of TimeforJustice/EyeonthePrize
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Murder Emmett Till: jury took less than an hour to decide that murderers were not guilty
Bus Boycotts: I aint getting on until Jim Crow gets off
Little Rock Nine (1957): 9 children harassed, cursed by mob- only with help of white woman did they make it
safely to the bus
everyday was like going to war
1960- students began sit-ins at lunch counters, did get served, got beaten instead
1961: freedom rides (young students, at peace with the sacrifices)
Each had a paratrooper(guard)- white soldiers
in deep south, buses were burned, beaten in Birmingham
Montgomery- brutal blood bath
Arrested and put in Jail in Jackson
Protests: MLK JR was arrested
Young girls killed for no reason at Birmingham Church (completely innocent)
Bomb by KKK-white people started to realize intolerance
1964: students trying to help blacks register to vote (freedom summer)
a lot said no, but thousands said yes
June 1963: Swerner, Goodman, and Chaney(black) were civil rights activists
Disappearance of two white men caused national news
Chaney was beaten and tortured before actually being shot whites learned what was going on and
came face to face with racism
o State of Mississippi didnt press charges for murder
Selma-Montgomery March (54 miles)
Stopped at bridge by state troopers- beaten, bombed-- BLOODY SUNDAY
o
Outside south little had changed- angers were rising
MLK needed to go north, first step Chicago
13 days after, Johnson ordered troops to watch over march
Dalley seemed to be a great leader, but didnt let MLK feel welcome
Chicago freedom movement-nonviolent war on slums
Hard to see Dalley as an enemy because he always had an answer
5000 people marched with MLK to city hall
Battle in Chicago- dalley thought there was no need for outsiders, and that everyone was happy before
MLK said how it was not his fault the riots occurs
Started protest
Could nonviolence work in a society that gets angry every day?
MLK Jr. received Nobel piece prize in December 1964
But in America, young militants were beginning to challenge MLKs leadership
SNCC had little money after 1964turned to MLK and SCLC for help
SNCC thought that there should be leadership from people of community, and SCLC thought MLK should be
leader
Put aside differences
Dallas County Court House: Sheriff Jim Clark wanted him to make attention nationally
Mayor of Dallas pronounced MLKs name wrong
Selma: registers were open two days a month, showed up late
Said they citizens had been harassed
Getting in was not saying youd have a right to vote
Clark arrested Amelia Boyton, 105 teachers protested (knowing they would be fired)
Pushed the teachers black, would not let them enter, wasnt going to arrest the teachers
Marched back to church where there was a rallyfirst black middle class demonstration in Selma
(teachers march)
Ct Vivian (SCLC): confronted sheriff Clark- racist in same way that Hitler was racist
Jim Clark lost temper, pushes guy down
Were willing to be beaten for democracy, and you misuse democracy
Marin Alabama March: nighttime march, dangerous
Whipping us as we walked
got beaten by an axe handle, asked if he needed a doctor, well we dont have doctors for people like
you
SCLC: proposed march from Selma to Montgomery
Jimmy Lee Johnson- shot at point blank range just for protecting mother
5-6 days give time to discuss nationally
Wallace was trying to do anything not to happen
Sunday March 7th: beginning of March
No police in sight, until bridge, Alabama state troopers- pushed them all down, violence, tear gas
Showed scenes to national news (bloody Sunday)
o After shown nationally, Wallace was criticized not AMERICAN WAY
Johnson wanted them to wait till there would be no violence
SNCC wanted to be sure King wouldnt back down from marching
March 9th- 2000 marchers set out to cross bridge, a few southern whites,
Marchers asked to kneel and pray, Abernathy: leading them in prayer
Turned marchers around and walked back across the bridge, nothing much else to do, could have been
