Race Real Estate and Uneven Development: The Kansas City Experience, 1900-2000

by Kevin Fox Gotham

Traditional explanations of metropolitan development and urban racial segregation have emphasized the role of consumer demand and market dynamics. In Race, Real Estate, and Uneven Development: The Kansas City Experience, 1900-2000, Kevin Fox Gotham reexamines the assumptions behind these explanations and offers a provocative new thesis. Using the Kansas City metropolitan area as a case study, Gotham provides both quantitative and qualitative documentation of the role of the real estate industry and the Federal Housing Administration, demonstrating how these institutions have promulgated racial residential segregation and uneven development. Gotham challenges contemporary explanations while providing fresh insights into the racialization of metropolitan space, the interlocking dimensions of class and race in metropolitan development, and the importance of analyzing housing as a system of social stratification.

Genres: Nonfiction, Urban Planning, History

204 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2002

Reviews

[Longfellow · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not an easy read. Extremely academic in its approach, and though it is in some sense telling a story, the form is rarely narrative in style; facts and data dominate. With this dryness in mind, my favorite chapter was probably "Building the Troost Wall: School Segregation, Blockbusting, and the Racial Transition of the Southeast Area," primarily because the chapter takes on a smoother narrative style than the rest of the book.

Despite the academic tone, to me it seems the facts are delivered in a highly interpretive and opinionated manner. But the reality is that real estate development and race is a complex topic, and while I believe Gotham at times fails to elaborate on all the aspects of this reality, I am in complete agreement with his general argument that African Americans have been discriminated against to a shocking and appalling degree; in contrast, whites have been favored, specifically in Kansas City, MO, as his case study demonstrates.

In every way possible in Kansas City, real estate developers and agents have used federal programs and local regulations to encourage segregated housing. Even the K.C. school board contributed to such divisions. Various government policies have been passed in an effort to provide equity in the housing market across all income levels, but loopholes have been seized for the profit of developers and agents to the detriment of neighborhoods and homeowners of all types.

The whole scenario pisses me off royally. It’s the kind of legal cheating, thievery and manipulation that both inflated and subsequently crashed the real estate market in 2008, and the same type of capitalistic greed that found a new way of legal theft with high frequency trading in the stock market post-2008 (Flash Boys, Michael Lewis, 2014). Inequity and discrimination within the real estate market is yet another example of the potential for injustice within the U.S.’s political and economic systems, where the god of capitalism is revered for its potential to offer individual gain, much too often at the expense of someone else.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

this is a really good book descibing the insitutionalized segrgation in kansas city, mo and other similar cities. there are old pictures of the city and old add warning of the "other" moving into a neighborhood to scare people and stuff and interesting history and economic development book.

[Steve Moore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed reading this in preparation for studying urban ed in KC this Summer.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kansas City, like many large American cities, is still very segregated. This book explores how the real estate, housing finance, and home builder industries generated racial fears to intentionally scare white folks out of urban areas and into suburban locales for the explicit purpose of selling more homes. Race, Real Estate, and Uneven Development is canon in my industry, and I can certainly see why. Kevin Fox Gotham has compiled a convincing amount of data and historical research as he guides readers on a tour of deplorable, racist acts taken on behalf of the protection of property values between 1900 and 1975. This is an enormously important piece of research, and I wish Gotham would have found a coauthor as it is presented in a very academic fashion, and I think it could use some polish for wider consumption. Also, I think its scope was a little too narrow as the rental housing market seems to be largely ignored along with public housing, Highway 71's impact on East Kansas City neighborhoods, the decline of the Hickman Mills school district, and virtually anything that happened from 1975-2000.

[Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very thorough explanation of what the title says the book is about. Well done for a non-fiction work. I wish there had been more visuals (maps, photos) of the areas Gotham talked about. I read this for work as an intern in Congressman Cleaver's office, so we discussed each chapter - I wish we had gone more in depth in our discussions and that I felt more comfortable asking "stupid" questions.

[Makini · Rating 5 out of 5]

I rated this 5 stars (amazing), but not in the amazing = enjoyable way. I was deflated by the end, but in all the ways I need to be. #housingsegregationineverthing I live in Kansas City so this was a requirement for me to be a better resident and citizen.

[Dylan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This thing reads like a textbook or extended research paper. The content of how Kansas City neighborhoods came to be and the nefarious role of realtors is well researched and eye-opening.

[Tracey · Rating 4 out of 5]

this is a very eye-opening book that covers much of the background of racism and housing development in the Kansas City, MO metro area. having read a book several months ago that praised the highly respected local land developer J.C. Nichols, i can't help but look at him and his legacy in a much different light after reading this book (especially after reading an example of a quote from one of his company's property deeds: "none of the lots hereby restricted may be conveyed to, used, owned, nor occupied by Negroes as owners or tenants.").

Mr. Gotham uses statistics and text from documents to discuss the influence of the racialization of land, and he highlights the methods in which the real estate industry, private builders & investors, and the federal government contributed to the "White flight" phenomenon in the KCMO area. i'm not a native to KCMO, so i've been unaware of much of its history until recently. for example, i had always heard of the "Troost Line" but never understood how this boundary had developed; Mr. Gotham's research provides a very clear explanation of the multiple forces & actions that contributed to this boundary.

there's lots of food for thought in this book, and i found myself getting rather pissed off while reading some of the statements from organizations who were against fair housing legislation. other parts of the book will be a bit awkward to follow -- the author gets a little stat-happy at times. however, the stats add further evidence of the depth of the problem of racialized housing development in the KCMO area, so this is a small complaint of an otherwise well-written and timely book.

[Petra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Overwhelming! It is one big factor to the proliferation of racial prejudice and discrimination. A must read!

[Hassan]

EVERYTHING.