0:00:06.114,0:00:10.994 Decades of housing discrimination have [br]helped create an enormous wealth gap 0:00:10.994,0:00:13.406 between white and Black families. 0:00:14.767,0:00:19.287 - The enduring legacy of redlining, [br]the legal government sponsored effort to 0:00:19.287,0:00:23.547 deny mortgages and home ownership [br]opportunities to African-Americans and 0:00:23.547,0:00:29.756 other minorities continues to undermine [br]their quality of life. This violation of 0:00:29.756,0:00:34.872 basic civil rights continues to [br]negatively impact education attainment, 0:00:34.872,0:00:41.002 health outcomes, wealth accumulation,[br]self-esteem, mortality rates, and 0:00:41.002,0:00:42.348 civic engagement. 0:00:42.348,0:00:47.503 Home ownership has proved to both the [br]doorway and gatekeeper to success and 0:00:47.503,0:00:52.694 well-being in America. It is at the [br]core of today's racial wealth gap. 0:00:53.635,0:00:57.944 - There's a very powerful myth in this[br]country, and that is that residential 0:00:57.944,0:01:02.172 segregation in this country is something [br]we call de-facto segregation. 0:01:02.172,0:01:04.098 Something that happened by accident. 0:01:04.098,0:01:07.896 Every textbook that's used in American [br]high schools and middle schools today 0:01:07.896,0:01:10.703 lies about this history. [br]It talks about how 0:01:10.703,0:01:14.707 northern cities were de facto segregated,[br]without government involvement. 0:01:14.707,0:01:19.733 They talk about how the Federal Housing [br]Administration did a wonderful job of 0:01:19.733,0:01:23.533 creating single family homes in the [br]suburbs for working class families 0:01:23.533,0:01:27.233 without mentioning that the working [br]class families they had created these 0:01:27.233,0:01:29.515 homes for could only be white. 0:01:35.917,0:01:42.788 - This began a history of excluding people[br]of color from government housing programs. 0:01:42.788,0:01:47.580 Intended to lower the cost of mortgages[br]and increase home ownership. 0:01:49.113,0:01:53.469 Segregated neighborhoods [br]by race using a code system. 0:01:56.315,0:02:00.649 Outlined minority neighborhoods[br]using the color red. 0:02:02.636,0:02:07.497 Intended to expand the secondary [br]mortgage market by securitizing 0:02:07.497,0:02:09.348 mortgage loans. 0:02:09.348,0:02:13.007 Community boards often denied [br]minority veterans mortgages. 0:02:13.007,0:02:17.796 Many minority vets could not be [br]buried in the same cemetery as whites. 0:02:17.796,0:02:23.847 It wasn't until 1970 that lending to [br]communities of color began to increase. 0:02:25.873,0:02:30.230 - The way this manifested itself was [br]through the drawing of maps. 0:02:30.230,0:02:35.823 Different neighborhoods were underwritten[br]as being riskier or safer and the 0:02:35.823,0:02:40.324 principle component that determined [br]riskiness or safety from a lending 0:02:40.324,0:02:43.848 standpoint was ethnic [br]and racial composition. 0:02:51.696,0:02:55.417 - It was at that point that the [br]real estate developers began to 0:02:55.417,0:02:58.043 drop strings around areas. 0:02:58.043,0:03:02.790 The local banker could choose [br]who would get mortgages, where. 0:03:02.790,0:03:08.122 So that we could not have gotten [br]a loan out in the suburbs because 0:03:08.122,0:03:11.019 those were whites only. 0:03:11.019,0:03:16.187 The concept of a middle class Black[br]only exists in the mind of a middle 0:03:16.187,0:03:17.901 class Black. 0:03:17.901,0:03:21.574 Everywhere else in the suburbs [br]you are that nigger family on the 0:03:21.574,0:03:24.247 corner of Warren Road [br]and Boulevard Way. 0:03:30.993,0:03:36.660 - Well the truth is that we've had in this[br]country generations of affirmative action 0:03:36.660,0:03:38.196 for whites. 0:03:38.196,0:03:41.880 And the sad truth of it is that [br]whites don't know that that's 0:03:41.880,0:03:45.542 happened or they refuse to[br]accept it or don't understand the history. 