beaten up with federal approval
Silver Moon Caf: 4-5 white men- hey you n****
o James Reeb(white minister) died by a club provoked national outcry- played into the hands
of racism, only recognized when white person was killed
I dont think your prayers get above your head- L.C Crocker
Wallace still refused to pay for protection of marchers
we shall overcome-words of the movement
Judge Johnson- gave rule to have legal and constitutional right to march
LBJ gave national guard permission to protect
Alabama national guard had to check for bombs and keep hecklers away
54 miles, 5 days walking, 25000 strong
President asked for comprehensive voting rightstheir cause must be our cause too
James Forman: only way to stop is if LBJ arrests Wallace
doesnt believe in equal justice
MLKs speech in Montgomery: day not of the white man, not as black man, day as man of man
Viola Leutso(white)- murdered by clansman for transporting marchers
August 11: Watts Riots after voting
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Leading up to the Civil Rights Movement
Economic setbacks: sharecropping and debt
Political setbacks: suffrage gained and lost
o
o
o
o
o
Fifteenth amendment- gave people the right to vote until reconstruction ended
Disenfranchisement
Terrorism
Poll taxes
Literacy tests: since it was illegal for slaves to learn to read, many blacks were illiterate and
failed the tests; since many poor whites were illiterate too grandfather clauses were instituted,
so that descendants of 15th amendment would be exempt
Literacy tests: designed to fail
45 minutes, 68 minutes
questions were absurd and questions that no one would know
Grandfather clause: origin is post civil war
Disenfranchised black population in south
Whites whose grandfathers had been able to vote, were exempt for literacy/poll tests
Blacks were not covered by GCbypassed 15th amendment
Emmett Tillstart to civil rights era (1955)
Went down to MS, local grocery store, whistled/said something to a woman the woman went and
told her husband, who came to Tills house and forcibly took him
Tortured and mutilated and then killed, cant even recognize face
Tills mom showed the picture to the world- I want them to see what theyve done to my boy
o Buried in Chicago, not MS, with an open casket
Montgomery Bus Boycott, 1955
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For 381 days people walked, carpooled, and took taxis to work
Rosa Parks chosen to be the person to be face of movement, got arrested
Wouldnt have worked without the coordination of the African American community
Sit-ins: blacks would sit at lunch counters and not get served
I was attacked with fists, brass knuckles, and the broken portions of glass sugar containers, and was
burned with cigarettes. Im covered with blood and we were all covered by salt, sugar, mustard, and
various other things
Principles of Civil Disobedience
Active nonviolent resistance to evil
Not seeking to defeat or humiliate opponents but to win their friendship and understanding
Attacking the forces of evil rather than the people who happen to be doing the evil
Accepting suffering without retaliating
Refusing to hate the opponent
Acting with the conviction that the universe is on the side of justice
Standing at School Door (clip)
youthful activism
To prevent integration
Wallace blocked entrance of two black students- illegal and unwarranted act, constitutional fights
National Guard called in to ask Wallace to step aside
Freedom Rides of 1961: CORE tested new ruling that outlawed segregation in interstate bus terminals
Riders were beaten, buses were set on fire, JFK sent federal marshals to protect them
(young students, at peace with the sacrifices)
in deep south, buses were burned, beaten in Birmingham
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Montgomery- brutal blood bath
Arrested and put in Jail in Jackson
Civil Rights act of 1964: important for employment
Prohibiting discrimination in public accommodations and facilities hotels, restaurants, pools,
fountains, etc.
