08x18 - Housing discrimination in the United States

[bunniefuu]

Hi there, welcome to

The show, we're back, still from

This blank void.

On that point, I have a bit of
an update.

Looks like, all being well, we

Are set to be back in our studio

In september, meaning that the

Next five shows are actually

Going to be the last that we do

There in the void.

Holy sh*t, thank god.

Excuse me?

You heard me.

I'm sorry, you can talk?

Of course I can talk, john.

I can also cry, which, you know,

I'm not afraid to cry.

I can sing pretty well,

Actually.

Nice.

Also, I can laugh.

Void loves to laugh.

I'm sorry, you can

Laugh?

Really?

I've been stuck here

For nearly a year and a half

Telling jokes and I haven't

Heard you laugh once.

Not one time.

Well, that's because you

Haven't really given me a reason

To, and I didn't consider any of

Those jokes.

That is a mean thing to

Say.

I'm going to get this off my

Chest.

I don't mean to be rude.

But you know what?

What?

It's going to be really good

To be just a void again without

You in it, which is a pretty

Shocking declaration when you

Say that a void would rather be

Just a void with nothing in it

Because of you.

Look, can I just start

My show now please?

Go ahead, I mean, if you

Want.

Or don't.

It really doesn't matter to me

Either way.

Has it been a busy week, john?

Yes, it has.

It has, actually.

So aggravating.

All right.

Just pretend I'm not here.

I will.

I will remain silent.

Because I won't be laughing.

That is understood.

It has been a busy week.

Very busy.

I'm ready, the olympics opening

Ceremony finally took place in

Tokyo.

A year late and still under

Significant cloud.

This morning, officials in

Tokyo revealing that covid cases

Have increased 155% in the past

Seven days.

Tonight, covid-19 defeating

Some olympic athletes before

They've even had a chance to

Compete.

According to the ioc, more than



Have tested positive for the

Virus.

And the truth is, it's

Gotten even worse, because as of

Saturday the current total of

Olympics-related covid cases is

Up to 127.

Which really shouldn't be

Surprising.

The event whose central premise

Is basically, "what if a bunch

Of hot people traveled from all

Over the world to sweat,

Breathe, and f*ck on each other"

Turns out to be going exactly as

You'd expect it to during a

Pandemic.

And I will say, tokyo is by no

Means alone in making a very

Bold move in the face of the

Spread of the delta variant.

In the u.k., Monday marked

So-called freedom day, with the

Lifting of almost all

Virus-related restrictions, even

Though covid cases have recently

Spiked to the highest levels

There since january.

Boris johnson has faced

Significant criticism about this

Decision and has chosen to

Justify it like this:

If we don't do it now, we've

Got to ask ourselves, when will

We ever do it?

Oh, I can answer that

Later.

Just, a later time.

It's so brazenly disingenuous to

Frame this as a choice between

Lifting covid restrictions now

Or never doing it.

It's the equivalent of someone

Saying, "if I don't take a sh*t

Now in the middle of this apple

Store, when will I ever take a

sh*t?"

I don't know exactly, but I feel

Like there are a lot of other

Options available that you're

Choosing not to consider.

And if you're wondering, "why

Does boris johnson look like

He's hired an impersonator of

Himself to deliver this message

Via cameo?"

Well, it's because he was

Self-isolating after being

Exposed to someone who caught

Covid.

Specifically, his health

Minister.

Which is not an ideal way to

Reassure people that "now is the

Right time to open up."

And even some of the british

People celebrating "freedom day"

Seemed to understand they were

Dancing on a Kn*fe's edge.

I want to dance, I want to

Hear live music.

Yes!

It feels like freedom day, it

Really, really does.

It's nice to be out, but like

At the end of the day, it's all

Going to result in some sort of

Impending doom.

You know what?

I have to agree with cvs-brand

Noel gallagher there.

Because that sentiment

Fundamentally speaks to the

British character.

Screw "keep calm and carry on."

"It's all going to result in

Some sort of impending doom"

Should be britain's new

Motivational poster, because

That is exactly how I feel about

Everything all the time.

Even here in the united states,

There is cause for real concern

Amid all the optimism.

The delta variant now accounts

For 83% of known u.s. Cases and

Is causing a rise in hospital

Admissions, particularly among

The unvaccinated.