0:03:45.542,0:03:51.969 And what that leads to is this false[br]kind-of narrative that "I did it myself." 0:03:51.969,0:03:57.467 You know, this Horatio Alger, [br]individual responsibility narrative. 0:03:57.467,0:04:02.024 - There were many federal, state, [br]and local policies explicitly racial 0:04:02.024,0:04:06.407 designed to create segregation in [br]every Metropolitan area in the country. 0:04:06.407,0:04:10.528 And policies that were so[br]powerful that they still determine 0:04:10.528,0:04:13.713 the racial boundaries of [br]Metropolitan areas today. 0:04:13.713,0:04:19.761 The Federal Housing Administration began [br]a program to suburbanize the entire white 0:04:19.761,0:04:22.917 working class population [br]into single family homes. 0:04:24.284,0:04:29.085 - This is Levittown, Pennsylvania. [br]A new suburban community of 0:04:29.085,0:04:32.963 60,000 people with it's [br]giant shopping center, 0:04:32.963,0:04:36.839 winding lanes named for [br]flowers and trees. 0:04:36.839,0:04:40.392 It is fairly typical of communities [br]all over America. 0:04:40.392,0:04:44.862 Where families are pursuing the American[br]dream to give their children a better 0:04:44.862,0:04:46.997 chance in life. 0:04:46.997,0:04:49.873 Nearly all are young people. 0:04:49.873,0:04:53.872 A large proportion are veterans. [br]For many it is the first house of 0:04:53.872,0:04:58.590 their own and it represents a [br]major financial investment. 0:05:00.189,0:05:04.144 In August 1957, Levittown,[br]Pennsylvania attracted 0:05:04.144,0:05:08.854 international attention as [br]William Myers Jr. and his family moved 0:05:08.854,0:05:11.064 into the three bedroom house. 0:05:11.064,0:05:13.687 They are very close [br]to the Levittown norm. 0:05:13.687,0:05:15.990 Except in one respect. 0:05:15.990,0:05:22.261 William Myers Jr. and his family are [br]negroes in an all-white community. 0:05:22.261,0:05:28.560 - If more colored are allowed to move in,[br]Levittown is going to go downhill. 0:05:28.560,0:05:32.057 - The only way that those developers [br]could get the capital to do that was 0:05:32.057,0:05:34.537 by going to the [br]Federal Housing Administration. 0:05:34.537,0:05:37.438 In order to get that approval,[br]they had to commit 0:05:37.438,0:05:40.124 never to sell a home [br]to an African-American. 0:05:40.124,0:05:44.674 - Access to leverage allowed [br]middle-class whites to build wealth. 0:05:44.674,0:05:47.958 - The white families who bought those [br]homes were able to use their wealth 0:05:47.958,0:05:52.487 to send children to college. And they use [br]it to bequeath wealth to their children, 0:05:52.487,0:05:55.501 who could use it as down payments[br]for their own homes. 0:05:56.222,0:05:59.383 - Restrictive covenants ensured that [br]minorities could not 0:05:59.383,0:06:01.550 buy into white neighborhoods. 0:06:01.550,0:06:05.242 Properties shall continue to be [br]occupied by the same social 0:06:05.242,0:06:06.986 and racial classes. 0:06:07.716,0:06:12.259 - When Karen and I purchased this home[br]that was built in 1948, 0:06:12.259,0:06:15.102 we found some documents[br]in a closet. 0:06:15.102,0:06:20.611 Neither the whole or any part of [br]said tract shall be sold, rented, 0:06:20.611,0:06:27.229 or leased to any persons or persons[br]not of white or Caucasian race. 0:06:30.125,0:06:34.976 - Created greatest growth of the middle[br]class in the history of the world. 0:06:34.976,0:06:40.707 In 1940, 42 percent of white [br]families owned their own home. 0:06:40.707,0:06:46.116 In 2000, 71 percent of white[br]families owned their own home. 0:06:47.917,0:06:53.951 - So consequently those 71 percent, [br]72 percent of white home owners 0:06:53.951,0:06:57.394 who own their own home[br]should be thankful to the 0:06:57.394,0:07:02.102 federal government for providing [br]them this opportunity. 0:07:02.102,0:07:05.931 What did not happen or what [br]happened at the same time 0:07:05.931,0:07:11.581 was that we people of color were [br]discriminated against and were 0:07:11.581,0:07:16.775 prevented from taking advantage[br]of those opportunities. 