7.2 Historical development of systemic racism in American institutions

Systemic racism has shaped American institutions since the colonial era. From slavery to Jim Crow laws, legal systems enforced racial oppression. Even after civil rights victories, disparities persist in wealth, education, housing, and criminal justice.

Discriminatory policies like redlining and racial covenants segregated housing. Voting restrictions and economic barriers limited minority political and financial power. Despite progress, the impacts of historical racism continue to affect communities of color today.

Legalized Racial Oppression

Enslavement and Segregation

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• Slavery legalized the ownership and exploitation of African Americans as property from the colonial era until the Civil War (1619-1865)
• After the Civil War, Jim Crow laws enforced racial segregation and discrimination in the Southern United States
  • Separate public facilities for whites and blacks (schools, restrooms, transportation)
  • Restricted voting rights, employment, and housing for African Americans
• School segregation continued after the Civil War, with separate and unequal educational resources for black and white students
  • Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) upheld "separate but equal" doctrine
  • Brown v. Board of Education (1954) overturned Plessy, but desegregation faced massive resistance

Ongoing Racial Disparities

• Despite legal advances, significant racial disparities persist in areas like wealth, education, housing, and criminal justice
• The racial wealth gap, rooted in historical policies, shows white families have substantially higher median wealth than black families
  • 2019 Survey of Consumer Finances: Median white family wealth $188,200 vs.$24,100 for black families
• Mass incarceration disproportionately impacts communities of color
  • War on Drugs and tough-on-crime policies led to dramatic rise in incarceration from 1970s-2000s
  • African Americans are incarcerated at over 5 times the rate of whites (NAACP)

Discriminatory Policies and Practices

Housing Discrimination

• Redlining was a discriminatory housing policy starting in the 1930s
  • Government-sponsored Home Owners' Loan Corporation (HOLC) created "residential security" maps
  • Neighborhoods with minority residents were marked as high-risk and outlined in red
  • Denied access to favorable mortgages and insurance, driving racial segregation and disinvestment
• Racial covenants, blockbusting, and steering also excluded minorities from white neighborhoods
  • Shelley v. Kraemer (1948) ruled racial covenants unconstitutional, but informal discrimination persisted

Political and Economic Disenfranchisement

• Voting rights restrictions have suppressed minority political participation
  • Poll taxes, literacy tests, and grandfather clauses in Jim Crow era
  • Felony disenfranchisement laws still restrict voting for millions, disproportionately people of color
  • Voter ID laws, closing polling places, and purging voter rolls continue to hinder voting access
• Discrimination in employment, education, and business loans has limited economic opportunities
  • Median black household income is 61% of median white household income (2019 Census data)
  • Minority-owned businesses face challenges accessing capital and contracts
  • Affirmative action policies to address disparities have faced legal challenges and rollbacks