Race Terms

White privilege: the idea that all whites benefit on some level from living in a society in which whites hold most of the power

Racial Segregation: when racial groups are separated in terms of where they live, work, shop, or go to school

de jure: by law (segregation under Jim Crow)

de facto: by fact / in practice (segregation today: inner city vs. suburbs)

Mortgage: a large loan used to purchase a home or property (usually takes 30-40 years to pay off)

Assets: anything of value that is owned

Liabilities: outstanding debts

Wealth: the total value of everything you own (assets) minus anything owed (liabilities)

Redlining: the discriminatory practice of refusing to grant loans, mortgages, or insurance to people in a particular area, usually a minority neighborhood.

Federal Housing Administration (FHA): a federal agency created by FDR, which forced banks to offer fairer mortgage terms to homebuyers in exchange for federal insurance of such loans. However, it also legalized redlining of minority neighborhoods.

Community Reinvestment Act: a 1977 law requiring banks to make loans to neighborhoods in which they accept deposits (designed to fight redlining)

White flight: when whites move away from an area out of fear that an increase in minority residents will lead to lower property values and neighborhood decline

Gentrification: when the middle or upper class move into a cheaper neighborhood, resulting in the displacement of low-income residents.

Blockbusting: when real-estate agents use racial scare tactics to convince whites to sell their homes cheaply to a speculator who then resells or rents it to African Americans at a higher rate.