In her book Caste, Isabel Wilkerson describes this structure as a matrix or – artificial intelligence – a pre-programmed code that’s always at work in the background advantaging White people and steering resources away from Blacks. She describes this invisible mainframe as “a puppet master unseen by those whose subconscious it directs, its instructions an intravenous drip to the mind, caste in the guise of normalcy, injustice looking just, atrocities looking unavoidable to keep the machinery humming, the matrix…a facsimile for life itself.
Tag Archives: urban planning
Making the Ghetto Part 3 – Perceptions and responses to the “invasion” of Blacks in cities
Racial zoning and other tactics devised to exclude Blacks stem from the same cause: White superiority. Whites viewed Blacks as inferior and unfit to live together in the same community. Douglas S. Massey & Nancy A Denton explain in American Apartheid, “Middle-class whites were repelled by what they saw as uncouth manners, unclean habits, slothfulContinue reading “Making the Ghetto Part 3 – Perceptions and responses to the “invasion” of Blacks in cities”
Making the Ghetto Part 2 – Fear of “a colored man of means”: Strategies to Defend Housing Segregation in the North
Although Whites homeowners in the North used numerous organized methods to block the so-called assault by Blacks on their communities; organized resistance and violence were especially favored tactics. Between 1917 and 1921, there were 58 firebombing incidents. Many occurred during the summer of 1919 and several more continued for the next several decades in places like,Continue reading “Making the Ghetto Part 2 – Fear of “a colored man of means”: Strategies to Defend Housing Segregation in the North”
Hidden in Plain Sight – The Cook County property tax system and racial equity
“Some of the ‘educated’ Negroes do not pay attention to such important matters as the assessment of property and the collection of taxes, and they do not inform themselves as to how these things are worked out.” – Carter G. Woodson, The Mis-Education of the Negro “…reorganizing the tax systems in the counties…that kind ofContinue reading “Hidden in Plain Sight – The Cook County property tax system and racial equity”
American Planning Association “People Behind the Plans” Podcast 11/14/2019
Originally published by the American Planning Association 11/14/2019 Certain concepts in the planning sphere can be hard to make tangible for residents, but property taxes is not one of them. Kelwin Harris knows this reality well. As the director of outreach and engagement for the Office of the Cook County Assessor — which is responsibleContinue reading “American Planning Association “People Behind the Plans” Podcast 11/14/2019″
Robbins, Illinois – A Story of Environmental Injustice and Resilience
Robbins’ origin story is one of a small village with a big history. It’s the oldest primarily African-American suburb in the Chicago region and one of only a few in the nation. Having recently celebrated its centennial, the village reflects the pioneering spirit of its early settlers who incorporated it in 1917 to be anContinue reading “Robbins, Illinois – A Story of Environmental Injustice and Resilience”
How European cities address racial equity, statues, and the politics of choosing to not forget - a memoir
During my recent Marshall Memorial Fellowship with The German Marshall Fund of the United States, I had the opportunity to learn how European cities solve similar challenges we face in Chicago in the context of the transatlantic relationship and our shared national interests. The German Marshall Fund was founded in 1972 as a non-partisan, non-profitContinue reading “How European cities address racial equity, statues, and the politics of choosing to not forget - a memoir”
Public Engagement Tips for a New Era
Below are a few helpful tips and best practices for public engagement. They can be used at the start of planning efforts with community groups, elected officials, or any initiative where influencing stakeholders is important. My hope is that these tips will be useful for planners in navigating the sometimes troubled waters of community outreachContinue reading “Public Engagement Tips for a New Era”
My “South Side”: Reflections on Natalie Moore’s memoir and the nearby neighborhood I grew up in.
I recently read Natalie Moore’s The South Side and found some striking similarities in our upbringing and experiences. I grew up in Chicago in between St. Leo High School and St. Sabina in Auburn-Gresham: a virtually all-black neighborhood on the South side of Chicago – about three miles west of where Natalie Moore lived in Chatham. We actuallyContinue reading “My “South Side”: Reflections on Natalie Moore’s memoir and the nearby neighborhood I grew up in.”
Kelwin's Big Ideas 