Residential segregation in the United States

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Related Citizenship Statelessness Forced assimilation Gender apartheid Income inequality One-drop rule Slavery
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Residential segregation is the physical separation of two or more groups into different neighborhoods^[1]—a form of segregation that "sorts population groups into various neighborhood contexts and shapes the living environment at the neighborhood level".^[2] While it has traditionally been associated with racial segregation, it generally refers to the separation of populations based on some criteria (e.g. race, ethnicity, income/class).^[3]

While overt segregation is illegal in the United States, housing patterns show significant and persistent segregation along racial and class lines. The history of American social and public policies, like Jim Crow laws, exclusionary covenants, and the Federal Housing Administration's early redlining policies, set the tone for segregation in housing that has sustained consequences for present-day residential patterns.

Trends in residential segregation are attributed to discriminatory policies and practices, such as exclusionary zoning, location of public housing, redlining, disinvestment, and gentrification, as well as personal attitudes and preferences. Residential segregation produces negative socioeconomic outcomes for minority groups, influencing disparities in educational opportunity, access to health care and food, and employment.^[4] Public policies for housing reform, like the Housing Choice Voucher program, attempt to promote integration and mitigate these negative effects, but with mixed results.^[5]