Covered employment practices of all businesses with 25+ employees (later 15+)
Prohibited different voting registration standards
Prohibited discrimination in public accommodations and facilities
Created the equal employment opportunity commission (EEOC) to investigate complaints against
employers
Most important legislative effort to eradicate discrimination
It apples to all racial/ethnic minority groups as well as women
o Discrimination still occurs today (legalistic fallacy)
Civil Rights act of 1965: Time is long overdo for supporting black voting rights-Johnson
Prohibited division of voting (banned literacy and poll taxes)
Discrimination in Voting:
Voting discrimination remained widespread
64 CRA had few-voting specific provisions
Case by case litigation required an inordinate amount of time and money
Democratic part was a private organization
o Defined by its own membership qualifications
o Could exclude blacks
White primaries
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o Blacks not permitted to vote during primaries
o The south was essentially a one-party system
o The real contest occurred during the primaries
Voting rights act in 1965: prohibited vote dilution or anything leader to fewer opportunities for minorities to
vote
Banned literacy test
Addressed language barriers: multilingual ballots required in districts in at least 5% of the population
in a single minority group
Abolished poll taxes
Appointed federal examiners and observers
Required preclearance for any new voting statues: jurisdictions had to clear voting statues with
attorney general of U.S district court
Controversial because it shifted power from state to federal government; a costly and cumbersome
process
Voting Rights Act Controversy: only applied to jurisdictions with history of voting discriminations: AL, GA,
LA, MS, SC, VA, and parts of NC
Voting rights act was a temporary fix: 5 years
o Renewed in 1970 and 1975
Renewed in 1982 for 25
Renewed in 2006 for 25 years
Peaks of blacks registering to vote was during reconstruction, during 1900-1964 no voting
Indian Termination Policy: 1940s-1960s
Indian termination policy for assimilations: subject to the same laws
Ended federal recognition of tribes
Made American Indians subject to state/federal laws
Terminated federal aid/services for people on tribal land
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Withdrew land from protected status; much of that land was later sold to non-Indians
Alcatraz occupation hastened its end
Bracero Program, 1942-1964-strong arms
Labor shortages during and immediately after World War II led to institution of a guest worker
program
Mandated decent wages and services for the legal workers
Millions of braceros came to work in U.S
Many braceros were from very poor regions of Mexico
Braceros made good strikebreakers- and were treated with scorn by (white) labor
During recessions, braceros were forcibly deported (repatriation)
Bracero program ended after illegal immigration made it undesirable to employers
Occupation of Alcatraz 1969
Sought for Alcatraz to be a native American museum
Land seized by government from native Americans
Occupiers failed- no cultural center, but sparked nationwide efforts
Regan declared termination policy over and made tribes again
o Gave them rights
Chicano Movement: concerned with immigration
Struggle for better rights
Cesar Chavez and Rufino Contreras: Dont cry to me organize
United farm workers of America
Cesar Chavez Clip: organized pickets
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o Fought for ordinary people always sides w/ people
o Thousands of farm workers live in poor conditions
30% of workers are underage children
wants to overthrow farm owners, motivation comes from personal life
human beings should not be treated as chattel
Explicit Segregation
Wallace Inauguration Clip: segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever
Partisan Realignment
Kevin Phillips and the Southern strategy: dont try to weaken voting rights acts, go w/ it and take
advantage of it
o more Negroes that register as Democrats in the South, the sooner the Negrophobe whites
will quit the Democrats and become Republicans. Thats where the votes are
o whites will abandon democrat party
blacks were progressively joining democratic party
reasons for realignment:
FDR, new deal- important for modern American welfare state- benefitted some blacks
LBJ embraced civil rights movements- time for change is now
Only party in town, to have an impact, African Americans thought that had to join democratic party
Coded Language, Racial Cues, and Discursive Cooptation
The rise of coded language and racial cues: States rights; Wallace, Reagan
Other racial cues: Law and order; Cadillac-driving welfare queens
Discursive cooptation: civil rights for the white majority
Republican Racial Cue clips:
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Wallace Presidential Campaign Clip: Law and order need to protect ourselves
o States rights- federal government= tyranny
Willie Horton Ad: Dukakis was not tough on crime
Use of racial cues to appeal to white voters
1988 Pres. Election: George H.W Bushs campaign was greatly helped by this political advertisement against
Dukakis
Harold Ford: I met Harold at a playboy party
Tennessees 2006 Senate Race: Republican National Committee released this ad targeting the democratic nominee,
who would have been the first southern black man elected to senate since reconstruction
Appeal to racist sentiments, approval ratings dropped a lot
Democratic Racial Cue videos:
Hilary Clinton: when she was running against Obama
o White hardworking Americans
o Democrat on news show denies racial appeal
