Kansas City legacies: pushing beyond redlining
Abstract
This thesis looks at redlining and blatant discrimination within Kansas City. Racial
bias remains a fact of American life, and the Federal Housing Administration ultimately
failed Black Americans.1 Established covenants required home-sale contracts that prohibited
future sales to nonwhites, which only set a precedent for persistent racial segregation patterns
that still divide American cities. Many established post-World War II suburbs still play a
significant role in maintaining the color line in urban housing. Historically underrepresented
groups continuously find themselves plagued by overwhelming obstacles to find, finance,
and purchase homes. This project compiles oral histories of individuals who provide their
experiences of redlining and discrimination in Kansas City, Missouri. The seven chosen
interviewees come from various backgrounds who are active in politics, activism, and
community networking. The project also draws upon secondary sources on residential
segregation and racial discrimination. Instead of using the distinctive and familiar “Troost Wall” case study, these new oral histories from Kansas City’s underrepresented areas
broaden an understanding of the consequences of redlining in the city.