Racial Zoning

Racial Zoning. March Route for Fair Housing. April 1916 , On April 10, 1916, the U.S. Supreme Court heard a case from Louisville, Kentucky, where it was illegal to sell homes to Blacks in areas where Whites lived. The high court's 1917 decision in Buchanan v. Warley said Louisville's law violated a Black citizen's right to equal protection under the 14th Amendment. This new rule of the land meant local governments could not use zoning laws to regulate land sales based on the property owner's race. Despite the ruling, Southern cities like Birmingham found other ways to enforce racially segregated neighborhoods., "You cannot subvert your neighbor's rights without striking a dangerous blow at your own." , Carl Shurz , German-American statesman, abolitionist, and Union Army General in the American Civil War., After the 1917 Supreme Court ruling, city officials in Southern cities used other urban planning tools to create new laws to keep Blacks from moving into White neighborhoods. In 1926, Birmingham officials followed New Orleans' example to create land-use zoning plans that excluded Blacks from White residential areas. Under these new zoning rules, Birmingham planners could revoke building permits to prevent construction of Negro housing in White neighborhoods. Such racial zoning rules illegally controlled Birmingham's residential development until 1950., Lesson H1: Do you think it is fair to make people live in certain neighborhoods based only on skin color?