In section IV-VI, Coates presents the argument that through the dehumanization of African Americans during the integral stages of America’s development, there is an immense amount of irreversible damage that needs to be acknowledged. In Section IV, he establishes that both poor whites who were indentured servants and African American slaves had similar amounts of rights and were both looked down upon by the Elitist groups. Eventually it was realized that indentured servants had too many legal protections, and with African Americans being “aliens” they became free rein to turn into property. This is the point in history when the Black vs White mantra was instilled in America. African Americans no longer had any value as people and were treated horribly; There was no regard for family or life, but instead insurance policies to benefit the white man in case their slaves were no longer useable.
After the Civil War when slaves were freed, white supremacists still did everything they could to hold the African American population down and discriminate upon them. Bills such as “The G.I. Bill”, kept African Americans from having the same privileges as whites, and painted the clear picture that no matter what this country was not made for you and will continue to be this way. For years it was still purposely made a hurdle for African Americans to own property, yet they still blamed the “colored man” for being at fault to not live up to the standards of the white man.
All of these actions have affected Black American’s lives up to today creating the argument for “The Case for Reparations”. As Coates stated “Today Chicago is one of the most segregated cities in the country, a fact that reflects assiduous planning.” The zoning of cities by race and years of putting a group of people down to live in impoverished conditions has made it hard and even impossible for a large majority of people to escape the subservient conditions that existed since the beginning of this country’s formation.
I think you made a very good point in that even with a much greater set of institutionalized obstacles, African-Americans were simultaneously shunned for not “living up” to the goals and expectations of an “average American”. While the obvious fact of stunted opportunity was staring them in the face, regardless these statements would be made without any actual observance of black performance or acumen as a crux for racial control and oppression. It hardly mattered how well they were actually doing for themselves (especially considering the circumstances) because they would never be permitted the privilege of a legitimate or honest assessment.
This is an extremely well written account of Coate’s article that touches on the totality of racism in our country’s narrative. You dually highlight the dehumanization of African Americans, as coupled with the oppressive forces of institutionalization, creating a narrative the highlights the sum-total of strife, thus facilitating a great argument for reparations. I also love how you spend time thinking about the implications of redlining. As a realtor, I personally enjoy reading other’s thoughts on redlining, and you did a great job!