Obama South Carolina Primary: hes the Jesse Jackson of 2008
People want change, racial politics to be over
Newt Gingrich: no habits of working could be considered as codes for lazy black people
Wants them working in toilets
Dont have to become pimps, prostitutes
o yes we clean
denied racism in comments
Glenn Beck planned a restore civil rights march on the anniversary of MLKs speech
Said it had nothing to do with MLK
Al Sharpton was not happy about it
Partisanship and Racial Polarization
Since the 1970s most white voters have supported the Republican Party
Most nonwhites remain loyal to the democratic party (regardless of socioeconomic status)
In the 2008 election, 95% of black voters, 41% of white voters, and 67% of Latino voters voted for
Obama
Voting
Both whites and nonwhites rush to polls in larger numbers if the ticket is racially mixed
White voters are more mobilized in racially integrated communities than in homogenous ones
In the posts civil rights era, class-based voting has decreased, whereas race-based voting has increased
Whites disapprove of policies aimed at improving nonwhites quality of life
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When Affirmative Action was white
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The New Deal- FDRs response to the Great Depression
Social programs dealing with welfare, work, unemployment insurance, minimum wage, workday limitations, Social
Security, and veteran assistance
Southern democrats forced northern democrats into a devils bargain; Jim Crow remained perched atop his roost
Many nonwhites were denied benefits as their occupations (farm worker, maid) were not covered by the new deal
Legislature was selected and opened prospects to whites but not others
Post World War II
As women and nonwhites entered manufacturing jobs, the Taft-Hartley Act diminished the power of unions
Nonwhites often were denied military enlistment until the final throes of war, excluding them from the GI bill of
rights
GI bill: forged the American middle class
US spent 95 billion in social benefits
Veterans bought homes, financed businesses, bought farmland, and went to college
o This helped to fuel the postwar boom of higher education and suburbanization
o But distribution of benefitsloans, jobs, placement, unemployment assistance, college tuition
aid, vocational training and mortgages for the new suburban homeswas left to (white) slave
and local authorities
Limitations of GI bill
Many blacks and Latinos were denied opportunities to start up businesses, buy new homes, go to the same colleges
and universities as whites, and gain access to jobs that werent for menial, unskilled workers
Postwar Industrialization
Many nonwhites did benefit from the social programs and initiatives of the 30s, 40s, and 50s
Many nonwhites found their way into steady working-class jobs in Americas rising manufacturing
sector
The postwar years were boom times for American manufacturing
o Factories were looking for cheap labor- migration of African Americans out of south
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End of Industrialization
Manufacturing jobs disappeared from the Northeast and Midwest in 1980s
Factories gave way to service economy
o Particularly hard for blacks and Puerto Ricans
Economic Sectors
Primary sectors: production of raw materials (farming, fishing, and mining)
Secondary sectors: manufacturing that transforms raw materials into usable goods (construction,
clothing, automobiles, appliances, electronics)
o Allows young and unskilled worked to enter paid employment
Tertiary sector: production and distribution of services (medical, legal, educational, clerical, janitorial
Includes a wide range of jobs but all provide intangible service
Low-end services increase as high-end services increase
Middle-tier jobs (blue collar jobs) are missing- lost during deindustrialization (hourglass shaped economy)
Industrial Restructuring
1940s-1950s: secondary sector dominated
1960s-1970s: manufacturing decreased as importation became more profitable and some
manufacturing moved to other countries
o in 18 northern cities, 750,000 blue-collar jobs vanished
o service jobs increased by 300,000
since 1970: focus on tertiary sector (services)
polarization increased: fewer jobs for unskilled workers, fewer middle-tier jobs, increasing opportunities for skilled
and educated workers
Titanic: 3% of first class female passengers died
14% of second-class females died
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54% of third-class females died
Stratification: the social hierarchy that rewards some activities more than others
Social mobility: movement within the ranking system of stratification
o Intergenerational mobility ones (w/in lifetime)
o Intergenerational mobility (across generations)
Social mobility vs. caste society
Class society permits social mobility, but a caste society does not (no movement up or down, stay where you are)
In caste society, all positions are inherited at birth, such as what used to occur in India, South Africa, and the U.S
during slavery, when children born to slaves were automatically slaves
Racial and ethnic stratification- clustering of racial groups at particular levels of social stratification
While these two extremes dont really exist, the range of stratification among societies varies widely
Historically the U.S approached complete stratification during slavery
Types of inequality
Natural inequality: results from innate differences in ability
Structured inequality results from social stratification, not from innate differences
Income: money obtained by work, retirement, or government aid
Wealth: assets that make money (stocks, bonds, saving accounts, real estate, businesses, farm, etc.)