And yet despite the fact that

Vaccines are widely available

Here, some... Even those

Hospitalized... Are still

Hesitant.

Here I am, recovering,

Getting out of here finally

Tomorrow.

Am I going to get a vaccine?

No.

Don't shove it down my throat.

That's what's local, state,

Federal administration is trying

To do, is shove it down your

Throat.

What are they shoving, the

Science?

No, they're shoving the fact

That that's their agenda.

The agenda is to get you

Vaccinated.

Uh...

Yeah.

Yeah, acturaly, nailed it in

One.

Public health officials' agenda

Is to get you vaccinated.

And you know what covid's agenda

Is?

To f*cking k*ll you.

To burrow into your body through

Your hot little mouth, f*ck

Around with your lungs, flip

Your nostrils off, make soup

Taste more like nothing than it

Already does, and then k*ll you.

So frankly, if the choice is

Death or

sh*t that comes with

Free krispy kreme donut, I think

You should take the

Jizz-covered dough hoop

With a side of antibodies.

And while that's clearly

Infuriating, individuals like

That man are pretty much

Unreachable at this point, which

Is why it's so important to

Convince everyone who might be

Persuadable to get vaccinated.

Because if this week's taught us

Anything, it's that covid is

Nowhere near being eradicated

And the best defense against it

Is being f*cking vaccinated.

Yes, there are breakthrough

Cases, but the vaccine is doing

Its job.

More than 97% of those

Hospitalized for covid in the

U.s. Are unvaccinated.

So right here we need to be

Encouraging as many as possible

To get their sh*ts, and,

Crucially, to then share our

Surplus supply with countries

Around the world that

Desperately need them.

Because... If I may quote the

Words of geoffrey rush after a

Bad bleach job... "If we don't

Do it now, when will we ever do

It?"

And now this.

And now, people on

Tv mean "f*cking,"

Olympics edition.

The olympic village was

Full of cardboard beds, and

The idea behind it, supposedly,

Was to make sure that these

Athletes weren't going down

There doing the do.

If you know anything about

The olympic village, you know

It's a hotbed for...

You know what I mean?

Athletes will be pursuing

Their dreams, and perhaps each

Other, if you know what I mean.

Some even speculating

They were meant to prevent

Certain extracurricular

Activities, you would say.

Does it have a box spring?

No, exactly, they're going to

Be walking around with sore

Backs?

I would imagine.

Too busy looking at the

Gymnast jumping up and down

Without a shirt on.

I see where you're going.

You said your husband is out

Of town this week.

This is how rumors get

Started.

Moving on.

Our main story tonight concerns

Land.

Specifically, the history of

Race and land ownership in

America.

A history that has many

Horrifying chapters... Pretty

Much from chapter one, when

America was "discovered" from

Under other people's feet.

So many, in fact, that some have

Nearly been forgotten, like this

Piece of local history that

Recently made the news.

In manhattan beach,

California, a house on the sand

Can cost up to $20 million, and

Anthony bruce's family used to

Own two oceanfront lots.

I should be a millionaire

Standing here t... Talking to

You today.

More than 100 years ago, his

Great-great-grandparents, willa

And charles bruce, bought the

Land for about $1,200.

They built a resort called

"Bruce's lodge."

The ku klux klan was involved

In harassing them.

They b*rned a cross right out

Here.

And when that didn't drive

Them away, the city government

Decided to take the property

Under the guise of eminent

Domain.

Wow.

So when the cross burning didn't

Drive the bruces out of town,

The city called in a lawyer to

Finish the job.

And that tells you a lot about

How racism in america works.

Sure, the vigilante racists are

Spooky.

But you've really gotta worry

When the m*therf*ckers with

Advanced degrees show up.

What manhattan beach did to the

Bruce family was clearly

Unforgivable.

And to its credit, the city

Seems to be trying to reckon

With how to deal with what

Happened.

Although it's also placing some

Pretty hard limits on that

Reckoning.

The council did authorize

Spending $350,000 on art to

Commemorate the family, and this

Week, voted to acknowledge and

Condemn what happened... But

Chose not to offer an official

Apology.

It's awful.

It's wrong.

We're not that community now.

I wouldn't live here if we were

A r*cist community, and my

Friends and neighbors would not

Live here as well.

Okay, couple of things.

