The Color of Law argues that residential segregation in the United States is largely attributable to de jure governmental action at the local, state, and federal levels. For example, the FHA wouldn't ensure mortgages for African Americans, and local governments used zoning laws to control where African Americans could live. Rothstein makes this specific argument because several Supreme Court decisions, not to mention public opinion, assume that segregation results from de facto prejudice on the part of individuals and is therefore not entitled to remedy by governmental action.
Rothstein makes a convincing case, although he does sometimes rely too heavily on anecdotal evidence. His examples are all from the past, which opens him up to the objection that we're all better now. He clearly explains how past discrimination has led to current wealth discrepancies, but such an argument won't persuade anyone who doesn't already agree with him.
I picked The Color of Law because I've wanted to read something about the history of U.S. housing policy and I'm interested in the ways that well-intentioned programs can have unexpected negative side effects. I got neither of these. The governmental actions that Rothstein describes were all too conscious of their racial impact, and US housing policy is a small part of the story.
As an aside, it was painful to be reading this book during a week where the Supreme Court upheld President Trump's travel ban, which is just the kind of government action Rothstein laments: racially motivated under a cloak of fair-mindedness. Then Justice Kennedy announced his retirement...
Rothstein makes a convincing case, although he does sometimes rely too heavily on anecdotal evidence. His examples are all from the past, which opens him up to the objection that we're all better now. He clearly explains how past discrimination has led to current wealth discrepancies, but such an argument won't persuade anyone who doesn't already agree with him.
I picked The Color of Law because I've wanted to read something about the history of U.S. housing policy and I'm interested in the ways that well-intentioned programs can have unexpected negative side effects. I got neither of these. The governmental actions that Rothstein describes were all too conscious of their racial impact, and US housing policy is a small part of the story.
As an aside, it was painful to be reading this book during a week where the Supreme Court upheld President Trump's travel ban, which is just the kind of government action Rothstein laments: racially motivated under a cloak of fair-mindedness. Then Justice Kennedy announced his retirement...
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