FOR EVERY DOLLAR A WHITE MAN EARNS A BLACK MAN EARNS 75 CENTS
The average salary of black college-educated women is $25,914, while the average salary of white men with a
high school diploma is $28,266
Even when we account for education (or work experience, immigration status, or hours worked), the income
gaps dont disappear
Why dont income gaps disappear
Segregated labor force; wages lower in majority-nonwhite jobs than in majority-white jobs
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The economy is embedded in society -- its history and culture: It is not prices that determine
everything, but everything that determines prices
o Class cannot be understood without race and vice versa
Wealth Inequality
Wealth accumulates over generations
Reflects past as well as present-day discrimination
For every dollar of wealth possessed by middle-class whites, middle-class blacks possess 15%
Well of blacks have same amount as poor whites
The average net worth of college-educated whites is $74,922, while the average net worth of collegeeducated blacks is only $17,43
Pew Study
A new Pew Research Center study (released to nationwide press coverage in July 2011) found that the
median wealth of white households is . . .
20 times that of black households; and
18 times that of Hispanic households
These lopsided wealth ratios are the largest in a quarter-century and twice the size of the ratios prior to
recent recession
Causes of Poverty
Capitalism produces a pool of unemployed laborers due to outsourcing, downsizing, layoffs
With deindustrialization, mid-level jobs have all but disappeared, giving us an hourglass-shaped
economy
One-third of breadwinners make less than $10 an hour
U.S. devotes a smaller percentage of its wealth to antipoverty programs than any other developed
country except Japan
Black Poverty
Black ghetto
o Historical origins in the Great Migration
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o Concentrated poverty: 40% of blacks live in extremely impoverished areas with 40% or
greater poverty rates
o Pandemic unemployment
Explanations
o
o
o
o
o
Residential segregation; housing policies
Brain drain, leaving behind the truly disadvantaged
Spatial mismatch thesis
Wealth is largely inherited
Can translate into other advantages
Spatial Mismatch
New jobs in suburbs
Urban workers with money/skills followed
Poor (mostly minorities) stayed behind
Poor people more likely to be tied to locations where they rely on others for help
1972-1985:
o Proportion of nations poor in inner cities increased from 1/3 to 1/2
o Less than 10% of new urban poor were white
Urban Underclass
People who live in poor central city areas:
o Socially isolated
o Low labor force participation
o Few incentives for education
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o Gangs and underground economy (generates income, boosts self-esteem)
o Prevalence of single-parent families
o High rates of public assistance
Unemployment rates
Do not include those not looking for work
Vary according to the economy
Regardless of the economy, minority unemployment rates are always higher
o Hispanic unemployment rates are about 30-40% higher than non-Hispanics
o Black unemployment rates are about 50% higher than whites
Poverty and Affluence
Black poverty and affluence
o
o
o
o
Many blacks live in desperate conditions today
But 75% of blacks are middle or upper class
Yet typically this means lower-middle class
Money can lift up many African Americans -- but not always above the veil of racism
Native American poverty and affluence
o
o
o
o
There is an elite group of tribes successful with casinos and antipoverty programs
But Native American unemployment on reservations is around 50%
Their poverty rate is 3.5 times the national average
Best way to overcome reservation poverty is not through the quick fix of gaming but through
tribal sovereignty
1965 Immigration and Naturalization Act
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Abolished national origins quotas
Preferences given to
o Unmarried adult children of citizens, spouses and unmarried children of permanent residents,
professionals, scientists, & artists of exceptional ability, married adult children of citizens,