Manhattan beach's

Population is only 0.5% black,

So even if you are not that

Community now, you don't look

Un-like it.

If you took

Something worth $20 million,

$350,000 Doesn't cover it.

Especially when none of that

Money went toward the family

You stole it from.

There's pretty obviously only

Two ways of making this right:

Give the bruces $20 million or

Give them their land back.

And incredibly, the latter might

Actually happen.

Because l.a. County, which owns

The land, recently released a

Plan for returning it to the

Bruces.

Which is, to put it mildly,

About time!

It's literally been called

Bruce's beach since 2006.

Is the apostrophe s a f*cking

Joke to you people?

It indicates possession.

So the story of bruce's beach

Might actually end with

Something approaching justice.

Land was taken away.

Land is given back.

And I want you to keep the

Elegance of that solution in

Mind as we talk about a far more

Insidious and widespread form of

Wealth appropriation, and that

Is housing discrimination.

There is a long history of it in

America... And we will get to

That in a minute... But before

We do, let's just start with its

Effects.

Currently, only 45% of black

Householders own their homes,

Compared with nearly 74% of

Whites.

And since home ownership is a

Key component of wealth, it's no

Surprise that the wealth gap

Between white and black families

Is so huge, many literally don't

Comprehend it.

One recent survey found most

People think that, for every

$100 In wealth held by a white

Family, a black family has $90,

When the truth is, it's actually

Closer to $13, with the median

White family having a net worth

Of around $188,000 and the

Median black family having just

Over $24,000.

But the effects of housing

Discrimination go well beyond

Wealth, because questions about

Where your house is and how much

It's worth impact so many things

About your quality of life.

For instance, because a key way

Americans pay for public schools

Is through property taxes,

Better homes lead to better

Schools, better teachers, and

More resources, which in turns

Leads back to better

Neighborhoods in general,

Including cleaner streets,

Cleaner air, and, crucially,

Only the most exclusive and

Fuckable trees.

Is that tree a bakery?

Because it's.

Got.

Cakes.

That tree... Don't just let the

Audio of this play in the

Background while you're working,

Click back on the youtube tab

And look at me...

That tree can get it.

So if it's led to a wealth gap

This massive and consequences

This wide-ranging, tonight,

Let's take a look at housing

Discrimination, the damage it's

Done, and more importantly, what

We can do about it.

Some of you may already

Know what the last part is going

To be and might even be

Shouting it at your screens, but

Please, don't spoil it for

Everyone else...

Let's let it be a surprise.

And let's start in the early



When the real estate industry

Really began to grow, and as it

Did, white people moved quickly

To codify the distance between

Them and black people.

One major way this happened was

Through "racial covenants"...

Essentially bylaws written into

Deeds or neighborhood

Regulations forbidding the sale

Of a house to a non-white

Person.

And incredibly, these covenants

Were so widespread that many are

Still technically on the books.

A texas news station recently

Unearthed one in a local suburb

And showed it to unsuspecting

Residents there.

Section two, page three

Reads, "none of the lots shall

Be conveyed, leased, or occupied

By any person other than of the

Caucasian race.

It provides an exception for

Those employed as servants.

"...the person other than the

Caucasian race."

Whew.

Okay.

Well, quite!

The tone of that "whew, okay" is

Usually reserved for a few

Finding out your grandma

Is still sending nudes, that

Jeremy piven launched a podcast

Called "how you livin',

J piven," and that your

Neighborhood technically still

Has bylaws prohibiting black

People from living there.

And while racial covenants were

Done at the local level, what

Really turbocharged segregation

Was when the federal government

Got involved.

In the 1930s, the new deal

Established the federal housing

Administration and the home

Owners loan corporation or

"Holc"... Which is,

Incidentally, also french for

"Hulk."

Eh, holc... How you say, er...

Le smuush.

The idea of these two agencies

Was to make it easier for people

To buy and retain houses during

The great depression, and they

Were promoted at the time

Through newsreels like this:

This couple is going through

A model house now... Suppose we

Follow them.

The husband apparently isn't

Very keen about it all, but you

Know how wives are.

This cheerful room with its many

Handy cabinets impresses even

This skeptic, and his wife is

Entranced by the modern flat top

Stove.

Too bad they can't afford it...

Ah, but maybe they can.

Well, according to this sign,

They can buy this house with

Monthly payments that are less

Than they now spend for rent.