0:07:16.775,0:07:22.295 - The recent housing and foreclosure[br]crisis were a continuation of a form 0:07:22.295,0:07:23.809 of redlining. 0:07:23.809,0:07:27.650 - Financial institutions practiced [br]unrealistic credit scoring and 0:07:27.650,0:07:29.567 predatory lending. 0:07:29.567,0:07:36.361 Subprime mortgages grew nearly 250 [br]percent. In 1998, subprime mortgages 0:07:36.361,0:07:44.039 made up 9.8 percent of the mortgage[br]market. By 2006, they made up 23.5 0:07:44.039,0:07:46.105 percent of the market. 0:07:46.105,0:07:51.505 - And the gap between white home ownership[br]rates and black home ownership rates is 0:07:51.505,0:07:58.569 30 percentage points larger than it was[br]back in 1968. In 1968 the typical Black 0:07:58.569,0:08:03.335 family had one-sixth as much [br]wealth as the typical white family. 0:08:03.335,0:08:05.500 Now it is one-tenth. 0:08:05.500,0:08:09.065 We have gone backwards [br]since the civil rights era. 0:08:09.065,0:08:15.598 - Latinos lost close to a 170 billion[br]dollars worth of equity that they 0:08:15.598,0:08:20.159 had accumulated in the home [br]that they purchased many 0:08:20.159,0:08:22.110 many years before then. 0:08:24.169,0:08:27.897 - When they come to access products, 0:08:27.897,0:08:31.664 the choices that they are given[br]are limited. 0:08:31.664,0:08:34.380 So you're given, instead of a [br]conventional loan, you're given 0:08:34.380,0:08:39.409 a special loans that have higher [br]interest rates or higher fees 0:08:39.409,0:08:44.201 that again set you up for [br]foreclosure or failure as well. 0:08:44.201,0:08:47.900 - The scandal of your tenure is your [br]unwillingness to do your job and 0:08:47.900,0:08:51.807 enforce the laws that reduce [br]housing discrimination. 0:08:51.807,0:08:56.106 - The housing crisis affected all [br]communities but disproportionally 0:08:56.106,0:08:58.405 devastated minority families. 0:08:58.405,0:09:03.325 Black and Hispanic families lost[br]nearly 20 years of wealth between 0:09:03.325,0:09:06.331 2007 and 2013. 0:09:06.331,0:09:11.166 Minority home ownership is the [br]lowest it's been since 1996. 0:09:12.172,0:09:15.244 - Redlining discrimination in the [br]Asian-American communities, 0:09:15.244,0:09:17.704 alive and kicking. [br]And in California, 0:09:18.334,0:09:21.766 you'll see that Asians have the[br]second highest probability 0:09:21.766,0:09:23.465 of going to foreclosure. 0:09:23.465,0:09:27.349 Very comparable to Latinos. [br]Latinos were 1.4, 0:09:27.349,0:09:29.664 for Asians it was 1.3. 0:09:30.204,0:09:34.945 And so whether it is in home [br]ownership, rental, small business, 0:09:34.945,0:09:39.958 foreclosure, across the [br]board there is redlining. 0:09:39.958,0:09:49.067 - Between 1934 and 1962, 120 billion[br]in FHA and VA loans were issued. 0:09:49.067,0:09:51.937 Over that period of time, [br]98 percent of the loans 0:09:51.937,0:09:54.738 went to white families[br]and less than two 0:09:54.738,0:09:57.850 percent went to African-Americans [br]and other minorities. 0:09:58.650,0:10:04.395 Using the average Home Price Index[br]between 1934 through 2018, 0:10:04.395,0:10:10.015 those FHA, VA loans equate to at least[br]three trillion dollars 0:10:10.015,0:10:12.321 in current real estate value. 0:10:22.377,0:10:26.954 Assuming that as loans were paid off[br]and excess funds were invested in 0:10:26.954,0:10:31.192 stocks and other investments[br]conservatively, another two 0:10:31.192,0:10:33.169 trillion were created. 