Description
Book SynopsisAnalyzing federal involvement in residential segregation, this book examines how the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) attempted to forge elementary changes in segregated residential patterns by opening up the suburbs to groups historically excluded for racial or economic reasons.
Trade Review"Why have federal efforts at housing desegregation been less successful than struggles against school and job discrimination? In a thoughtful comparison of the responsible federal agencies, Bonastia contends that the 'institutional home' in which a desegregation task was placed is crucial... [Knocking on the Door] clearly lays out choices and the consequences of desegregation efforts. Highly recommended."--S. D. Borchert, Choice "I found this book to be useful and informative... [It demonstrates] why a results-oriented approach to civil-rights enforcement was not undertaken in housing, as it was, for a time, in education and employment... Bonastia makes a convincing argument that, with a different type of enforcement agency combating housing discrimination, progress could have been greater than it was."--John E. Farley, Contexts "This book provides a fascinating look at the details and nuances of public policy history during the Civil Rights era and deepens our understanding of the consequences of institutional arrangements for the effectiveness of social policy. The book is thus relevant to scholars of social change, institutions, and racial stratification... This work offers valuable insight into the federal role in perpetuating segregation and the institutional forces limiting social change."--Chenoa Flippen, American Journal of Sociology
Table of ContentsPreface ix List of Abbreviations for Frequently Cited Government Agencies and Commissions xiii Chapter One: Residential Segregation The Forgotten Civil Rights Issue 1 Chapter Two: The Divergence of Civil Rights Policies in Housing, Education, and Employment 25 Chapter Three: The Federal Government and Residential Segregation, 1866-1968 57 Chapter Four: Conviction and Controversy HUD Formulates Its Fair Housing Policies 9 Chapter Five: Indirect Attack A Housing Freeze Kills Civil Rights Efforts 121 Chapter Six: The Recent Past, Present, and Future of Residential Desegregation 144 List of Abbreviations for Notes 167 Notes 169 Works Cited 207 Index 227
