Authors Richard and Leah Rothstein discuss new book on racial segregation in housing
A new book suggests that racial segregation in housing can be undone if Americans come together across racial lines to pressure lawmakers and communities to address the segregation created by federal, state and local officials that has led to vast inequality between white and Black Americans.
Richard Rothstein and Leah Rothstein, a father-daughter pair, are the authors of “Just Action: How to Challenge Segregation Enacted Under the Color of Law.” Richard Rothstein is author of The New York Times bestseller and precursor to his latest book “The Color of Law” on the history of housing segregation in America. Leah Rothstein has decades of experience in housing policy as a consultant to affordable housing developers and governments. Both live in the San Francisco Bay Area.
The two told the Tribune that they came together to write “Just Action” to answer a question that many readers of “The Color of Law,” including Leah, were left with: What do we do now?
This conversation has been edited for clarity.
Q. For those who haven’t read “The Color of Law,” do you mind briefly summing up its main point?
Richard Rothstein:
