather as a result of individual choices, economic conditions, or private discrimination. The video challenges this myth by arguing that residential segregation in the U.S. is not accidental but was created by explicit government policies. The script uses the term to debunk the idea that segregation is a passive outcome, instead asserting it was actively engineered.

💡Public Housing

Public housing is government-owned housing provided to low-income families. The video script explains that public housing initially served middle-class and working-class families, not just the poor. However, over time, it became associated with poverty and racial segregation, as the government created segregated public housing projects and later had to subsidize them as residents could no longer afford the rent. This keyword is crucial for understanding the video's narrative on how government policies contributed to racial and economic disparities.

💡Federal Housing Administration (FHA)

The Federal Housing Administration is a United States government agency that provides mortgage insurance, which encourages banks to lend money for housing. In the video, the FHA is highlighted for its role in creating racial segregation through policies that explicitly barred African Americans from purchasing homes in certain subdivisions, like Levittown. This keyword is key to understanding the systemic nature of housing discrimination and its long-term effects on wealth accumulation for different racial groups.

💡Levittown

Levittown is a famous example of a large-scale suburban housing development that was built with federal support and had explicit racial restrictions. The video uses Levittown to illustrate how federal housing policies helped create white suburban communities while excluding African Americans, contributing to racial wealth disparities. Levittown serves as a concrete example in the script of the FHA's discriminatory practices.

💡Wealth Disparity

Wealth disparity refers to the unequal distribution of assets, property, and other forms of wealth among different groups. The video discusses how federal housing policies led to a significant wealth disparity between white and African-American families, as whites were able to accumulate home equity that African Americans were largely excluded from. This keyword is central to understanding the long-term economic impact of housing policies on racial groups.

💡Urban Areas

Urban areas are densely populated cities or towns. The script describes how urban areas in the U.S. are surrounded by a 'white noose' of suburbs created through federal subsidies, which were racially restrictive. This keyword is important for understanding the spatial aspect of racial segregation and how it was reinforced by government policies that encouraged white flight from cities to suburbs.

💡Racial Boundaries

Racial boundaries are the divisions created between different racial or ethnic groups in society. The video argues that explicit government policies were designed to create these boundaries, ensuring that African Americans and whites could not live near each other. This keyword is essential for grasping the intentionality behind residential segregation.

💡Housing Shortage

A housing shortage occurs when there is insufficient housing to meet the demand. The video mentions a housing shortage during the Depression era, which led to the creation of public housing. This keyword is relevant for understanding the historical context in which public housing was initially developed and how it was intended to serve a broader demographic before becoming associated with poverty.

💡Defense Production

Defense production refers to the manufacturing of goods and services for military use. The video discusses how during World War II, the federal government had to build housing for workers flocking to centers of defense production. This keyword is significant for understanding the historical pressures that contributed to the government's housing policies and the subsequent segregation of these workers.

💡Vertical Slums

Vertical slums are high-rise, densely populated residential buildings characterized by poverty and poor living conditions. The video describes how public housing projects deteriorated into vertical slums due to lack of maintenance and the inability of residents to pay full rent. This keyword is crucial for illustrating the decline of public housing and its transformation into a symbol of poverty and racial segregation.

Highlights

Residential segregation is the most pervasive form of segregation in the US, affecting the entire society.

Segregation is often accepted as a natural part of the environment rather than being challenged.

The national myth of 'de facto segregation' is a misconception; segregation was created by explicit government policies.

Public housing was initially intended for middle and working-class families, not just the poor.

Federal agencies created segregated public housing, often intensifying racial divisions.

During WWII, the government's housing policies aimed to temporarily house African Americans, expecting them to return South post-war.

In the 1950s, white public housing projects developed vacancies while black projects saw long waiting lists.

The federal government's response to housing imbalances led to the integration of public housing projects.

As industry left cities, public housing residents could no longer afford rent, leading to government subsidies and declining maintenance.

The FHA program was instrumental in creating racial segregation by subsidizing white families to move to the suburbs.

Developers like Levitt were required to commit to not selling to African Americans as a condition for federal housing guarantees.

Deeds in Levittown and similar suburbs still contain clauses prohibiting resale or rental to African Americans, despite being unenforceable.

African Americans were excluded from accumulating wealth through home equity due to federal housing policies.

The racial wealth gap is a direct result of unconstitutional federal housing policies that have never been remedied.

Today, African American incomes are about 60% of white incomes, and their wealth is just 10% of white wealth.

The ongoing racial inequalities are linked to historical federal housing policies that created and maintained segregation.

Transcripts

[Music]