Wow.

That is a very affordable house

For two people that clearly do

Not get along.

They

Hate their wives and anything

That would make her happy.

Every moment with them is

t*rture.

And maybe a new house would

Help, as neither of them will

Leave this wretched marriage

Because it's the 1930s.

It's up to the baby to save

Them!"

The pitch was that the

Government would insure your

Loan so that banks would accept

A significantly smaller down

Payment than was standard at the

Time, with much lower interest

Rates, and give you decades to

Pay it off.

The federal government

Essentially invented the modern

Home mortgage, and it worked

Incredibly well.

Millions bought homes who could

Never otherwise have afforded

Them, beginning a cycle of

Stable, generational wealth that

Continues to this day.

It was a great idea.

I cannot stress that enough.

Which is why it is so tragic

That built directly into that

Plan was the intentional

Exclusion of black people.

For instance, holc developed

Maps that color-coded areas

Green, yellow, blue, or red

Based on their

Credit-worthiness.

A neighborhood earned a red

Color... Or be "redlined"... If

Any african americans lived in

It at all, at which point, the

Area was essentially ineligible

For any mortgages.

Meanwhile, when it came to new

Developments, the fha's

Underwriting manual essentially

Mandated that communities have

Racially restrictive covenants

As a prerequisite to receive

Mortgage insurance.

These policies alone had a

Devastating effect on black

Communities, significantly

Expanding and locking in

Segregation.

And some developers ensured

They would continue to qualify

For loans by going to some

Ridiculous lengths.

Here in detroit, there was a

Developer that wanted to build a

Development for whites, and they

Wanted to get fha loans.

And the federal government said,

"You know what?

There's a black community kind

Of close by, you don't get the

Good loans."

And so the developer, in an

Effort to try to fix that, built

A 6-foot-tall wall, a foot deep,

To separate the black community

From the emerging white

Community.

And then the federal government

Gave the loan.

That's terrible.

And what makes it somehow worse

Is that that wall was only six

Feet tall.

That's just not that tall.

That's like the height of a

Fridge.

Or a mattress.

Or snoop dogg.

Snoop's 6'4."

He could very easily see over

It.

Is that what you want?

Snoop making direct eye contact

With you over your stupid,

r*cist wall?

How is that helping anyone?

And all of this is obviously

White people

Basically wrote "black people

Can't live here" on pieces of

Paper and the federal government

Said "if you white people don't

Have one of those pieces of

Paper, you can't get a loan."

If everything had just stopped

There, the damage would already

Have been immense.

But it very much did not stop

There.

After world w*r ii, the gi bill

Gave returning service members

Access to home loans with as

Little as no down payment, which

Is great!

But the vast majority of

Financial institutions still

Refused to approve loans for

African americans, meaning that

Black service members returned

Home only to be shut out of

Homeownership in the rapidly

Expanding suburbs, one of the

Most famous examples of which

Was levittown, a development on

Long island of over 17,000

Homes.

And to ensure government support

To build them, the developer had

The contracts state that "the

Home could not be used or

Occupied by any person other

Than members of the caucasian

Race."

And when black people did try to

Buy homes there, they were told

In no uncertain terms just how

Unwelcome they were, as this

Woman remembers.

We went to the office where

The gentleman was showing the

Houses.

So my husband said to him, my

Wife and I are interested in,

You know, purchasing a home here

In levittown.

He said, get your out of

Here.

Wow.

That is a sweet lady

Recounting an appalling story in

Just the most matter-of-fact

Way.

But I guess for black people in

America, you ask your grandma to

Tell you a wholesome story about

Something like the first school

Dance she went to or how she

And grandpa bought a house, and

It's not long before you're

Suddenly in the middle of an

August wilson play.

And crucially, white people who

Were able to buy homes in

Levittown could accumulate

Massive wealth.

In 1948, homes there sold for

Around $8,000, or about $75,000

In today's money, and they

Currently sell for $350,000 or

More, meaning families who

Bought homes back in 1948 gained

More than $200,000 in wealth.

That's a lot!

So, quick side note: if you're

Young, white, and looking for a

Real return on investment,

Forget about your amc and

Gamestop stonks.

What you really want to do is

Get a time machine, travel back

To the 1940s, and buy a house

In a segregated suburb.

