is segregation relevant

It seems, as I wrote below, that the question: Is segregation moral? is imbued with some power as well as some complications. Before considering the complications, I think it worthwhile to consider the relevancy of such a question (which has its own complications).

The question is relevant, at a very straight forward level, as it connected to public policy: It pertains to how our tax dollars are spent and which laws exist and which don't. Currently, and since the Fair Housing Act of 1968, there is legislation that bans discrimination in housing markets. Discrimination in housing markets can occur in at least two domains. First, certain groups can be forced to pay more for a dwelling. Second, certain groups may be steered away from particular dwellings. The first is about discrimination in terms of cost, the second is discrimination in terms of choice. (There is, of course, some overlap in these two domains, e.g. higher costs may limit choice, etc.)

If racial segregation is caused by a free choice by all households in a city then it is less likely to be morally problematic (although I will return to this point later), but, if segregation is forced by discriminatory acts that result in a lack of choice for some segments of the population then segregation is necessarily problematic (there may be some exceptions to this rule, something i may return to in another post). America's segregated urban areas are the direct result of lack of residential choice throughout most of the twentieth century for African American and other minority households. So this creates a further complication, America is segregated because of housing discrimination, but that does not mean that housing discrimination is the most powerful mechanism in today's housing market. Decades of racist urban development has left a legacy of separation not easily erased - even 40 years after the passage of the fair housing act. Metropolitan areas are still more segregated than they were 100 years ago.

There is evidence that suggests that minorities (particularly lower income immigrants and blacks) are harmed by segregation, it affects incarceration rates, single parenthood, and educational success.

Four points suggest the relevancy of the question of segregation's morality:

• Housing segregation continues (less severe than in 1970, more severe than in 1900)
• It is associated with worse outcomes for minorities
• It is the product of historical discrimination (and to some extent the ongoing minority constraints within housing markets)
• It is a public policy concern involving (limited) public expenditures as well as federal, state and local laws.
  

[still working on this nubsicle]