we've left untouched

the biggest segregation of all that

overwhelms

everything else and hangs over our

entire society and that is that every

metropolitan area in this country

is residentially segregated i've lived

in many of them

there are clearly defined areas and

everyone that i've lived in

that are all white or mostly white or

all african-american and mostly

african-american

and all of us accept this as part of the

natural environment it's not we think

it's a good thing we know we say it's

too bad

but we think it's sort of natural normal

something we accept

it's not that we've tried to do anything

about it and have failed we've never

even tried and so in order to

rationalize to ourselves our failure to

undo it

we've adopted the national myth and that

myth is pervasive

it's pervasive across the political

spectrum

the liberals and conservatives hold it

the blacks and whites

hold it the name of that myth is we have

de facto segregation

not something that was created by

government like all the other

segregations that we

undid in the 30s 40s 50s and 60s but

this is something that sort of just

happened by accident

it happened because people like to live

with each other of the same race

or it happened because private actors

whether they were real estate agents or

bankers or

private citizens discriminated in how

they sold or rented

homes or it happened because

african americans happen to be poorer

than whites on average and therefore

they can't afford to move to middle

class communities

de facto segregation is an other myth

there is no basis to it whatsoever the

racial segregation in every metropolitan

area in this country

was created by explicit racially

explicit government policy

designed to create racial boundaries

designed to ensure that

african-americans and whites could not

live near one another

with policies that are so powerful that

they still determine

the racial landscape that we see in

cities all over the country

just like we have the myth of de facto

segregation we also think we know what

public housing is

it's a place where poor people live

where lots of mothers with children

single parents with children lots of

young men without access to jobs in the

formal

economy acting out engaging in

oppositional behavior that attracts

attention to the police and a cycle of

violence that we've seen in so many

places that's what we think of as public

housing

but that's not how public housing began

in this country public housing began in

this country

as a program for middle class working

class families

during the depression poor people were

not permitted into public housing when

public housing was first created

there was a housing shortage and public

housing was created for people who could

afford to pay the full rent in housing

and they did in public housing but for

whom there was no housing available

everywhere the public works

administration and the other federal

agencies that succeeded it

created segregated public housing

separate projects for african-americans

and whites

in cities all across the country

frequently segregating neighborhoods

that hadn't previously been segregated

that were integrated

during world war ii the uh

actions of the government intensified to

create segregation

they intensified because throughout the

country hundreds of thousands of workers

flocked to centers of defense production

of war production to take jobs that

hadn't existed

during the depression and the migration

of workers into centers of defense

production

overwhelmed frequently the communities

where they were working

federal government had to build housing

for these workers if wanted the ships to

be produced

for the african americans they built the

housing on temporary housing because the

explicit

goal of the housing was that african

americans after world war ii would leave

and go back to the south so they built

temporary housing for the african

americans along the railroad tracks

near the shipyards and they built more

stable housing for the white migrants

in the white residential areas very soon

after that

without in the mid 1950s a development

occurred everywhere in the country

which was systematic similar uh

and widespread and that was that

suddenly all the white projects began to

develop large numbers of vacancies

all the black projects began to develop

long waiting lists

and soon the situation became so

untenable so conspicuous you couldn't

have projects in the same city

some of which were virtually empty and

the other of which had long waiting

lists

the federal government and local housing

agencies opened up all projects to

african americans and then at about the

same time

industry left the cities fewer and fewer

jobs became available to now

increasingly and soon

almost all african american population

in the public housing

the population could no longer afford to

pay the full cost of its rent

so the government had to begin

subsidizing public housing maintenance

declined in the projects

prior to this maintenance workers lived

in the projects they were paid

good salaries and lived in the projects

upkeep declined

the projects became vertical slums that

we came to associate with public housing

today

another federal program that was perhaps

even more powerful

in creating racial segregation and that

was a program

of the federal housing administration

designed to

move white families out of urban areas

into single-family homes in the suburbs

at a racially explicit basis we created

a white noose

around every urban area with federally

subsidized

single-family home subdivisions these

were giant subdivisions in many cases

the most famous of them i'm sure you've

heard of it as levittown

east of new york city 17 000 homes in

one place

what bank would be crazy enough to lend

a developer the money to build 17

000 homes or 15 000 homes in one place

for which he had no buyers we were in a

suburban country at that time

people thought the whole idea was lunacy

who's going to want to live in a single

family home and they can live in the

city instead

any of these developers the only way

they could get the capital to build

these giant subdivisions

was by going to the federal housing

administration submitting their plans

for the development

for approval of the construction

materials they were going to use the

architectural design

the layout of the streets in the

subdivision and an explicit commitment

not to sell a home to an

african-american

required by the federal housing

administration the federal housing

administration even required as a

condition of these guarantees

developers like levitt to place a clause

in the deed of every home

prohibiting resale to african americans

or rental to african americans

these deeds still exist in these homes

today they're no longer enforced

no longer forcible but they're still

there what was the consequence of this

well those homes in those days

uh in all of these suburbs they sold for

ten thousand dollars or less

eight thousand nine thousand dollars

apiece in today's money that's uh less

than a hundred thousand dollars probably

ninety thousand dollars

african-americans who were prohibited

prohibited

not they didn't want to not because they

didn't like living among whites they

were prohibited from moving into these

suburbs

and they could easily afford to do so

any working class family can afford to

buy a home

for 90 000 roughly twice national median

income

those homes and developments like that

now sell for 300 400

500 000 and more the white families over

the next couple of generations

uh gained you can do the arithmetic 200

300 400

half a million dollars in equity they

use that equity

to send their children to college to

take care of medical emergencies to take

care of economic downturns

most importantly to bequeath it to their

children

who then had down payments for their own

homes african americans who accumulated

none of that wealth as a result of this

federal subsidy

had none of those abilities today

nationwide african american incomes

are on average about 60 percent of white

incomes

african-american wealth today is 10 of

white wealth

that enormous disparity between a 60

income ratio and a 10 wealth ratio is

entirely attributable

to unconstitutional federal housing

policy practiced in the mid 20th century

that has never been remedied it's a

constitutional violation of course it

determines

the ongoing racial inequalities we have

today

[Music]

you