It's the safest investment

You'll ever make.

And levittown and detroit were

By no means alone.

This happened again and again,

So much so that the exclusion of

Black people from these federal

Programs was nearly absolute.

For instance, a survey of 13

Cities in mississippi in 1947

Found that... Of the more than



Veterans under the gi bill...

Only two went to

African americans.

And nationwide, in just the

First quarter century of the

Federal housing administration,

The government insured over

$40 Billion in loans.

That's the equivalent of nearly

$400 Billion today.

But some estimates indicate that



Americans.



If you ate 98% of someone's

Cannoli, you ate all their

Cannoli.

Pointing out the fact they've

Still technically got 2%

Somehow makes it worse.

And the implications of all of

This can be hard for some to

Think about.

Earlier this year, cbs'

Tony dokoupil did a story about

His grandparents' hometown of

Lyndhurst, new jersey, and in

Doing so, broke some difficult

News to the town's unofficial

Historian.

Wait a minute.

You're telling me they were only

Going to mortgage white people?

Yeah, yeah.

For you to say that lyndhurst

Is the way it is because it

Almost implies that lyndhurst

Was r*cist.

No, this is my family too.

I'm not saying that.

I'm saying that we... I'm saying

We had no idea.

You're right.

Most people would not have known

That the federal government had

This program in place.

Okay, first, I get that

This is uncomfortable, but I

Will say, if a white person says

"That almost implies blank was

r*cist" and another one says

"No, no, this is my family too,"

That doesn't mean the matter's
closed.

If two white people are trying
to figure out if something's

r*cist, nine times out of ten,
it probably is.

As for that man's claim "most

People would not have known

This program was in place," hold
on.

None of this was a secret at the

Time.

The link between the racial

Makeup of your neighborhood and

The value of your home was so

Well-established, some

Speculators took advantage of it

To buy homes on the cheap

Through a practice called

"Blockbusting."

That's where they'd go to a

White neighborhood and make it

Seem like black people were

Moving in.

They would hire a black woman to

Walk up and down the street with

A stroller, or call homes and

Ask to speak to someone with a

Stereotypically black name.

The idea was that simply by

Doing this, the speculators

Could panic white homeowners

Into selling their homes at a

Loss.

This tactic was incredibly

Effective.

But I will say, some white

Homeowners did stand firm...

Like this amazing woman in

Well, I happened to be

Sitting on the steps with a

Friend of mine, and the man that

Had gotten the house from the

Woman next door, he came up and

He said to me, "would you like

To sell?"

And I said, "no, I couldn't

Afford to sell, because I can't

Afford to go anywhere else."

And he said, "you won't sell?"

I said, "no."

He says, "well"...

Pardon me, angie, these are not

My words.

He said, "what are you going to

Do when these move in

Here, and they get out on the

Porch in the summer and they

Drink beer?"

I said, "hell, I'm going to join

Them."

Look, I know this story

Is full of terrible people and

Unmitigated racism, so we should

Probably take a moment to

Celebrate a lady who just wanted

To get drunk on her porch with

Her neighbors regardless of

Their color.

I love so many things about

I love rose's don't-give-a-f*ck

Energy, but also angie's "rose

Is gonna rose" response.

Because when rose said, "pardon

Me, angie, these are not my

Words," that was for us.

Angie knew.

She knows who rose is and she's

Made peace with it.

These women have talked.

There's a history in that

Relationship.

Bless you, rose.

And bless angie too.

Just because rose was an ally

Doesn't mean she was always an

Easy person to be around.

And when you put all of this

Together, it is no wonder that

By the late '60s, fair housing

Had become a core issue for the

Civil rights movement.

Martin luther king's efforts to

Combat housing discrimination in

Chicago were met with fierce

Resistance, and uprisings

Began to break out across the

Country... Unrest that reached a

Fever pitch in the wake of

King's assassination.

Lbj and congressional leaders

Tried to settle things down with

The civil rights act of 1968,

With sections 8 and 9 being the

Fair housing act, and section



An anti-riot act... Which is a

Pretty effective way of saying

"That's our final offer, we've

Gone about as far as we're going

With this whole 'civil rights'

Thing."

The fair housing act made

Housing discrimination illegal

And also required the government

To "affirmatively further" fair

Housing... In other words, take

An active role in integration.