siblings of adult citizens, workers in occupations with labor shortage, refugees from
Communist countries or those uprooted by natural catastrophe (1980 Refugee Act)
Consequences:
Altered scope and composition of immigration
Asian and Latin American immigration especially pronounced
Changed the face of American society
Segmented Assimilation
No monolithic immigrant experience
Three common pathways
o Acculturation and parallel integration into white middle class
o Descent into poverty and assimilation to underclass
o Economic advancement with deliberate preservation of the immigrant communitys values
and solidarity
What determines how immigrants will fare
The current structure of the U.S. economy
The class privileges that different immigrants bring with them
The existence of ethnic enclaves with semi-autonomous economies
The racial privileges that different immigrants bring with them
Racial Privilege shapes economic privilege
If we look at third generation immigrants:
o Asian poverty decreases
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o White and Hispanic poverty stays the same
o But black poverty increases by 26%
(theyre poorer than their grandparent immigrants
from the Caribbean or Africa)
Audit Studies
Nonwhite unemployment rate is consistently double that of whites. Audit studies show:
o Employers 3-4 times more likely to offer whites a job than equally qualified blacks or
Hispanics
o Applicants with white-sounding names 50% more likely to be called for an interview
o Whites convicted of selling drugs more likely to land a job than blacks with no criminal
history
Split Labor Market
It is a market with at least two groups of workers whose price of labor differs for the same work or
would differ if they did the same work.
Business elite employs racial domination
It pits one group against another
This thwarts interracial worker solidarity
It keeps the price of labor low: worker exploitation
Racial antagonism disadvantages all workers
Split labor market can cause interpersonal racism
Welfare
Why is American Welfare so skimpy
o When antipoverty spending became entwined with antiracism movements, whites turned
away from the Democratic Party
o White backlash against integration brought resistance to fair housing policies and
public
spending
o Welfare spending was cut continuously since President Johnsons War on Poverty in mid1960s
Corporate Welfare
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If we consider corporate welfare, then the U.S. welfare state is much more generous
Corporate welfare includes provisions for corporations or industries, grants, contracts, subsidies, tax relief, lowinterest loans, and services
U.S. spent $16.5 billion in TANF funds in 2008, while it spends between $90 and $125 billion annually on corporate
welfare
As of 2009, the Bush and Obama administrations together have committed $11 trillion to recent bailout programs
such as TARP
Whos on it
Two-thirds of all Americans collect means-tested public assistance at some point in their lives
Black and Hispanic women are just as likely to hold continual employment as -- but more likely to return to welfare
than -- white women
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America was not this racially segregated at conclusion of the civil war
Migration Patterns
Mexicans
o
o
o
o
Many moved north for agricultural and manufacturing jobs
Whites blamed them for depression-era unemployment
By end of 1930s, 2 million were repatriated to Mexico (resentment)
Over one-third of all U.S. Mexicans were repatriated
Native Americans
o Many tribes were terminated between 1953 and 1973
o By 1990, more than 60% were relocated to cities
Blacks
o A great migration occurred from rural south to urban north
o Between 1910 and 1960, over 4.5 million migrated north
Racialization of Neighborhoods
During the 20th century, prosperous European immigrants were able to move out of slums and
assimilate into the white American mainstream
Those who wore the racial uniform could not
By the 1920s, many neighborhoods based on close-knit ethnic affiliations gave way to urban divisions
based on race and class
Racial Uprisings
