Teaching About Inequality, Race, and Property
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Abstract
This Article surveys the extent and causes of racial inequality with respect to control over property, specifically the particularly striking aspect of the inequality: that it “is clearly color-coded.” While this “color-coding” exists internationally as well as domestically, the focus of this Article is on the United States where minorities, and in particular African-Americans control substantially less property than whites. Critically, the federal government has played an important role in creating, sponsoring, and perpetuating this inequality through deliberate policies and programs. As a result, minorities are disadvantaged and do not enjoy many of the same benefits of home ownership as whites. Importantly, these issues of discrimination can be raised in a property course. For example, many cases in the property curriculum illuminate ways in which white supremacist ideology and action have been a substantial cause of racial disparities in control of property. Further, additional legal courses may explore the forces behind the unequal distribution of advantage and foundations of inequality. My goal in teaching this material is to allow students to trace today’s racial disparities in wealth and endowments to government action. By studying the underpinnings of racial inequality in control over property, more students might move the federal government to acknowledge its role in racial inequality and right the wrong.