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The myth and truth about housing segregation in the Bay Area

Richard Rothstein, one of the most prominent experts on segregation in America, warns that the San Francisco Bay Area will never be able to fully address the current crisis in housing until one truth is acknowledged. It is this: Segregated housing projects were created by design—not accidentally—throughout the Bay Area because of federal and local government programs and policies, and the legacy of this history profoundly impacts the housing crisis today. “This myth that it all happened by accident hobbles our ability to do anything about it,” says Rothstein.