>>> GOOD EVENING, AND WELCOME TO
"METROFOCUS," I'M RAFAEL PI
ROMAN.
TONIGHT WE'RE BRINGING YOU A
SPECIAL REPORT ON SOME OF THE
MOST CRITICAL ISSUES IMPACTING
LONG ISLAND.
WE BEGIN WITH A PROBLEM OF
SEGREGATION.
THE REGION HAS CONSISTENTLY
FOUND ITSELF RANKED AMONG THE
MOST RACIALLY SEGREGATED
METROPOLITAN AREAS IN THE
COUNTRY.
SOME HOUSING ADVOCATES POINT TO
LOCAL CONTROL WHICH GIVES
COMMUNITIES THE POWER TO DICTATE
WHAT IS BILLED IN THEIR
NEIGHBORHOODS AS A MAJOR REASON
FOR THE DIVIDE WHICH IMPACTS NOT
ONLY WHERE PEOPLE LIVE BUT WHERE
THEY SEND THEIR KIDS TO SCHOOL.
ELAINE GROSS IS PRESIDENT OF THE
NONPROFIT CIVIL RIGHTS
ORGANIZATION ERASE RACISM.
AND SHE RECENTLY TOOK A CLOSER
LOOK AT THE ISSUE FOR THE NYC
CENTER FOR LOCAL DISCRIMINATION
AND LOCAL CONTROL.
SHE JOINS US NOW.
WELCOME TO THE PROGRAM.
>> THANK YOU.
>> NOW ELAINE, WHAT EXACTLY IS
LOCAL CONTROL, AND IN YOUR
OPINION HOW HAS IT CONTRIBUTED
TO MAKING LONG ISLAND ONE OF THE
MOST SEGREGATED METROPOLITAN
AREAS IN THE COUNTRY?
>> LOCAL CONTROL DERIVES FROM
HOME RULE WHICH IS WHEN THE
STATE PROVIDES LOCAL
MUNICIPALITIES WITH SOME POWERS.
AND IF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT
HOUSING, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT
CONTROL OVER LAND USE.
AND THAT HAS PLAYED A ROLE IN
PERPETUATING THE RACIAL
SEGREGATION THAT ALREADY EXISTED
ON LONG ISLAND.
SO WE DIDN'T BECOME AMONG THE
TEN MOST RACIALLY SEGREGATED
OVERNIGHT.
AND AT ONE POINT, THAT WAS
CAUSED BY OVERT RACIAL HATRED,
BUT NOW THE LOCAL CONTROL ALLOWS
COMMUNITIES TO EXCLUDE
AFRICAN-AMERICANS, SAY, OR
NONWHITES IN GENERAL, BY
SO-CALLED LEGITIMATE NEEDS.
>> CAN YOU GIVE US AN EXAMPLE,
AN HISTORICAL EXAMPLE WHERE
LOCAL CONTROL LED TO
SEGREGATION?
>> WELL, OF COURSE, LEVITTOWN IS
USED AS THE HISTORICAL EXAMPLE
BECAUSE AT THAT TIME THE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT ESSENTIALLY GAVE THE
POWER TO THE DEVELOPER TO
EXCLUDE AFRICAN-AMERICANS FROM
THOSE HOMES.
THEY DID THAT NOT ONLY INITIALLY
BY SAYING THEY WOULD NOT LEASE
OR SELL, BUT THEN THEY PUTTING
RACIAL COVENANTS IN THE DEEDS
THAT SAID IF YOU WERE NOT
CAUCASIAN YOU COULDN'T BUY A
HOME, A PERSON LIVING THERE
COULD NOT RESELL YOU A HOME TO
YOU.
>> WOW.
SO YOU WRITE THAT ON LONG ISLAND
THERE ARE THREE MILLION PEOPLE
SPREAD OUT ACROSS TWO COUNTIES,
TWO CITIES, 13 TOWNS, AND 97
INCORPORATED VILLAGES.
HOW DOES THIS FRAGMENTATION
CONTRIBUTE TO THE PROGRAM
ESPECIALLY WITH REGARDS TO
EDUC
EDUCATION?
>> WITH EDUCATION WE HAVE 125
SCHOOL DISTRICTS.
THE DISTRICTS DECIDE THEIR OWN
BOUNDARIES.
ESSENTIAL AT THE'S THE DECIDING
-- IT'S DECIDING WHO'S IN, WHO'S
OUT.
AND SO WITH THE HOUSING
SEGREGATION THAT WE HAVE AND
WITH THE SCHOOL DISTRICT
BOUNDARIES MIRRORING THAT
HOUSING SEGREGATION, WE HAVE
VERY SEGREGATED SCHOOLS OUT
HERE.
WE LOOKED AT A 12-YEAR PERIOD
BETWEEN WITH 2004 AND 2016.
WE FOUND THAT WE STARTED WITH
FIVE INTENSELY SEGREGATED SCHOOL
DISTRICTS.
THAT MEANS 90 TO 100% NONWHITE.
WE ENDED UP WITH 11.
SO THAT'S MORE THAN A DOUBLING.
AND IN THOSE SCHOOLS, WE HAD
MORE THAN A TRIPLING OF STUDENTS
GOING TO THOSE INTENSELY
SEGREGATED SCHOOLS.
>> YOU MAKE A GOOD CASE FOR THE
SERIOUS PROBLEMS OF LOCAL
CONTROL.
ON THE OTHER HAND, WHEN YOU TAKE
CONTROL OUT OF THE HANDS OF
LOCAL COMMUNITIES THAT ARE
DIRECTLY IMPACTED BY THE
DECISIONS THAT THEY MAKE AND
GIVE IT TO DISTANT BUREAUCRATS
WHO DON'T HAVE DIRECT SKIN IN
THE GAME, DOESN'T THAT CREATE
PROBLEMS OF ITS OWN?
