Richard Rothstein, author of The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America, is presenting at DVRPC's Board Retreat right now! Join or follow our thread on the history of racial segregation in the US & Greater Philadelphia. https://dvrpc.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_fwM3dc4ASS67Sn_kcj0mvA?t=1605560091672

DVRPC Executive Director, Barry Seymour is kicking off the morning. There is still time to join!

Richard Rothstein, author of The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America has now begun his presentation with the history of racial segregation and what was not undone. Racial segregation in housing.

“African-American children living in urban neighborhoods have asthma at four times the rate of White children...this contributes to their achievement gap” and is directly tied to higher rates of pollution in low income neighborhoods.

Across the country, there is a history of mobs and violence towards Black families moving into White neighborhoods to enforce 'racial boundaries'.

“The federal government subsidized the suburbanization of White families only.” New suburbs were built with FHA and VA requirements that homes were not sold or rented to African Americans.

“While African American families' incomes are about 60% on average of White incomes, African American wealth is about 5% of White wealth today.”

“The wealth that White families gained from selling their suburban homes were used to bequeath wealth to their children and grandchildren - send them to school, create inheritances” and Black families weren’t given the opportunity.

“That difference between 2% and 15% is the segregation that still exists today. That is attributable to unconstitutional federal housing policies that we need to remedy.”

“We’re not going to change these priorities in this country unless we have a new civil rights movement that’s as aggressive, as militant, as determined as the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960’s. It has to begin at a local level.”

Recommended local policy changes- correct suburban segregation, affirmative action in housing, prioritize low income housing in high opportunity communities.