--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Today’s residential segregation in the…" description: "\"“Today’s residential segregation in the North, South, Midwest, and West is not the unintended consequence of individual choices and of otherwise well-m..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90c/richard-rothstein-32477_quote_today-s-residential-segregation-in-the-n_2094085.jpg" --- # Today’s residential segregation in the North, South… ![“Today’s residential segregation in the North, South, Midwest, and West is not the unintended consequence of individual choices and of otherwise well-meaning law or regulation but of unhidden public policy that explicitly segregated every metropolitan area in the United States.” quote by Richard Rothstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90c/richard-rothstein-32477_quote_today-s-residential-segregation-in-the-n_2094085.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90c/richard-rothstein-32477_quote_today-s-residential-segregation-in-the-n_2094085.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90c/richard-rothstein-32477_quote_today-s-residential-segregation-in-the-n_2094085.jpg) > ““Today’s residential segregation in the North, South, Midwest, and West is not the unintended consequence of individual choices and of otherwise well-meaning law or regulation but of unhidden public policy that explicitly segregated every metropolitan area in the United States.”” [Richard Rothstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rothstein/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Residential segregation is a result of explicit public policies, not accidental choices or neutral laws. **In simple terms:** Policy caused segregation. Key Takeaway Address systemic housing policies. Themes housing policy segregation justice Mood critical determined Type historical activist When to use this quote - urban development - legal reform - community activism Key Concepts urban planning government action historical law Questions to Reflect On - What policies created segregation? - How can legislation reverse segregation? A Different Perspective Policy changes face political resistance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Segregation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/segregation/) ## Related quotes > [Cincinnati like so many other cities, we know that so many of our schools, when it comes to public schools, are still de facto…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/cincinnati-like-so-many-other-cities-we-know-that-so-many-of-our/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [It is important that the strongest pressures against the continuation of segregation, North or South, be continually and constantly manifested. Probably, as much as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurgood-marshall/it-is-important-that-the-strongest-pressures-against-the-continuation/) [Thurgood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurgood-marshall/) > [In a sense, mass incarceration has emerged as a far more extreme form of physical and residential segregation than Jim Crow segregation. Rather than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-alexander/in-a-sense-mass-incarceration-has-emerged-as-a-far-more-extreme-form/) [Michelle Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-alexander/) > [One of the most interesting social trends of the past 20 years is the rise of residential segregation. So rich are living with rich…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-vance-2/one-of-the-most-interesting-social-trends-of-the-past-20-years-is-the/) [J. D. Vance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-vance-2/) > [“One of the most commonly used American history textbooks is The Americans: Reconstruction to the 21st Century. A thousand-page volume, published by Holt McDougal,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rothstein/one-of-the-most-commonly-used-american-history-textbooks-is-the/) [Richard Rothstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rothstein/) > [There was segregation everywhere. The churches, buses and schools were all segregated and you couldn't even go into the same restaurants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claudette-colvin/there-was-segregation-everywhere-the-churches-buses-and-schools-were/) [Claudette Colvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claudette-colvin/) > [When you grow up in a totally segregated society, where everybody around you believes that segregation is proper, you have a hard time. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-foote/when-you-grow-up-in-a-totally-segregated-society-where-everybody/) [Shelby Foote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-foote/) > [Unfortunately, most of the major denominations still practice segregation in local churches, hospitals, schools, and other church institutions. It is appalling that the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/unfortunately-most-of-the-major-denominations-still-practice/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [You know if we were to look back and how we were in 1955 living in Jim Crow, living in segregation, living in segregated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-deavere-smith/you-know-if-we-were-to-look-back-and-how-we-were-in-1955-living-in/) [Anna Deavere Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-deavere-smith/) > [America was built on segregation. It's gonna stay segregated until everyone's equal, and that ain't gonna happen when it's a capitalistic society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mc-ren/america-was-built-on-segregation-it-s-gonna-stay-segregated-until/) [MC Ren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mc-ren/) > [Most new prison construction has occurred in predominately white, rural