This essay suggests that in 1962-1963, before Birmingham and the March on Washington, a coalition of Black and White civil rights activists, labor, and religious leaders were in the vanguard of the struggle both on th...This essay suggests that in 1962-1963, before Birmingham and the March on Washington, a coalition of Black and White civil rights activists, labor, and religious leaders were in the vanguard of the struggle both on the Pacific Slope and in the nation. Berkeley＇s battle for fair housing represented an important phase of the civil rights struggle on the west coast and in cities where racial segregation was not based on law, but part of a conspiracy, silent but quite effective, among realtors, mortgage lenders, and renters, against Blacks and other minorities. Encouraged by state antidiscrimination legislation, Berkeley activists embarked upon a fair housing campaign based on surveys of the problem, efforts to enact legislation, and direct action. The irrationality of racists who defended their right to discriminate was one of the most singular aspects of the fair housing struggle. Though they lost at the local level, the coalition of new political forces succeeded a few months later at the state level and represented an effective force in liberal politics in the city for years to come. Because of the stiff opposition and the limits of reformers＇ liberal fair housing regulations, however, working class and poor African Americans still faced severe housing problems.展开更多
文摘This essay suggests that in 1962-1963, before Birmingham and the March on Washington, a coalition of Black and White civil rights activists, labor, and religious leaders were in the vanguard of the struggle both on the Pacific Slope and in the nation. Berkeley＇s battle for fair housing represented an important phase of the civil rights struggle on the west coast and in cities where racial segregation was not based on law, but part of a conspiracy, silent but quite effective, among realtors, mortgage lenders, and renters, against Blacks and other minorities. Encouraged by state antidiscrimination legislation, Berkeley activists embarked upon a fair housing campaign based on surveys of the problem, efforts to enact legislation, and direct action. The irrationality of racists who defended their right to discriminate was one of the most singular aspects of the fair housing struggle. Though they lost at the local level, the coalition of new political forces succeeded a few months later at the state level and represented an effective force in liberal politics in the city for years to come. Because of the stiff opposition and the limits of reformers＇ liberal fair housing regulations, however, working class and poor African Americans still faced severe housing problems.
