It happened in the United States in the mid-1970s. Black families began to move to different parts of the city. So the white families decided to leave. It was a form of non-explicit separation. However, these areas have also been treated differently by financial institutions. The “White Fugue” is another manifestation of racism in the United States.
Richard Thompson Ford is a renowned researcher on racism and urban segregation in the country. He wrote numerous books on the subject. He explains: «There were many reasons for the” white leak “. For example, the elimination of racial segregation from urban school districts in 1954. “
White districts
“Many whites reacted by moving to the suburbs. The entire district was white and the schools were actually still separate, ”says Ford.
The phenomenon cannot be seen as a purely personal act. It comes after years of discriminatory federal politics. “In the United States, there have always been forms of discrimination. But it took shape in politics in the 1930s and 1970s, ”explains Andre Perry. He is a researcher at the Brookings Institute who specializes in racial inequality. “It became so much part of culture that you don’t have to have a norm for discrimination to occur.”
There was that too Redlining. It was administered by the Federal Corporation for Loans to Home Owners between 1935 and 1939. He drew maps of the big cities and separated the areas inhabited by African-Americans with a red line.
“The banks refused to grant loans to homeowners in these neighborhoods. Insurance companies called them a “bad risk”. Agents estranged white families from them while expelling black families. This has increased segregation and impoverished these neighborhoods by depriving them of capital, “explains Ford.
The Federal Government funded development programs for the development of the suburbs. On the condition that only white families could be sold there.
The Redlining it has been banned but continues
The Redlining it was banned in 1968. But three out of four districts that are “marked in red” on the maps of the time still have economic problems today
The difference is also significant in educational matters. School districts with a majority of white students receive 23 billion more than areas with a majority of minority students.
“The sad reality is that the United States has never fully committed to ending segregation,” says Ford.
“Neighborhoods continue to discriminate against the black population. But black people also seek refuge. It is a time of heightened racist tensions after George Floyd’s death in police custody. This part of the story helps to understand the pain and anger felt on the streets.
Forgetfulness and blindness
Although many do not believe that enough is known. «I think there is a kind of brightening up of the story. Many of these things are not taught in schools, “complains Zizi Bailey. She is a social epidemiologist. Research the consequences of structural and racial discrimination at the University of Miami. The” White Groove “and other dark periods in American history remain below that Carpet.
Bailey remembers her time at the New York Department of Health and her role as an educator in the Bronx. It is one of the poorest neighborhoods in the famous city. Many people were surprised to know the reasons that characterized this area. It is a kind of “amnesia”. According to the Brookings Institution researcher Andre Perry, this is sometimes “intentional”.
Because many whites think they have everything on their own two feet. It was not like that. These guidelines helped them buy a house and open businesses at the expense of black people. “So some people don’t want to see history beyond their own lives,” Perry concludes.
