The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America

Rothstein examines the idea “that America’s cities came to be racially divided through de facto segregation–that is, through individual prejudices, income differences, or the actions of private institutions like banks and real estate agencies. Rather, [he argues] that it was de jure segregation–the laws and policy decisions passed by local, state, and federal governments–that actually promoted the discriminatory patterns that continue to this day”–Amazon.com.

Masterful… The Rothstein book gathers meticulous research showing how governments at all levels long employed racially discriminatory policies to deny blacks the opportunity to live in neighborhoods with jobs, good schools and upward mobility.–Jared Bernstein, Washington Post

Essential… Rothstein persuasively debunks many contemporary myths about racial discrimination…. Only when Americans learn a common–and accurate–history of our nation’s racial divisions, he contends, will we then be able to consider steps to fulfill our legal and moral obligations. For the rest of us, still trying to work past 40 years of misinformation, there might not be a better place to start than Rothstein’s book.–Rachel M. Cohen, Slate