The Color of Law Flashcards

Questions and Answers

What is the objective of the Color of Law?

Segregation is not de facto; it is de jure segregation engineered by public policy.

Which federal administrations refused to issue mortgages to African Americans in designated white neighborhoods?

FHA and VA.

How did the federal government impose racial segregation in areas without preexisting racial problems?

By segregating housing by race, such as in California with defense workers and public housing development.

What was the primary purpose of public housing?

To develop housing for civilians on military bases and residences for defense workers near shipyards. Signup and view all the answers

What was the goal of the PWA?

To alleviate a national housing shortage while creating jobs in construction. Signup and view all the answers

What significant program was created in response to the housing shortage post-WW2?

A segregated housing program was enacted, influenced by the politics of integration versus segregation. Signup and view all the answers

What did the Housing Act of 1949 permit local housing authorities to do?

Continue to design separate public projects for Blacks and whites or to segregate within projects. Signup and view all the answers

What were the consequences of the Housing Act (1949) on African Americans?

They were removed from mainstream society and packed into high-rise ghettos, where community life was impossible. Signup and view all the answers

Which presidential administration approved the implementation of segregation in government offices?

Woodrow Wilson's administration in 1913. Signup and view all the answers

At what governmental level were policies implemented to isolate white families into all-white neighborhoods?

Local Level. Signup and view all the answers

What was the Buchanan v. Warley (1917) case about?

It involved an African American's attempt to purchase property on an integrated block and the ruling against racial zoning ordinances. Signup and view all the answers

What are economic zoning techniques?

Reserving middle-class neighborhoods for single-family homes that lower-income families could not afford. Signup and view all the answers

How did Black neighborhoods turn into slums?

The area's zoning code changed from residential to industrial when African American families moved in. Signup and view all the answers

Why weren't FHA insured mortgages issued to African Americans?

Economic zoning practices rendered African Americans ineligible due to perceived risks. Signup and view all the answers

What are the two faces of zoning according to Richard Rothstein?

Evading racial explicit zoning while protecting white neighborhoods leads to Black slums and predominantly white suburbs. Signup and view all the answers

What is redlining?

A practice where neighborhoods were color-coded based on risk assessment for mortgage loans. Signup and view all the answers

What was the Homeowners Loan Corporation (HOLC)?

It purchased existing mortgages due to foreclosure risks and issued new mortgages with favorable terms. Signup and view all the answers

How do homeowners qualify for insured mortgages?

Homes must be appraised, but standards were racist due to redlining practices. Signup and view all the answers

What was the FHA's biggest impact on segregation?

It financed entire subdivision developments as racially exclusive enclaves. Signup and view all the answers

What argument is made for racially segregated housing developments?

That they enhance property values. Signup and view all the answers

How did homeowners and developers circumvent the 1917 Buchanan ruling?

By including language in home deeds that forbade resale to non-whites. Signup and view all the answers

What are covenants in real estate?

Contracts among owners that allowed neighbors to sue if an African American family purchased property. Signup and view all the answers

What government institutions promoted and enforced restrictive covenants?

Courts and federal policies that upheld exclusionary zoning and endorsed discriminatory covenants. Signup and view all the answers

What was the decision in Shelley v. Kraemer (1948)?

The court held that the Equal Protection Clause prohibits racially-restrictive housing covenants. Signup and view all the answers

What did JFK's 1962 executive order do?

Prohibited the use of federal funds to support racial discrimination in housing. Signup and view all the answers

What is blockbusting?

A process where real estate agents convince white homeowners to sell low due to fears of Black families moving into the neighborhood. Signup and view all the answers

What tactics were used in blockbusting?

Hiring African American women to push strollers through neighborhoods and advertising in Black newspapers. Signup and view all the answers

What are installment plans in housing?

Plans where no equity is accumulated from down or monthly payments. Signup and view all the answers

What are contract sales agreements?

Agreements where ownership transfers after many years, often leading to eviction for late payments. Signup and view all the answers

Why did homes under contract sales agreements deteriorate?

Homeowners struggled with inflated payments and lack of maintenance due to work demands. Signup and view all the answers

What are the implications of contract sales agreements?

They led to overcrowded neighborhoods, schools, and constrained mobility for African American families. Signup and view all the answers

Which institutions contributed to and reinforced metro segregation?

IRS, insurance companies, and banks. Signup and view all the answers

What is reverse redlining?

The excessive marketing of exploitative loans in African American communities. Signup and view all the answers

What are subprime mortgage loans?

High-interest-rate loans to home buyers with above-average credit risk. Signup and view all the answers

What legal actions were taken against banks and mortgage companies?

Allegations of racially motivated mortgage practices leading to discrimination. Signup and view all the answers

What did the Fair Housing Act of 1968 prohibit?

Discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of housing based on race. Signup and view all the answers

How can we understand the income and wealth gap between African Americans and whites?

It's crucial to examine policies that kept Black incomes low, reflecting not just socioeconomic status. Signup and view all the answers

What elements of the slave system persisted after Emancipation?

Sharecropping, arrest for petty injuries, and convict leasing. Signup and view all the answers

What were the provisions of the G.I. Bill, 1944, that disadvantaged African Americans?

Blocked mortgage subsidies and restricted education to lower-level jobs for African Americans. Signup and view all the answers

Can an assessor undermine tax fairness?

True Signup and view all the answers

How did tax rates impact African American families?

Higher property taxes contributed to neighborhood deterioration and loss of homes. Signup and view all the answers

According to Rothstein, why is segregation hard to undo?

Intergenerational economic status and the large wealth gap between blacks and whites are significant factors. Signup and view all the answers

Why is sales tax more burdensome for lower-income consumers?