communities, and thus a new and bizarre form of segregation has emerged in recent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-alexander/most-new-prison-construction-has-occurred-in-predominately-white/) [Michelle Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-alexander/) > [To give certain dysgenic groups in our population their choice of segregation or sterilization. g. to apportion farm lands and homesteads for these segregated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-sanger/to-give-certain-dysgenic-groups-in-our-population-their-choice-of/) [Margaret Sanger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-sanger/) > [I come up in a segregated 1943 atmosphere of segregation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-duke/i-come-up-in-a-segregated-1943-atmosphere-of-segregation/) [Bill Duke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-duke/) > [I wasn't thinking about history. I was thinking about how we were going to end segregation at lunch counters in Atlanta, Georgia.We would have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-wright-edelman/i-wasn-t-thinking-about-history-i-was-thinking-about-how-we-were/) [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) > [Jews were segregated from 1933 on. We could only play against other Jewish teams. This wasn't just social segregation; this was the beginning of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-a-kissinger/jews-were-segregated-from-1933-on-we-could-only-play-against-other/) [Henry A. Kissinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-a-kissinger/) ## More by Richard Rothstein > [“In 1866, Congress enforced the abolition of slavery by passing a Civil Rights Act, prohibiting actions that it deemed perpetuated the characteristics of slavery.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rothstein/in-1866-congress-enforced-the-abolition-of-slavery-by-passing-a-civil/) [Richard Rothstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rothstein/) > [“If federal programs were not, even to this day, reinforcing racial isolation by disproportionately directing low-income African Americans who receive housing assistance into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rothstein/if-federal-programs-were-not-even-to-this-day-reinforcing-racial/) [Richard Rothstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rothstein/) > [“We have created a caste system in this country, with African Americans kept exploited and geographically separate by racially explicit government policies. Although most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rothstein/we-have-created-a-caste-system-in-this-country-with-african-americans/) [Richard Rothstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rothstein/) > [“Private discrimination also played a role, but it would have been considerably less effective had it not been embraced and reinforced by government.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rothstein/private-discrimination-also-played-a-role-but-it-would-have-been/) [Richard Rothstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rothstein/) > [“until the last quarter of the twentieth century, racially explicit policies of federal, state, and local governments defined where whites and African Americans should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rothstein/until-the-last-quarter-of-the-twentieth-century-racially-explicit/) [Richard Rothstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rothstein/) > [“The core argument of this book is that African Americans were unconstitutionally denied the means and the right to integration in middle-class neighborhoods, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rothstein/the-core-argument-of-this-book-is-that-african-americans-were/) [Richard Rothstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rothstein/) > [“If government had declined to build racially separate public housing in cities where segregation hadn’t previously taken root, and instead had scattered integrated developments…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rothstein/if-government-had-declined-to-build-racially-separate-public-housing/) [Richard Rothstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rothstein/) > [“In 1944, the G.I. Bill was adopted to support returning servicemen. 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It was not heavily subsidized, and tenants paid the full cost of operations with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rothstein/public-housing-was-mostly-for-working-and-lower-middle-class-white/) [Richard Rothstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rothstein/) [Explore all 15 Richard Rothstein quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rothstein/) ## More Segregated quotes > [Well, I've been politically involved for a really long time. Growing up in the segregated South, it was a very painful experience for me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cybill-shepherd/well-i-ve-been-politically-involved-for-a-really-long-time-growing-up/) [Cybill Shepherd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cybill-shepherd/) > [I feel like my work has been my path to freedom from having grown up in a segregated environment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-deavere-smith/i-feel-like-my-work-has-been-my-path-to-freedom-from-having-grown-up/) [Anna Deavere Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-deavere-smith/) > [As you know, Sunday at 11 o'clock is the most segregated hour in America. You have black churches; you have white churches; you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-oyelowo/as-you-know-sunday-at-11-o-clock-is-the-most-segregated-hour-in/) [David Oyelowo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-oyelowo/) > [Staten Island is segregated, but it's also - I don't know. It's, like, it's not - it's not unprogressive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-jost/staten-island-is-segregated-but-it-s-also-i-don-t-know-it-s-like-it-s/) [Colin Jost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-jost/) > [In a country that was still racially segregated and prejudiced, music was among the first domains in which African-Americans thrived alongside whites.