Lost Black History
By Don Valentine
The insidious segregation scheme of Redlining finds its start in the US Government’s homeownership programs. These programs were established in the 1920s and 1930s. During the New Deal era, government-insured mortgages were established for homeowners. This was to support the economy in the post Depression era. Black people and others were left out of governmental aid.
Note the Emancipation was just 65 years prior to the start of the banking restrictions of Redlining. This blatant segregationist plan was not a clandestine, “wink and a nod” ploy. The US government surveyors intentionally graded neighborhoods in 239 cities. They color-coded them Green for “best,” Blue for “still desirable,” Yellow for “definitely declining,” and RED for “Hazardous.” The Redlined areas were the ones local lenders deemed as credit risks, in large part because of the residents’ racial and ethnic demographics. Redlining also adversely impacted Catholics, Jews, Asians and southern European Whites as well! “Anyone who was not northern-European White was considered to be a blight on the value of the area,” said Bruce Mitchell, a researcher at the National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC).
A good recitation on the aim of Redlining, was articulated by Mayor Michael Bloomberg. The AP reported Mayor Bloomberg opined in his 2020 Presidential campaign that the great “Recession” was due to the credit given to poor people (insert-Black/Brown). He said, “It all started back when there was a lot of pressure on banks to make loans to everyone. People in these neighborhoods are poor, they’re not going to be able to pay off their mortgages…”
In 1968, after years of protest from Black civil rights leaders, the Fair Housing Act was passed. It prohibited discrimination on the sale, rental and financing of housing based on race, religion, national origin or sex. The goal was to put an end to race-based housing patterns. Unfortunately, the deleterious effects of “Redlining” linger still in 2022. Brookings Institute noted that racially restrictive housing prohibited generations of families from gaining equity in homeownership. This culminates to a dearth in the financial tools to build generational wealth.
If we don’t know our history, we are doomed to learn “His-story!