Red Summer 1919: Chicago, black kid swimming, sparked riot in whites
Detroit riot of 1943
The Ghetto
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A set of neighborhoods that are exclusively inhabited by members of one group, within which virtually
all members of that group in that particular city live
The defining characteristic is advanced marginality, i.e., severe spatial and social segregation of
residents, marked by their exclusion from economic prosperity, national security, collective
imagination and memory, and state welfare services
Origins of the Ghetto
o Most housing was built for whites during the 1930s-40s, creating housing shortages
o Federal Housing Administration denied loans to many nonwhites
o Real estate brokers refused to show designated areas to nonwhites
Real estate lenders used redlining to refuse loans and mortgages in nonwhite neighborhoods
White home sellers left covenants in deeds
Slumlords made money by ignoring housing repairs and occupancy codes and by charging inflated rents
In 1960, the median rent payment was $64 for whites and $76 for blacks
How Ghettos Reinforce Racial inequality
Ghettos served as convincing evidence to white homeowners that blacks would ruin their neighborhoods
Ghettos justified further disinvestment in black neighborhoods
Urban Renewal
A handy device for razing slums
Destroyed entire nonwhite communities
Forced millions to lose their homes
Packed people into other slums
First time in U.S. history that
The government was given the right to seize an individual's property not for its own use but for
reassignment to another individual for his use and profit
White Flight
Chapter5
Federal programs encouraged suburbanization
White flight increased with deindustrialization
It increased also with the Civil Rights Movement
Neighborhoods were segregated by race and class
In 1940, only one-third of metropolitan residents lived in suburbs; by 1970, the majority of them did
Meanwhile, the poorest of the poor were left behind in cities
Some white working class and European immigrants couldnt afford to flee
They warded off nonwhite families with intimidation, protests, and violence
Neighborhood associations were created to defend white property
Segregationists used picket signs, racial slurs, vandalism, and even the burning cross
Not all people reacted like this, some created organizations and sold homes to nonwhites
Urban Unrest
Whites moved out to suburbs beginning in 1950s
White Fight
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Racial segregation and degradation continued
In mid-1960s, some neighborhoods exploded
Detroit in 1967
Across the nation in 1968, after MLK assassinated
Often targeted white-owned businesses
These business had mistreated or refused to hire blacks
Riot or Revolt?
Chapter5
Blacks didnt call it a riot, because they had a purpose
Increased police repression in black communities
1968 Fair Housing Act
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Passed after King assassination; last of the four great Civil Rights Acts
Outlawed refusal to sell or rent a dwelling on account of race or color
Outlawed racial discrimination in terms or conditions of sale or rental of home
Outlawed indication of racial preference in advertising of dwelling sale or rental
Weak in enforcement bargained away to secure passage
Three levels of residential segregation
National: Some states have significantly higher concentrations of some particular groups than others
City: Some metropolitan areas have significantly higher concentrations of some particular groups than
others
Neighborhood: Some neighborhoods have significantly higher concentrations of some particular
groups than others
o Neighborhoods with high concentrations of blacks or Latinos only exist
because neighborhoods with high concentrations of whites exist
An all-white section is no more natural than an all-black one
School Resegregation
Despite growing diversity, there is a trend toward resegregation
o White flight from neighborhoods and schools
o Minority preferences
o Unitary schools often have within-school segregation
The Civil Rights Project at Harvard found that school segregation increased 1986-2000.
