RJI Presents | Exclusionary by Design: Zip Code is Destiny (Hybrid)

Join the Racial Justice Initiative for the timely exploration of one of the most the significant causes of segregation in the communities of our Boston region—exclusionary zoning practices—and what we as community residents can do about it.

The first priority issue identified by the RJI in 2016 was exclusionary housing as evidenced by redlining, block-busting, creation of inner-city “ghettos,” and lily-white suburbs.

These conditions are unabated today as documented in Amy Dain’s investigative report Exclusionary by Design. Commissioned by The Boston Foundation’s Boston Indicators research center, Dain examines the 100-year history of municipal zoning practices in Massachusetts that resulted in the residential segregation of today. The consequences of these discriminatory zoning laws are unacceptably atrocious: the life expectancy of a Black man living in Roxbury is 10 years less than a White man living in Back Bay. Likewise, inequities are found in educational attainment, access to healthy foods, air quality, and most significantly glaring economic disparities of an ever-increasing racial wealth gap. Truly, ZIP code is destiny.

Amy Dain will lead this conversation on Massachusetts’ housing crisis. A panel of respondents will describe the costs of these radicalized zoning practices to all of us—Black, White, Brown, Asian alike… and most importantly, what actions we can take in our communities to address these challenges.

Registration: This event is available in person and online. Please click the appropriate purple bar above to register.

This event is sponsored by TBE’s Racial Justice Initiative, which works to increase our understanding and activism to address ongoing discrimination and inequality.