Disparate impacts and higher costs for basic necessities can elevate financial strain. Signup and view all the answers

What programs deepened racial segregation?

Low-income housing tax credit and Housing Choices voucher (Section 8). Signup and view all the answers

Why do developers prefer tax credit programs in low-income neighborhoods?

Land is cheaper and there's less political opposition, reinforcing segregation. Signup and view all the answers

What are the impacts of Section 8 housing vouchers on low-income families?

Many landlords legally refuse to rent to tenants using vouchers, limiting options. Signup and view all the answers

What was the 2015 Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs v. Inclusive Communities Project, Inc. ruling about?

It ruled that disproportionate placement of subsidized housing could violate the Fair Housing Act. Signup and view all the answers

What are the challenges of addressing de jure segregation?

Income stagnation, blocked mobility, and fear of competition among whites impede progress. Signup and view all the answers

Why is Rothstein hesitant to suggest desegregation policies?

He believes remedies are inconceivable while the myth of de facto segregation is accepted. Signup and view all the answers

What remedies to segregation does Rothstein propose?

Address middle-class conditions, ban discriminatory zoning, amend tax codes, and promote income-based fair share requirements. Signup and view all the answers

Were African Americans given opportunities for upward mobility in the service sector?

False Signup and view all the answers

What occupations did FDR's New Deal policies exclude?

Agricultural and service occupations, which predominated among Black workers. Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Color of Law Summary

Objective of Color of Law emphasizes that segregation was not merely a social construct (de facto) but rather legally enforced (de jure) through public policies.
FHA and VA were federal administrations that systematically denied mortgages to African Americans in predominantly white neighborhoods and to white sellers to Black buyers.
Racial segregation was imposed by the federal government even in regions without historical racial issues; for example, California segregated housing for defense workers.
The primary purpose of public housing was to create civilian housing near military bases and for defense workers.
The PWA aimed to alleviate a national housing shortage while simultaneously creating construction jobs.
Post-WW2 housing shortage prompted a debate between enacting a segregated housing program or integrating housing; Truman administration made legislative attempts to curb segregation.
The Housing Act of 1949 allowed continued segregation in public housing projects, enabling racial divisions.
The Housing Act consequences relegated African Americans to high-rise ghettos devoid of job access and social services.
The Woodrow Wilson administration set the national precedent for accepting segregation policies in government offices since 1913.
Local policies created all-white neighborhoods through racial segregation ordinances, exemplified by Baltimore's zoning in 1910.
Buchanan v. Warley (1917) challenged racial zoning, asserting property owners' rights to sell regardless of race, although alternate zoning methods emerged to segregate communities.
Economic zoning techniques kept middle-class neighborhoods exclusive, financially inaccessible to lower-income families of any race.
Changing zoning codes to industrial categories led to the deterioration of Black neighborhoods into slums.
FHA insured mortgages were withheld from African Americans based on risky assessments associated with nearby mixed-use developments.
Richard Rothstein described zoning's dual purpose: exclusion of Black residents from white neighborhoods and protection of white neighborhoods against perceived decline.
Redlining involved color-coded maps depicting neighborhoods’ safety, with red zones marked as high-risk, often influenced by the presence of even a single Black household.
The Homeowners Loan Corporation (HOLC) facilitated property retention through purchasing mortgages on the verge of foreclosure, providing favorable repayment conditions.
FHA’s stringent appraisal standards, tainted by redlining, rendered African Americans ineligible for insured mortgages.
The FHA greatly enhanced segregation by financing racially exclusive subdivision developments, such as Levittown.
Racially segregated housing developments were justified by claims of maintaining property values.
Housing developers circumvented the Buchanan ruling by including restrictive resale clauses in property deeds that forbade sales to non-whites.
Covenants were private contracts within neighborhoods enabling neighbors to sue if an African American family attempted to purchase property.
Courts upheld restrictive covenants in 1926, claiming they were private agreements, asserting they were not government-sanctioned actions.
Shelley v. Kraemer (1948) ruled that the enforcement of racially restrictive covenants violated the Equal Protection Clause.
JFK's executive order in 1962 prohibited the use of federal funds to support housing discrimination.
Blockbusting involved real estate agents inducing white homeowners to sell cheaply based on fear of Black migration, then selling homes to Black families at inflated prices.
Deterioration of properties under contract sales was common due to inflated costs preventing equity accumulation for African American homeowners.
African Americans faced a cycle of retaliatory economic hardships due to excessive tax liabilities and property seizures by speculators.
Numerous institutions, including the IRS and banks, reinforced segregation through policies and practices that were detrimental to African American communities.
"Reverse redlining" characterized the targeting of African American neighborhoods for predatory lending practices.
The Fair Housing Act of 1968 sought to eliminate racial discrimination in housing transactions.
The G.I. Bill of 1944 systematically excluded African Americans from benefits, including housing subsidies and vocational training for skilled jobs.
Rothstein articulated that the historical context of de jure policies reinforced long-lasting economic disparities affecting African Americans.
Proposals from Rothstein to remedy segregation included zoning reforms, tax code amendments, and more equitable distribution of housing resources across neighborhoods.
Overcrowding in neighborhoods and schools often resulted from failing housing policies restricting African Americans' mobility and homeownership opportunities.
Legal challenges against banks revealed discriminatory lending practices, emphasizing the racial bias in mortgage terms and targeting.
Various tax programs inadvertently entrenched segregation by promoting development in impoverished neighborhoods over integrated ones.

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Study key concepts from 'The Color of Law' with these flashcards. The quiz covers important terms and historical actions related to racial segregation policies in the United States. Test your understanding of the federal administrations involved and the differences between de facto and de jure segregation.