The practice of redlining was an overexertion of power and a demonstration of the intricacies upon which racist practices sat. It was a subtle pull of invisible threads that was specifically designed to secretly keep down a group. It was sinister, malicious and hateful. The practice originated when FDR started a loan program to help Americans finance their homes. To decide who got these loans, neighborhoods were sectioned off, aka redlined. The people living in the green or "good" neighborhoods found it super easy to get a loan and buy a house. The people living in the red neighborhood on the other hand, were often denied loans, making it very difficult to get by, let alone buy a house. The neighborhoods that were redlined were predominantly neighborhoods where African-Americans and other minorities live. This systematically prevented them from getting home loans. Not only this, but there were even policies that directly stated things such as "...homes must not be used or occupied by any person other than members of the caucasian race" (Levittown...). All of these policies culminated in 98% of home loans from 1934-1968 being given to white families. This ended up compounding, increasing land value, attracting new business, increasing land value yet again. These policies were based on a biased, spiteful system that punished people for being born a certain way. This wrongdoing allowed a giant chasm of inequality to grow between two groups.
This socioeconomic inequality allowed a rift of understanding and spite to grow between the two groups. Hate for the situation, hate for the people that created it, hate for the people that did nothing to fix it. All of this emotion only compounded the problem. This was another slap in the face to a group that had been systematically kept down for generations and was fighting back against the oppression to ensure their equal opportunity and representation. Redlining destroyed the ability for minority groups to prosper by eliminating their access to capital, while providing it hugely disproportionately to other people. This practice further strained relations and contributed as kindling to a growing fire. e
Levittown standard lease, clause 25, 1947.
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