Everyday Racism in Neighborhoods and the Housing Market
Let me give you an example of systemic racism and classism that impacts most of us and for which many liberals and people of goodwill are responsible. That would be suburban zoning.
Our suburbs are generally zoned to make denser and multifamily housing more difficult to enact. Land is the biggest costs in most real estate transactions, the more units you can build on a given piece of land, the cheaper the cost of housing. Most suburban communities have zoning and land use laws that require large minimum lots sizes, set backs, sidewalks, yards, etc. This zoning which meets an antiquated aesthetic keeps housing more expensive than it needs to be which mostly negatively affects people of color and lower income households. Similarly, restrictions on manufactured and other less expensive forms of housing also hurt these groups. Communities should be willing to undertake significant changes to zoning laws to allow denser more affordable housing. Anything less is a perpetuation of racism.
The St Louis Contrarian 