White Space and Invisible Ghettos

Elijah Anderson writes, “Since the end of the Civil Rights Movement, large numbers of black people have made their way into settings previously occupied only by whites, though their reception has been mixed. Overwhelmingly white neighborhoods, schools, workplaces, restaurants, and other public spaces remain. Black people perceive such settings as “the white space,” which they often consider to be informally “off limits” for people like them.” Even as we become a more diverse society studies show that white people continue to maintain “white space,” often unintentionally, and do not work toward moving the margins that reinforce the boundaries of what is being called “invisible ghettos.” How do we work toward justice and equity in these spaces?

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