And to his credit, nixon's

Housing secretary,

George romney, mitt's dad,

Actually tried

To do that and developed a

Program to withhold federal

Grants from communities that

Refused to integrate.

But nixon then quickly stepped

In, calling it off, and publicly

Repudiating the whole plan.

Concerning governor romney's

Plan, to what extent should the

Federal government use its

Leverage to promote racial

Integration in suburban housing?

It is not the policy of this

Government to use the power of

The federal government or

Federal funds in any other way,

In ways not required by the law,

For forced integration of the

Suburbs.

I believe that forced

Integration of the suburbs is

Not in the national interest.

Yeah, not great.

And it is worth reminding

Yourself once in a while just

How deeply weird nixon was.

He's been rendered so silly by a

Lifetime of cartoonish

Impressions, it's genuinely

Unsettling to watch him make

Unyielding eye contact while

Saying "I believe that forced

Integration of the suburbs is

Not in the national interest"

Like a cold robot powered by

Racism.

All I'm saying is, it really

Says something that

The most human version of nixon

Is the one where he's a cartoon

Head in a jar.

And what nixon made very clear

There is that the federal

Government would not step in to

Integrate neighborhoods, meaning

Neighborhoods weren't going to

Integrate.

Prices in white neighborhoods

Were now too high, and the

Racial wealth gap was firmly

Entrenched.

And even though overt

Discrimination was now illegal,

There were, and still are, many,

Many ways for neighborhoods to

Keep themselves white.

Sometimes it's through zoning...

Like banning multi-family homes

And sometimes it comes in the

Form of realtors steering buyers

Away from certain neighborhoods

On a racial basis.

They are not supposed to do

That, but it still happens all

The time.

A few years ago, "newsday" had

Testers of multiple races pose

As homebuyers on long island,

And the black testers

Experienced disparate treatment

Nearly half the time.

In some cases, they were sent to

Vastly different neighborhoods.

But even a realtor who "newsday"

Said gave out similar listings

To black and white buyers...

Thereby staying outside

The legal definition of

"Steering"... Accompanied them

With some not-so-subtle tips

That she only gave to the white

Tester.

And then there's pockets of

Port jeff too, that, you know,

Down by the train there's an

Area there.

What I say is always, to women,

Follow the school bus, see the

Moms that are hanging out on the

Corners.

There was one fella who, like,

Insisted on this house and the

Wife was pregnant, had a little

One.

And I said to him, I can't say

Anything, but I encourage you...

I want you to go there at 10:00

At night with your wife to buy

Diapers.

Go to that 7-eleven.

They didn't buy there.

No, that's great.

I have to say it without

Saying it, you know.

You have the knowledge of the

Areas, you know.

Yes.

I don't want to use the word

"Steer," but I try to... I use

Another word.

I educate in the area, you know.

Oh, well, that's all

Right then.

As long as you don't say the

Word "steer," it's okay.

It's like taboo.

As long as you don't say one of

The five words on the card,

You're completely in the clear.

At every step of the process,

Black homebuyers are faced with

Discrimination.

A few years ago, reporters

Crunched through 31 million loan

Applications and found that

African americans continue to be

Routinely denied conventional

Mortgage loans at much higher

Rates, even controlling for

Income, loan amount, and

Neighborhood.

And even if you own your home,

The simple act of having it

Appraised can be tainted by

Discrimination.

This woman had had her home

Appraised twice, but the values

Seemed low to her, so she did a

Little experiment.

I met with two of my

Girlfriends.

Both of them are married to

White men, and I was like, okay,

I need to borrow one of your

Husbands.

When the third appraiser

Came, duffy was gone.

Her friend's husband posed as

Her brother.

The result?

Duffy's home was appraised for

$259,000, More than double that

Of her previous two appraisals.

I screamed with joy.

I just was... I was so elated.

And then it just... It quickly

Dissipated.

And then I just cried.

Because this is an actual

"There it is" in that

I'm the thing

That's the devaluing my house.

Look, that's just

Awful.

We all know the only time the

Addition of a white man should

Increase value to anything is if

That thing is a movie and that

White man is stanley tucci.

Otherwise, it's just not okay.

And when you take all this

Together... The redlining, the

Blockbusting, the steering, and

Not least, the federal

Government's involvement... It

All becomes clear that the myth

Of white americans' post-w*r

Prosperity, powered by ingenuity

And self-reliance, leaves a lot

Out.

