Redlining and Racial Health Disparities in the United States

Makenna Hartwich

Despite the Delta variant of Covid-19, the United States has begun to see the light at the end of the pandemic’s tunnel. However, it is important not to neglect how the pandemic has highlighted the stark health disparities between white and Black communities in the United States. Black Americans die from Covid at disproportionately higher rates compared to white Americans. Historical racial segregation policies like redlining, a discriminatory lending practice that classified Black and immigrant communities as risky places to make home loans, can be traced as a direct factor to Covid-19’s impact and communities’ quality of healthcare.

Officially outlawed in the 1960s, redlining’s legacy continues to segregate Black communities. Despite past arguments, history has proven separate is certainly not equal. Torey Edmonds, a Black woman living in a majority-Black neighborhood of Richmond, Virginia, describes how her community deteriorated as Black homeowners were denied loans. A redlining study tracking health data from Edmonds’ neighborhood and a white neighborhood in Richmond highlighted the stark comparisons between the health outcomes of those in different neighborhoods within the same city.

Figure 1: Federal government map of Richmond in the 1930’s showing neighborhoods which were considered ‘risky’ for mortgage lenders to offer loans highlighted in red (Godoy, 2020)

Figure 2: A modern recreation of the 1930 map showing Torey Edmonds’ neighborhood in the red zone (Godoy, 2020) 

Figure 3: Table showing health disparities between A3 and D5 neighborhoods (Godoy, 2020).

Figure 1 depicts the map that banks used in the 1930s to determine to whom they granted home loans. Figure 3 shows how that same map today can be used to estimate a habitant’s life expectancy, income, and likelihood of developing a chronic disease—simply by looking at if one lives in the green zone or red zone, the white neighborhoods or the Black neighborhoods. The effects of redlining and intentional community segregation cannot be overstated; social epidemiologists conclude that one’s zip code is the most vital indicator of health. 

In Edmonds’ neighborhood, like countless others, degradation has led to retailers and grocery stores leaving, resulting in inadequate access to healthy foods. Additionally, no access to home improvement loans led to health hazards including mold and peeling lead paint. City planners typically placed industrial sites near redlined areas which further increased exposure to environmental toxins. A direct example of how the built environment affects health can be seen in African-American children’s asthma rates, which, in 2015, were tenfold those of non-Hispanic white children—a phenomenon linked to increased exposure to environmental toxins. In Flint, Michigan, the city’s old lead pipes and a perfunctory decision by the city government to switch to a cheaper water supply led to many Black Americans contracting serious illnesses like Legionnaires’ disease. 

The United States’ government redlining policies segregated Black Americans into built environments with subpar living standards, diminished resources, and dangerous environmental toxins. The United States government continues to sit by while the legacy of these racist policies continue to manifest themselves. In order to achieve health parity in the United States, the government must make significant efforts to rebuild majority-Black communities.

Sources: 

Godoy, M. (2020). ‘In US Cities, the Health Effects of Past Housing Discrimination Are Plain To See’ NPR, November 19. Available at: 

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/11/19/911909187/in-u-s-cities-the-health effects-of-past-housing-discrimination-are-plain-to-see?t=1619646785687 Smith, M., Bosman, J., Davey, M. (2019). ‘Flint’s Water Crisis Started 5 Years Ago. It’s Not Over’ The New York Times, April 25. Available at: 

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/25/us/flint-water-crisis.html 

Staggers-Hakim, R. (2018). ‘Black Lives Matter, Civil Rights, and Health Inequities’ West New England Law Review, (40), https://digitalcommons.law.wne.edu/lawreview/vol40/iss3/5 Feldman, N. (2021). ‘Why Black And Latino People Still Lag On COVID Vaccines — And How To Fix It’ NPR, April 26. Available at: 

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2021/04/26/989962041/why-black-and-latino-p eople-still-lag-on-covid-vaccines-and-how-to-fix-it