Note:
Gunnar Myrdal died in 1987, less than 70 years ago.
Therefore, this work is protected by copyright,
restricting your legal rights to reproduce it.
However, you are welcome to view it on screen, as you do now.
Read more about copyright.
Full resolution (TIFF) - On this page / på denna sida - VII. Social Inequality - 29. Patterns of Social Segregation and Discrimination - 4. Sanctions for Residential Segregation
<< prev. page << föreg. sida << >> nästa sida >> next page >>
Below is the raw OCR text
from the above scanned image.
Do you see an error? Proofread the page now!
Här nedan syns maskintolkade texten från faksimilbilden ovan.
Ser du något fel? Korrekturläs sidan nu!
This page has never been proofread. / Denna sida har aldrig korrekturlästs.
626 An American Dilemma
even if It has not been effective in opening up new areas for the congested
Negro populations in American cities.
The local government authorities have, for natural reasons—both in the
South, where the Negroes are numerically strong but disfranchised, and in
the North, where they have votes but are small minorities—rather sided
with the white segregationallsts. In the big Northern cities that have been
the goal of the Negro migration northward, they have had the special
and potent reason that they do not want to encourage more Negro migra-
tion. This reason—which, of course, in consideration of the Negro vote,
has not often been announced openly, though, as the author has observed,
it is freely admitted in conversation—^has had a fateful influence on social
policy generally. Even administrators, who on general principles have
deplored the standards of public service in the Negro slums, have been
inhibited from going in wholeheartedly for reform. They must tell them-
selves that even without reform the Negroes are much better off in North-
ern cities than in the South, and that any Improvement is likely to attract
more Negro migration. This attitude makes them also generally reluctant to
enter into large-scale planning, and they use their influence to discourage
even the Negro leaders from considering broad programs for social
improvement. It is one of the factors which explains why both Negro and
white leaders and experts in large Northern cities are found to be so barren
of constructive ideas on policies in so far as Negro problems are concerned.’^
This also explains why, in practice and often in discussion, the only two
alternatives have been segregation and free competition. It must be empha-
sized that segregation can be ^^posltive” or ^‘negative.” The average individ-
ual white’s attitude is, of course, only negative: he wants to be “protected”
from Negro neighbors.** But as long as the Negro population in a city is
increasing—or even if it were stationary but the Negro group for some
reason, such as higher income or an increased proportion of persons of mar-
riageable age, were in need of more housing facilities—it is an irrational and,
indeed, impossible policy in the long run only to “protect” white areas
against Nfegro intrusion. The result will be “doubling up,” scandalous
housing conditions for Negroes, destroyed home life, mounting juvenile
delinquency, and other indications of social pathology which are bound to
have their contagious influence upon adjoining white areas. And inevitably
the Negros will finally break through somehow and in some degree—this
* There is another problem after areas for Negro housing have been attained. This is the
problem of finding capital to invest in such housing. (See Chapter i6 and Appendix 7.)
^
In the opinion poll taken for this inquiry by Fortune magazine, from 77 to 87 per
cent of the informants in various regions of America expressed themselves in favor of
residential segregation of Negroes, based either on legislation or. on social pressures. Only
10 to 19 per cent were against segregation. (See: Eugene L. Horowitz, “Race Attitudes,”
Table XX, in Otto Klineberg [editor], Characteristics of the American Negro, prenared for
this study j to be published.)
<< prev. page << föreg. sida << >> nästa sida >> next page >>