0:10:33.169,0:10:36.250 This "White Subsidy" is the major [br]contributor to the current 0:10:36.250,0:10:37.822 racial wealth gap. 0:10:38.442,0:10:42.527 - So many white Americans experience[br]this sense of self esteem, a sense of 0:10:42.527,0:10:44.419 you know superiority, if you will. 0:10:44.419,0:10:49.633 This sense of mastery, that they [br]have created their own destiny 0:10:49.633,0:10:53.112 in their lives. And they have no [br]acknowledgment of this invisible 0:10:53.112,0:10:58.969 hand that supported them throughout[br]their lives and not just them, but there's 0:10:58.969,0:11:03.598 a legacy of that invisible hand across [br]generations that has translated itself 0:11:03.598,0:11:09.734 from the original affirmative action[br]to trillions of dollars of head start 0:11:09.734,0:11:13.604 ahead of other communities, like [br]African-Americans, Latinos, 0:11:13.604,0:11:17.988 Native Americans, others who don't [br]have the same benefit. 0:11:17.988,0:11:22.985 - Children of homeowners are more likely[br]to graduate from high school, have less 0:11:22.985,0:11:26.991 childhood behavioral problems[br]and achieve higher college 0:11:26.991,0:11:28.593 graduation rates. 0:11:30.354,0:11:34.465 - In segregated housing, and in [br]neighborhoods that everybody is 0:11:34.465,0:11:38.393 segregated that tend to be low[br]income neighborhoods. 0:11:38.393,0:11:45.111 There is the greater likelihood that [br]the youngsters will be involved in 0:11:45.111,0:11:48.674 gangs, or will be recruited [br]to be in gangs. 0:11:48.674,0:11:53.125 - I noticed an absence of hope, [br]an absence of light. These kids 0:11:53.125,0:11:56.461 were barraged with a message [br]every single day of their lives, 0:11:56.461,0:11:59.269 that they weren't valued, [br]that they didn't matter. 0:11:59.269,0:12:01.156 And they internalized that. 0:12:01.156,0:12:07.582 And that caused frustration [br]and anger, and eventually despair 0:12:07.582,0:12:09.209 and a loss of hope. 0:12:09.209,0:12:11.802 There is now a very good science [br]that shows the sense of not 0:12:11.802,0:12:16.431 belonging, the sense of lacking [br]self-esteem raises cortisol levels 0:12:16.431,0:12:21.070 in your blood. And cortisol is good for [br]you when you're in an extremely 0:12:21.070,0:12:26.097 stressful situation, but when you're [br]constantly bathed in cortisol, 0:12:26.097,0:12:30.083 because you're constantly feeling these [br]stressors of being marginalized and 0:12:30.083,0:12:34.194 being told that you're less worthy, [br]less valuable and being in constant 0:12:34.194,0:12:38.815 state of really fear and anxiety,[br]it changes your physiology completely. 0:12:38.815,0:12:42.493 It makes you more prone [br]to cardiovascular disease, 0:12:42.493,0:12:45.745 it makes you more prone [br]to diabetes, it makes 0:12:45.745,0:12:48.444 changes in your brain,[br]which actually makes it 0:12:48.444,0:12:52.611 more difficult to engage [br]in what we call executive function. 0:12:52.611,0:12:57.782 This kind of chronic stress which is [br]driven by the policies that we've 0:12:57.782,0:13:04.442 created is as lethal as any [br]knife or any gun. 0:13:04.442,0:13:07.039 - Suppose discrimination did end today. 0:13:07.039,0:13:11.197 How many generations would it take[br]to get to rough equality and wealth 0:13:11.197,0:13:12.965 across races. 0:13:12.965,0:13:17.832 France was seven generations, [br]more than 200 years. 0:13:17.832,0:13:22.040 - And so when white Americans [br]hear about affirmative action 0:13:22.040,0:13:26.145 for Blacks, or for Latinos, [br]they're outraged. 0:13:26.145,0:13:30.996 They think "I've done this [br]by myself, why can't these people." 0:13:30.996,0:13:33.236 "There's something [br]wrong with these people." 0:13:34.698,0:13:41.821 - The same programs that were provided[br]to white Americans, that enabled them 0:13:41.821,0:13:45.021 to accumulate this wealth [br]through home ownership, 0:13:45.021,0:13:49.103 those same opportunities [br]have to be provided to us. 0:13:50.945,0:13:54.893 - Imagine where minority families would[br]be today if their grandparents had the 0:13:54.893,0:13:59.164 same access to wealth through [br]home ownership that white families had. 0:13:59.864,0:14:02.455 What would the wealth gap be[br]between white and minority 0:14:02.455,0:14:07.876 families if minorities had the same [br]access to wealth through home ownership? 0:14:08.413,0:14:10.901 Would there be a gap?