“Living Apart: How the Government Betrayed a Landmark Civil Rights Law” by Nicole Hannah-Jones did touch upon how America arrived to this point of extremely stark segregated housing divisions. However, this piece went deeper into how intense the situation must’ve been in the North, and implicitly, the South. Jones described how blacks coming up North were often greeted by bombings, riots, and burning crosses. Regardless they came in large numbers from the South. One can only imagine how hostile the South must’ve been, even after the Civil War. It’s just crazy how although growing up, when comparing the North and the South, the North is displayed as a safe haven for African Americans who underwent generations of horrific treatment, it really wasn’t as great of a relocation as it’s portrayed. A more realistic view would be that it might’ve been the greater of two evils.
Today, often when someone reads LBJ, they would think of LeBron James instead of Lyndon B. Johnson. It’s fitting that LeBron is also one of the leaders in civil rights today, as he is the best athlete in the world, and openly uses his influence to catalyze positive change. Regardless, Lyndon Johnson was a large component of getting the Fair Housing Act passed. It’s stunning that it took Dr. King’s death to achieve this though. The testimony of the black Vietnam vet who couldn’t live near his post in VA due to housing segregation would’ve been more than enough to open the government’s eyes, I’d assume. If Nixon had been the president during this time, the nation might’ve actually just fell apart. Unfortunately, Johnson & King’s visions for unsegregated housing and equality have fallen short today, but hopefully we can continue on the path they had established.