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Separate and Unequal
Minorities far more likely to live in poor neighborhoods
In 2000, blacks lived in neighborhoods with median incomes 70% that of whites
The number of high-poverty areas (i.e., with a poverty rate of 40% or more) more than doubled
between 1970 and 1990
Gaps exist among the economically successful as well as the disadvantaged
What Causes racial segregation
Economic factors
Class-based inequalities
However, in northern cities, blacks who make over $50,000 are just as segregated as those making minimum wage
Personal choice
Survey of Milwaukee residents claimed people of different races choose to live in communities with people of their
own race
However, the Detroit Area Survey shows otherwise
Detroit Area Survey
Majority of blacks said ideal neighborhood is one with 50% black and 50% white residents
84% of whites would not enter neighborhood that was 50% black and 50% white (blacks ideal
neighborhood)
A quarter of whites said that a single black neighbor would make them uncomfortable
Housing Discrimination
Although outlawed since 1968, housing discrimination persists
Banks and loan companies reject nonwhites 56% more often than identical whites
Realtors use false information and steering
U.S. HUD audit study showed that Hispanics and blacks looking for housing face discrimination in
50% of their interactions with realtors and landlords
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Native Americans faced such discrimination in 30% of their interactions; Asians in 20%
Women are often denied loans or pay higher rents
Women are sexually harassed by landlords or men in positions of authority
Survivors of domestic abuse may be denied housing or evicted
Discrimination in housing is especially harsh for women of color
Costs of Segregation
Economic
o Mortgages with inflated interest rates and high monthly payments for homes with lower
property values
o Proximity to well paying jobs, successful networks
o Address used as proxy for race in job applications
Living conditions
o Old, dilapidated housing, often infected with rats and bugs; leaky; cold
o Far away from normal institutions like hospitals, grocery stores, banks, etc.
o Higher crime rates
Political
Marginalizes nonwhites; politicians ignore them
Erodes hope of interracial collaboration
Symbolic
Mental segregation: racial segregation gives off the appearance that racial divisions are real, natural, and unchanging
Emotional
Creates a sense of personal inadequacy and inferiority among marginalized groups
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Conversely, gives whites a sense of superiority, reinforcing a preference for segregation
Educational
o Property values determine property taxes
Roughly half of all property tax revenue is used for public elementary and secondary education
o Thus, low income areas have much smaller education budgets
o Schooling erodes
o For many students, schooling becomes of less concern than staying safe and making ends
meet
Ethnic Enclaves
Spatial assimilation thesis: enclaves are a starting point on the way to economic and cultural
assimilation
Ethnic community thesis: some prefer to live among people who eat same food, celebrate same
holidays, and speak same language
Racial segregation: enclaves are a result of ethnic and racial discrimination in housing
Interracial Conflict
Racial domination can distort and hide the real causes of poverty and misery under false arguments
that attribute those causes to certain dominated groups
Example: black resentment of Koreans
o Koreans fill niche of shopkeepers and entrepreneurs in many black communities
o Blacks feel mistreated or disrespected by Koreans
o However, poor neighborhoods are where many Koreans can afford to live and do business
without corporate competition
Gentrification
A process of neighborhood change by which relatively affluent people move into an area populated by
poorer residents
o Area attractive for architecture or as a new fashionable art district
o Becomes the place to be as the affluent open coffee shops and restaurants
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Young professionals such as lawyers and doctors move in, causing property values to spike
Landlords raise rents
As the neighborhood becomes middle class, poor families are pushed out
Often, poor nonwhites are displaced by privileged whites
Positive Trends
In some respects, residential segregation is on the decline in metropolitan areas
All white enclaves are vanishing
Black-white neighborhoods are increasing
o Only 20% of all blacks live in ghettos
Why?
Influx of Latino and Asian immigrants into formerly all white neighborhoods
Suburbanization of blacks
Return of many blacks to sun belt where historically there is less residential segregation
Gentrification
Persistent problems
Exclusionary zoning
Public schools are more segregated
Black population declines
Average black person still live in areas where to achieve complete integration more than half have to
move out