History; Demographics

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Potential for UROP Funding

Overview

This project investigates the demographic realities behind redlining by analyzing HOLC maps across select U.S. cities and tracing how the practice evolved over time. While the racial bias—particularly against Black neighborhoods—is well documented, less attention has been paid to the extent to which redlined areas also included working class European immigrant communities. The student will explore how race, class, and immigrant status intersected in these designations, and examine the mechanisms by which neighborhoods were redlined—whether Black communities were redlined after moving into formerly white ethnic areas, or whether poverty led both groups to settle in already redlined districts. The goal is to produce a clearer historical picture of who was affected and how patterns of redlining changed over time. The research will also connect redlining to later urban renewal strategies—such as slum clearance, blockbusting, and gentrification—that targeted both Black and white ethnic neighborhoods, reinforcing and deepening patterns of urban/suburban segregation.

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