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/in-a-country-that-was-still-racially-segregated-and-prejudiced-music/) [Daniel Levitin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/) > [Also, of course, for most of this time most Americans thought of America as a white country with, at best, only a very segregated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/also-of-course-for-most-of-this-time-most-americans-thought-of/) [Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/) > [I grew up in the southern United States in a city which at that time during the late '40's and early '50's was the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-davis/i-grew-up-in-the-southern-united-states-in-a-city-which-at-that-time/) [Angela Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-davis/) > [Very often, organizations are inflexible because there is too little communication between functions; they are too segregated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-robinson/very-often-organizations-are-inflexible-because-there-is-too-little/) [Ken Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-robinson/) > [The people who want to be segregated are part of a different generation, and they have lived their lives. They are the stakeholders and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laxmi-narayan-tripathi/the-people-who-want-to-be-segregated-are-part-of-a-different/) [Laxmi Narayan Tripathi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laxmi-narayan-tripathi/) > [Jews were segregated from 1933 on. We could only play against other Jewish teams. This wasn't just social segregation; this was the beginning of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-a-kissinger/jews-were-segregated-from-1933-on-we-could-only-play-against-other/) [Henry A. Kissinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-a-kissinger/) > [The segregated schools of today are arguably no more equal than the segregated schools of the past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-markey/the-segregated-schools-of-today-are-arguably-no-more-equal-than-the/) [Ed Markey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-markey/) > [At present, black children are more segregated in their public schools than at any time since 1968. In the inner-city schools I visit, minority…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-kozol/at-present-black-children-are-more-segregated-in-their-public-schools/) [Jonathan Kozol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-kozol/) > [Covering the civil-rights movement was a mind- and eye-opener for me. Houston was a segregated society, as was Texas as a whole - some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-rather/covering-the-civil-rights-movement-was-a-mind-and-eye-opener-for-me/) [Dan Rather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-rather/) > [Our political establishment refuses to use the word 'segregated.' They call the schools diverse, which means half black, half Hispanic, and maybe two white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-kozol/our-political-establishment-refuses-to-use-the-word-segregated-they/) [Jonathan Kozol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-kozol/) > [In the Brown decision, the United States Supreme Court unanimously struck down the legal and moral footing of racially segregated public education in this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-scott/in-the-brown-decision-the-united-states-supreme-court-unanimously/) [Bobby Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-scott/) Browse all 137 Segregated quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Today’s residential segregation in the North, South, Midwest, and West is not the unintended consequence of individual choices and of otherwise well-meaning law or regulation but of unhidden public policy that explicitly segregated every metropolitan area in the United States.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Rothstein" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rothstein/today-s-residential-segregation-in-the-north-south-midwest-and-west/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Segregated" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rothstein/today-s-residential-segregation-in-the-north-south-midwest-and-west/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90c/richard-rothstein-32477_quote_today-s-residential-segregation-in-the-n_2094085.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90c/richard-rothstein-32477_quote_today-s-residential-segregation-in-the-n_2094085.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90c/richard-rothstein-32477_quote_today-s-residential-segregation-in-the-n_2094085.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Today’s residential segregation in the North, South, Midwest, and West is not the unintended consequence of…” — Richard Rothstein", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Richard Rothstein", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rothstein/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Today’s residential segregation in the North,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rothstein/today-s-residential-segregation-in-the-north-south-midwest-and-west/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rothstein/today-s-residential-segregation-in-the-north-south-midwest-and-west/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```