You probably think the reason some neighborhoods are wealthy and others are struggling is just a matter of "market forces." People like to say it was just a choice. "They chose to live there," or "People moved where they could afford it." That's the story we’re usually told. But honestly, it's mostly a lie.
The reality of The Color of Law: A Forgotten History is that the segregation we see in American cities today wasn't some organic accident. It didn't just happen because of individual prejudices or "white flight" in the 1950s. It was a deliberate, state-sponsored project. Richard Rothstein, a distinguished fellow of the Economic Policy Institute, laid this out with brutal clarity. He argues that the U.S. government—at the federal, state, and local levels—essentially mandated that Black and white citizens live apart. This wasn't "de facto" segregation (private choice). This was "de jure" segregation (enforced by law).
How the Government Built the Segregation Machine
Let's look at the New Deal. It’s often praised for saving the American middle class, and it did, but mostly for white people. The Public Works Administration (PWA) actually demolished integrated neighborhoods to build segregated public housing. Think about that for a second. The government took areas where people were already living together and forced them into separate buildings based on race.
The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) was even worse. When the FHA was created in 1934, it didn't just suggest segregation; it required it. The FHA Underwriting Manual specifically stated that "incompatible racial groups" should not live in the same communities. They were terrified that if a Black family moved into a white neighborhood, property values would tank.
They even went so far as to promote the use of racially restrictive covenants. These were clauses in property deeds that legally prohibited the owner from ever selling or renting the home to anyone who wasn't white. If you bought a house in a new subdivision in the 1940s, you literally couldn't sell it to a Black family even if you wanted to. The government wouldn't insure the mortgage otherwise.
The Levittown Example
Levittown is the poster child for the American Dream. After World War II, William Levitt built thousands of mass-produced homes in New York and Pennsylvania. It was the birth of the modern suburb. But Levitt didn't just decide to exclude Black veterans on a whim. He couldn't get the FHA financing he needed to build the project unless he promised that no homes would be sold to Black people.
Every single one of those 17,000 homes was off-limits to the very soldiers who had just fought for the country. Those homes originally sold for about $8,000. Today, they’re worth $400,000 or $500,000. Because Black families were barred from buying them, they were barred from the greatest wealth-building tool in American history. That’s not a "forgotten history" for the families who lost out on that equity; it’s a living reality.
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The Myth of Private Choice in The Color of Law: A Forgotten History
We love the idea of the "free market." But the housing market in the 20th century was about as free as a caged bird.
When private developers tried to build integrated housing, the government stepped in to stop them. In Milpitas, California, when the United Auto Workers tried to build a housing development for its members—which included both white and Black workers—the local government suddenly changed the zoning laws. They reclassified the land from residential to industrial just to keep the Black workers out.
It wasn't just zoning. It was utilities too. Local governments would refuse to connect water lines or sewer pipes to any development that planned to be integrated. If you were a developer and you wanted to do the "right thing," the state would effectively bankrupt you.
The Violence That the Police Ignored
What happened when a Black family actually managed to buy a house in a "white" area? Usually, a mob showed up. We’re talking about thousands of people throwing rocks, breaking windows, and even bombing houses.
In Louisville, Kentucky, in 1954, a white man named Carl Braden bought a house on behalf of a Black friend, Andrew Wade. When the Wades moved in, the house was shot at and eventually dynamited. And what did the state do? Did they arrest the bombers? No. They indicted Carl Braden for sedition. They claimed his attempt to integrate the neighborhood was a Communist plot.
This happened over and over. In Chicago, Cicero, Detroit—the police would often stand by and watch while white mobs destroyed Black-owned property. Sometimes they even joined in. This is why the "de facto" argument falls apart. If the police refuse to protect your property rights because of your race, that is a state action. That is a violation of the 14th Amendment.
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The Highway Scars
Ever notice how many "inner city" neighborhoods are sliced in half by massive interstate highways? That wasn't an accident either.
When the Interstate Highway Act of 1956 passed, planners used the new roads as tools for "urban renewal"—which many at the time called "Negro removal." They specifically routed highways through thriving Black business districts and residential areas. This destroyed the local economy and physically walled off these communities from the rest of the city.
- They targeted neighborhoods that were labeled "blighted" (usually just because they were Black).
- They used eminent domain to seize the land for pennies on the dollar.
- They built giant concrete barriers that made it impossible for residents to walk to jobs in the downtown core.
Why This Matters Right Now
It’s easy to say, "Well, that was 70 years ago. Get over it." But wealth in America is generational. Most middle-class wealth comes from home equity.
If your grandparents were allowed to buy a home in a subsidized suburb in 1950, they passed that wealth down. They used it to send your parents to college. Your parents used their inheritance to help you with a down payment.
If your grandparents were forced into a rental in a "redlined" district where property values stayed flat or declined, you started the race 50 miles behind. The wealth gap between white and Black families isn't because one group works harder; it's because one group was legally allowed to build assets while the other was legally blocked.
Basically, we’re living with the ghost of 1930s policy every time we look at a map of a modern American city. The "Color of Law" isn't just a book title; it's the blueprint of our current geography.
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Misconceptions We Need to Drop
People often think segregation is just a Southern problem. It really wasn't. In many ways, the North and West were more calculated about it. While the South had "Jim Crow" signs, Northern cities used "sundown town" ordinances and sophisticated zoning to achieve the exact same result.
Another big one: the idea that Black families "preferred" to live together. Sure, people like community. But no one "prefers" to live in a neighborhood with underfunded schools, no grocery stores, and toxic industrial runoff. Those conditions were forced, not chosen.
What Do We Actually Do About It?
Understanding the history is the first step, but it’s kind of useless if we don't change how we act.
First, we have to look at exclusionary zoning. Many towns still have laws that say you can only build single-family homes on large lots. This sounds like "preserving the character" of a neighborhood, but it’s really just a way to keep lower-income people (and often people of color) out. If you can’t build an apartment building or a duplex, you’re pricing out anyone who isn't already wealthy.
Second, we need to rethink how we fund schools. Since we fund schools primarily through local property taxes, the segregation of the 1940s is still dictating which kids get the best tech and the newest books in 2026. It’s a self-perpetuating cycle.
Practical Steps for Moving Forward
- Audit your local zoning laws. Show up to city council meetings. If your town makes it illegal to build affordable housing, ask why. Challenge the "preservation" argument when it’s clearly being used as a shield for exclusion.
- Support "Housing First" initiatives. Recognize that housing is a human right and that the government has a moral obligation to fix the mess it created.
- Read the primary sources. Go find the redlining maps for your specific city. They are archived online. Seeing the actual red ink drawn around your neighborhood by a government official in 1938 changes your perspective forever.
- Acknowledge the debt. We talk about "reparations," and it gets people heated. But at the very least, we have to acknowledge that the government stole equity from Black families for decades. That debt exists whether we want to pay it or not.
The truth is, we can’t fix a problem we won't admit exists. The segregation of our cities was a choice. That means we can choose something else. It’s going to take more than just "being nice" to each other; it’s going to take rewriting the rules that were designed to tear us apart.
Check your local library for a copy of the mapping inequality project. It’s an eye-opener. Talk to your neighbors about the history of your specific block. Most of the time, the truth is hiding right under the pavement.