AND IS THERE A WAY, IS THERE A
HAPPY MEDIUM, A WAY TO GIVE SOME
LOCAL CONTROL TO LOCAL
COMMUNITIES THAT DOESN'T DEVOLVE
INTO SEGREGATION AND NAMBISM,
THE "NOT IN MY BACK YARD"
PHENOMENON?
>> THAT WAS PART OF THE
DISCUSSION YOU MENTIONED AT THE
OPENING THAT I HAD WRITTEN A
PIECE RELATED TO THIS.
THAT WAS THE DISCUSSION WE WERE
HAVING AT THE NYU FUHRMAN
CENTER.
WE CATHEDRAL TO THINK MORE
SERIOUSLY ABOUT PUBLIC GOODS,
AND IF WE HAVE BEEN SEEING THE
SAME RESULT WITH LOCAL CONTROL,
IT REALLY SUGGESTS THAT WE NEED
TO THINK ABOUT WHAT HAPPENS ARE
PUBLIC GOODS BECAUSE PEOPLE WILL
SOMETIMES, WE HAVE SEEN IT OVER
AND OVER AGAIN, LOOK IN A VERY
NARROW WAY ABOUT THEIR OWN
SELF-INTEREST AND NOT REALLY
THINK ABOUT PUBLIC GOODS LIKE
HOUSING FOR ALL, GOOD SCHOOLS
FOR ALL, ET CETERA.
>> WHAT ABOUT THE MT. LAUREL
EXAMPLE SOME YOU KNOW IN NEW
JERSEY, THAT'S A MODEL THAT
DEVELOPED OVER YEARS THROUGH
LITIGATION AND LEGISLATION THAT
IN EFFECT GIVES THE STATE THE
POWER TO DETERMINE STATE POLICY
OVER AFFORDABLE HOUSING, BUT
LETS THE LOCAL COMMUNITY KIND OF
SHAPE IT AND CONTROL IT AND LETS
DEVELOPERS WHO WANT TO BUILD
AFFORDABLE HOUSING HAVE A SAY IN
CHALLENGING LITTLE COMMUNITIES
IF THE PLAN IS NOT SUFFICIENT.
IS THAT A MODEL THAT'S USEFUL?
>> WELL, IT CERTAINLY IS -- WE
DON'T HAVE A LOT OF MODELS, SO
THAT'S PART OF THE PROBLEM.
BUT THAT CERTAINLY IS A MODEL
THAT HAS BEEN ABLE TO DO MORE
THAN WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO DO HERE.
THE IDEA THAT THE STATE WOULD
SAY, LOOK, THIS IS A COMMON
NEED, AND THIS IS A PUBLIC GOOD,
AND THEREFORE WE SHALL HAVE
HOUSING OF THESE TYPES ACROSS
THE REGION, IN ALL THE
COMMUNITIES, AND AS YOU SAY HAVE
SOME WAY OF CHALLENGING THE
NIMBISM IF PEOPLE JUST STAY IN
THAT LANE.
>> SO WHAT DON'T PEOPLE IN LONG
ISLAND REALIZE ABOUT THE IMPACT
OF THE SEGREGATION THAT EXISTS
IN THIS REGION DO YOU THINK?
>> WELL, I THINK ONE THING THEY
DON'T REALIZE IS THAT THERE'S A
LOT OF RESEARCH THAT TALKS ABOUT
THE BENEFITS OF RACIALLY
INTEGRATED LEARNING
ENVIRONMENTS.
AND ALSO THAT NOT JUST LONG
ISLAND BUT THE NATION IS REALLY
BECOMING A NATION WITH MORE
PEOPLE OF COLOR, AND WE REALLY
AS WE'RE GOING TO BE A VIBRANT
REGION, WE NEED TO BE TAKING
FULL ADVANTAGE OF WHAT ALL
PEOPLE HAVE TO OFFER, AND NOT
EXCLUDING PEOPLE.
AND NOT HELPING THEM REACH THEIR
FULL POTENTIAL.
SO THERE IS AN IMPACT ON
OBVIOUSLY ON THE PEOPLE THAT ARE
BEING DISCRIMINATED AGAINST, BUT
THERE'S A BROADER IMPACT, AS
WELL.
>> WE HAVE 30 SECONDS LEFT.
IS THERE LEGISLATION IN THE
WORKS TO DEAL WITH THE PROBLEM
OF LOCAL CONTROL AND OF THE
SEGREGATION THAT EXISTS IN LONG
ISLAND RIGHT NOW?
>> THERE ISN'T LEGISLATION
SPECIFICALLY RELATED TO THIS
ISSUE.
THERE IS LEGISLATION THAT SPEAKS
TO A PORTION OF THE HOUSING
DISCRIMINATION A PIECE AND IT'S
CALLED BAN INCOME BIAS.
AND IT WOULD AMEND THE HUMAN
RIGHTS LAW SO THAT LEGAL SOURCES
INCOME WAS A PROTECTED CLASS,
AND YOU COULDN'T SAY NO, I'M NOT
GOING TO ACCEPT YOUR VETERANS
BENEFITS OR YOUR ALIMONY
PAYMENTS OR YOUR HOUSING CHOICE
VOUCHER.
I'M ONLY GOING TO LOOK AT YOUR
WAGE EARNINGS TO DETERMINE
WHETHER YOU CAN LIVE IN MY
APARTMENT.
>> OKAY.
WE'LL HAVE TO END IT THERE.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US
TODAY TO TALK ABOUT THIS ISSUE.
>> YOU'RE VERY WELCOME.
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00:08:01,814
THANKS FOR HAVING ME.
