Legal residential segregation

Date and country of first publication^[1]

2014
France

Definition

Residential segregation refers to the physical separation of people of different races, ethnicities, or socio-economic backgrounds in a specific area or neighborhood. It is typically driven by various factors such as economic disparities, discriminatory practices, and personal preferences.

Legal residential segregation refers to situations where government policies or laws contribute to or enforce residential segregation. Historically, there have been several instances of legal residential segregation in various countries, particularly in the United States, where racial discrimination and segregation were prominent.

In the United States, legal residential segregation was primarily enforced through policies known as "redlining." Redlining was a discriminatory practice in which the federal government and lending institutions marked certain neighborhoods as high-risk for lending, mainly based on race. This systematic practice prevented minority communities, particularly African Americans, from accessing housing loans and effectively trapped them in concentrated poverty areas.

Additionally, the concept of "separate but equal" was a legal doctrine upheld by the Supreme Court in Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) which permitted racial segregation in public facilities as long as they were deemed "equal." This doctrine provided a legal framework for segregation in housing, education, and other public spaces well into the 20th century.

While legal residential segregation has significantly decreased since the introduction of the Fair Housing Act in the United States in 1968, which outlawed housing discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, its effects can still be observed today. The historical legacy of residential segregation continues to contribute to disparities in education, healthcare, and socio-economic opportunities for marginalized communities.

References

Notes

↑ Date and country of first publication as informed by the Scopus database (December 2023).

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