And the problem is, there are

Many white people who are

Unwilling to acknowledge this...

Or, even if they do, are unsure

What to do with the information.

Remember tony dikoupil's story

About lyndhurst?

The mayor there, and the

Historian, had very different

Reactions to what they were

Learning.

The one thing that I'm

Struggling with, and this is

As... As somebody whose family

Came through here, is when I

Looked at the old maps, just

Over the river, the areas were

Redlined by the federal

Government, meaning they weren't

Worthy of mortgages.

And lyndhurst wasn't redlined.

What do you do with that

Knowledge?

You move on.

Come on, it's all god's people.

Now that we do know...

Right.

What do we do about it?

You know, that's a good

Question.

I don't have the answer to that,

Tony.

I wish I did.

Okay, we'll get to the

Content of what they're saying

In a second, but first, I gotta

Know everything about that mayor

And how he came into office.

If I had to guess, a couple

Of candidates disappeared.

You can't have a run-off if only

One candidate is on the ballot,

Can you?

But as nice as it sounds to just

Move on, that's not dealing with

The underlying injury here.

Because even if you had a magic

Wand and were able to stop every

Facet of housing discrimination

Going forward, you still

Wouldn't be undoing the damage

That has been done.

Home prices have risen much more

Than wages in the last 50 years,

So buying a home today doesn't

Carry the same economic promise

As it did when the fha started.

In fact, by one estimate, if we

Do "do nothing and move on," it

Would take 200 years for the

Wealth gap to disappear on its

Own.

And yet, so often, efforts to

Address the legacy of housing

Discrimination have been

Resolutely color-blind.

Here is joe biden on the

Campaign trail just last year:

My plan for african americans

To close the wealth gap is to

Invest in african american

Home ownership.

That includes my insisting that

There will be a $15,000

First-time home buyer tax credit

For everyone.

Well, hold on there,

Joe.

"For everyone"?

That might sound great, but it

Also fundamentaly dilutes what

You're actually trying to do

Here.

Because we've immediately gone

From targeted investment in

Black home ownership to a broad

Tax credit for everybody.

And we sure seem to become a

Rainbow coalition as soon as the

Federal government starts

Handing out cash, don't we?

And our failure to effectively

Target solutions based on race

Has doomed potential fixes in

The past.

In the '70s, we passed the

Community reinvestment act

Requiring banks to approve loans

In low-income neighborhoods.

But we didn't specify who the

Loans had to go to, with one

Analysis in philadelphia showing

That banks and lenders favored

White borrowers, even in

Majority-black neighborhoods,

Making this well-meaning act

Basically a gentrification

Machine.

Although not a literal

Gentrification machine, of

Course, as we all know, those

Are obviously e-scooters.

So that approach of "move on,

We're all god's people" hasn't

Fixed the problem.

But what about that second guy,

Who said he doesn't know what we

Should do about it, but wishes

He had the answer?

If that is true, if he honestly

Wants to know what a major

Component of the answer should

Probably be, I've got some good

News for him, because it exists,

It's pretty straightforward, and

It's the same answer that many

Black viewers have been shouting

At their screen for the last 20

Minutes.

Because it's reparations.

And the first thing to say about

This is that it is by no means a

New argument.

People have been making the case

For reparations for generations,

And the history of housing

Discrimination specifically made

Up a large part of ta-nehisi

Coates' award-winning essay "the

Case for reparations" seven

Years ago.

And yet, even though reparations

Are clearly necessary,

Practical, and the right thing

To do, a poll recently found

Only one in ten white people

Favor them.

And some dismiss the subject

Right out of hand.

Yeah, I don't think

Reparations for something that

Happened 150 years ago for whom

None of us currently living are

Responsible is a good idea.

We've, you know, tried to deal

With our original sin of sl*very

By fighting a civil w*r, by

Passing a landmark civil rights

Legislation.

We've elected an

African american president.

I think we're always a work in

Progress in this country.

But no one currently alive was

Responsible for that.

Wow.

Reparations aren't a good idea

Because "we've elected an

African american president"?

Who exactly is the "we" in that

Sentence, mitch?

Because as I remember it,

Electing that president was

Basically your least favorite

Thing america ever did, and you

Vowed to devote every waking

Moment to making sure it didn't

Happen again.

