How U.S Infrastructure Oppresses Minorities

For decades, the U.S has remained racially divided through the purposeful development of infrastructure meant as a way to protect systems of segregation and inequality. Highways, public transportation, and sidewalks all contribute to the problem. Today, the long-lasting effects are visible in the way inequality persists. Indeed, the legacy of Jim Crow is far from over in our country.

Yes, highways are racist.

Interstate highways are conveniently located in the midst of predominantly black communities. In Syracuse, New York, the creation of I-81 led to the displacement of over 1,300 Black families. Indeed, vibrant communities of color were systemically cut off from bustling downtown centers through careful placement of roads. Even worse, black communities were turned into sacrifice zones close to industrial waste, landfills, and power plants. As white suburbs saw an increase in public investment and funding into infrastructure, black communities were forcefully denied opportunity. U.S infrastructure was, and is, built for white people. The Federal Highways Act of 1956 itself was meant to facilitate the mass exodus of white families away from cities and into suburbs. As a result, black populations in city centers were left in the dust with reduced public investment. Nearly 70 years later, black communities are still stuck in poverty due to the purposeful development of unequal infrastructure.

The problem is not simply a lasting effect from racist policy passed decades ago; highway expansion and infrastructure continue to resegregate America. In the state of Arizona, the recent Loop 202 expansion has come at the cost of black and brown communities living in South Phoenix, an area historically written off as "unsafe". The controversial development has added thousands of miles to the freeway by bisecting the South Mountain, further cutting off South Phoenix from the predominantly white Ahwatukee. Yet, the richer, whiter Ahwatukee has received nearly $12 million in damages because of the construction's effect on "noise, pollution, and visual obstructions. On the other side of the expansion, black and brown populations received a total sum of $0 despite living in far worse conditions deemed as "sacrifice zones". Redlining, the process of denying financial assistance to specific racial communities, is outlawed. However, through the expansion of highways, many states get away with zoning off black and brown people, leading to limited opportunities and disinvestment.

It's not just highways that divide communities. Across America, public transportation is riddled with inequities through ineffectual urban planning designed to force the black community into worse situations. First, when highways divided black communities, the result was isolation, with nowhere to go. Then, redlining led to the sporadic and often scattered placement of public transportation. Ultimately, predominantly black communities became "transportation deserts". Bus stops are typically miles away from areas in which African Americans reside, creating unsafe commutes to work, school, grocery shopping, and especially healthcare. In Dayton, Ohio, a pregnant woman spoke about her daily 1.5-mile commute to her minimum wage job. A couple of minutes into the walk, the sidewalk completely ends. For the rest of her journey, she risks her life by walking across the broken shoulder of the I-165 highway. Regardless of hot summer days, icy winters, the dead of night, or any other environmental limitation, the commute remains the same. She, and many others, are isolated from receiving the help they need. The lack of public transportation in our country is evidence enough of systemic racism.

The solution is political organizing.

The Biden Administration fought to aid communities affected by highway segregation through a billion-dollar investment. However, there is wide concern that even well-intentioned urban planning could lead to similar effects once again. Moreover, in its time, the Biden Administration promised chances for renewal, yet time and time again, it failed to provide meaningful change to systemic issues. For example, in Texas, the federal government halted expansion of the interstate highway for nearly two years before simply allowing the project to continue. So, if U.S policymakers at the national level consistently overlook and worsen structural oppression, then what's the solution? Organize. Today, thousands of community members advocate for a public infrastructure framework based on racial equity. Through lobbying urban planners, city officials, and architects at the local level, the possibility of equitable transportation systems in our lifetimes is much higher. In Portland, Oregon, new, progressive policies accounting for black livelihoods have helped many. Indeed, these policies were born out of protest and political organizing. Although new legislation isn't perfect, through further organizing and activism, local change can be observed at the local level.

Remember, the fight isn't over. Our policymakers today aim to resegregate America through legal loopholes and disinvestment. Tackling systemic racism is difficult. When centuries of bigotry inform policymaking decisions, breaking out of that same system proves to be a troublesome task. Yet, community-based activism and organizing can help alleviate some of the conditions faced by Black communities across the globe.