Proponents of reparations cite past housing discrimination as a primary driver of today’s racial wealth gap.
The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) was established in 1934 to provide federal insurance for home loans and it led to a huge increase in home ownership in the US. In determining which residences to insure, the agency instructed underwriters to consider, among other things, a community’s “economic stability” and its “protection from adverse influences.” This resulted in a practice known as “redlining.”
See Ta-Nehisi Coates, “The Case for Reparations.”
Yet, between 1940 and 1980, homeownership among blacks rose faster than it did among whites. (37% v. 34%)
Also, the vast majority (92 percent) of the total redlined home-owning population was white.
If being a victim of redlining is a qualification for reparations, what is the argument for excluding whites?
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