On Thursday, June 8th the Economic Policy Institute and the Poverty & Race Research Action Council present Richard Rothstein as he discusses his new book, The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America. Ted Shaw of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Law and Rep. Gwen Moore (D-Wis.) will join Rothstein to discuss the history of state-sponsored residential segregation and its enduring effects.

In The Color of Law, Rothstein debunks the myth of “de facto” segregation—the idea that U.S. neighborhoods remain segregated primarily because of income differences, private prejudices, or the desires of blacks and whites to live with same-race neighbors. He documents how federal, state, and local governments—with racially explicit intent—segregated American cities from San Francisco to Boston. Rothstein’s book demonstrates that the government’s purposeful creation of American ghettos created the context for conflicts in places like Ferguson, Baltimore, Milwaukee, and Charlotte. And he shows that the unconstitutional state sponsorship of residential segregation not only creates an opportunity, but an obligation for remedial policies to integrate metropolitan areas nationwide.

This event is free and open to the public. This event will be livestreamed.

When: Thursday, June 8th at 11:00 a.m. Eastern.

Who: Richard Rothstein, author of The Color of Law and EPI research associate.

Ted Shaw, Julius L. Chambers Distinguished Professor of Law and Director of the Center for Civil Rights at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Law.

Rep. Gwen Moore (D-Wis.)

Where: The Economic Policy Institute

1225 I Street NW, Sixth floor

Washington, DC 20005

Members of the media please RSVP to news@epi.org.