Good Parents Better Homes and Great Schools

<p><i>Good Parents Better Homes and Great Schools</i> examines how white residential developers planning consultants and their allies in government strategically replaced block-level segregation with segregation at the neighborhood level in New South cities such as Atlanta Baltimore Birmingham Houston Raleigh and Winston-Salem. Going beyond the well-known Home Owners' Loan Corporation maps of the 1930s Karen Benjamin traces segregation tactics back to the late nineteenth century when this public-private partnership laid the groundwork for the nationwide segregation strategies codified by the New Deal.<br/><br/>This book links the tactics of residential and school segregation to prevailing middle-class ideas about what constitutes good parenting ensuring the longevity of both practices. By focusing on efforts that specifically targeted parents Benjamin not only adds a new dimension to the history of residential segregation but also helps explain why that legacy has been so difficult to undo.</p>