"We tried to deal with our

Original sin of sl*very by

Fighting a civil w*r... Which I

Didn't have to take a side in...

By passing civil rights

Legislation... Which I didn't

Have to take a position on...

And by electing an

African american president...

Who I've always been against.

This country has come a long

Way, and, with god as my

Witness, it will not go any

Further."

But the thing is, we're not

Actually talking about

Reparations for sl*very here...

We should, but that's a

Different conversation.

We're talking about housing

Discrimination.

Mitch mcconnell was born in



The fair housing act wasn't

Passed until 1968.

This is quantifiable harm done

In our lifetimes to people who

Are still alive.

As for what reparations could

Look like, there has been a bill

Introduced in the house for



John conyers to form a

Commission to study this, and

This year the house judiciary

Committee voted to advance it.

So if we really want to know

What reparations could look

Like, we can pass that bill and

Find out.

We don't really

Need to study the "whether," we

Just need to study the "how."

Because we know what the

Government did, and we know the

Effect it had.

And there are potential models

For us to learn from... From

Germany paying reparations to

Holocaust survivors to the u.s.

Paying japanese americans who

Were interned in world w*r ii.

And if you're looking for more

Recent examples, evanston,

Illinois, recently voted to use

Revenue from legal weed to

Provide grants to assist black

People who lived there from 1919

To 1969 and their descendants.

Now, does that program fix

Everything?

No, of course not.

Its first phase makes available

Up to $25,000 for each

Participant, who can only spend

That money on buying or

Renovating a house or paying

Down their mortgage.

And the initial budget for the

Program is only $400,000, so it

Might well be limited to 16

People.

But it is at least a real

Attempt to both acknowledge and

Redress harm.

And ultimately, this isn't

Something cities, or even

States, can do on their own.

It took the power and resources

Of the federal government to

Enforce racism on this scale,

And only the federal government

Can truly grapple with the

Consequences.

And there are some... Like

Nikole hannah-jones... Who have

Some pretty specific ideas on

What that grappling could look

Like.

So, to me, reparations has to

Be three-pronged.

Recommitment to strong

Enforcement of civil rights

Laws, because you can get this

Economic payment, but we know

That black people still face

Discrimination in every aspect

Of american society.

And I think there needs to be a

Really large investment of

Resources into the black

Community that have had that

Wealth extracted and have been

Denied the ability to live like

Other americans.

And I think anyone who is

Reparations that is not going

For a cash payment is basically

As r*cist.

Because it's like, it's only

When it comes to black folks

That we are so concerned with

How people are going to spend.

Don't know if they know how

To spend that money responsibly.

I say this jokingly but half

Jokingly.

If I want to spend my

Reparations on all gucci, that

Is my right.

Yeah, black people

Should get to

Decide how to spend the money

The federal government gives

Them, in the same way white

People got to decide how to

Spend all the billions of

Dollars in wealth it created for

Them.

I promise you not all that money

Has been spent responsibly.

Just think how much of it has

Gone towards thomas kinkade

Paintings.

There is one, and only one, good

Reason to buy a thomas kinkade

Painting, and that's to help

Convince the appraiser that your

Friend's white husband really

Does live in this house.

That is it.

And I'm not saying money alone

Is what's called for here.

As nikole hannah-jones pointed

Out, simply handing out cash

Without changing any of the

Underlying structural conditions

That produced inequality in the

First place would be a big

Mistake.

This is a both/and situation.

But ultimately, the only real

Strange thing about paying

Reparations to black people is

That we haven't done it yet.

Just like it's strange that it

Has taken so long to give

Bruce's beach back to the

Bruces.

In both cases, the right thing

To do couldn't be clearer.

When you deprive somebody of

Something, you make it right by

Paying what you owe.

Now, figuring out exactly how to

Pay might get complicated, but

Realizing that you have to

Should be pretty simple.

Because this is a wound that we

Are actively choosing not to

Heal, and it is hurting real

People every day.

And also try and think of the

Positives here.

Because if we do choose to do

The right thing, and after all

These years, redress this wrong,

We might finally live up to this

Country's highest potential, and

That is to become a nation of

Rose and angies getting

Absolutely day-wasted on

Our porches.

That's our show.

Thank you so much for watching.

See you next week, good night!