A Steady Habit of Segregation - The Origins and Continuing Harm of Separate and Unequal Housing and Public Schools in Metropolitan Hartford, Connecticut

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Angel

A Steady Habit of Segregation examines how racial and ethnic segregation in housing and public schools in Metropolitan Hartford, Connecticut has been produced, preserved, and enforced over time. It describes current conditions marked by extreme racial and ethnic separation, continuing discrimination linked to zoning, housing, and lending, and enduring exclusionary suburban patterns. The report traces historical roots from early government policy through federal subsidies and urban renewal, outlines institutional maintenance across decades, and assesses how education and housing enforcement mechanisms have shaped unequal opportunity.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages70

Reading Time2 h 56 min

AccessFree to download

Preface

Executive Summary

Recommendations

PART 1: The Current Condition and Consequences of Racial and Ethnic Segregation in Housing and Schools in Metropolitan Hartford, Connecticut

The Current Condition and Consequences of Racial and Ethnic Segregation in Housing and Schools in Metropolitan Hartford, Connecticut

PART 2: The Roots, Maintenance, and Enforcement of Racial and Ethnic Segregation in Housing and Schools in Metropolitan Hartford, Connecticut

The Roots, Maintenance, and Enforcement of Racial and Ethnic Segregation in Housing and Schools in Metropolitan Hartford, Connecticut

ASteady Habit of Segregation The Origins and Continuing Harm of Separate and Unequal Housing and Public Schools in Metropolitan Hartford, Connecticut Susan Eaton Published by: The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund (LDF) is America’s premier legal organization fighting for racial justice. Through litigation, advocacy, and public education, LDF seeks structural changes to expand democracy, eliminate disparities, and achieve racial justice in a society that fulfills the promise of equality for all Americans. LDF also defends the gains and protections won over the past 80 years of civil rights struggle and works to improve the quality and diversity of judicial and executive appointment. The Open Communities Alliance is a Connecticut-based civil rights organization that promotes access to opportunity for all people through education, organizing, advocacy, research, and partnerships. The Alliance works to build an urban-suburban interracial coalition to support policies that lead to housing choice. The Poverty & Race Research Action Council (PRRAC) is a civil rights law and policy organization based in Washington, D.C. Our mission is to promote research-based advocacy strategies to address structural inequality and disrupt the systems that disadvantage low-income people of color. PRRAC was founded in 1989, through an initiative of major civil rights, civil liberties, and anti-poverty groups seeking to connect advocates with social scientists working at the intersection of race and poverty. The Sillerman Center at Brandeis University draws upon scholarship and practitioner experience to inform and advance philanthropic practice that aspires to achieve racial justice, remedy social and economic inequality and support true democracy. We engage emerging and established members of grantmaking communities across the United States through publications, public events, webinars, courses and fellowships. Table of Contents Preface .................................................................................................. 1 Executive Summary ................................................................................... 3 Recommendations ..................................................................................... 5 PART 1: .................................................................................................. 7 The Current Condition and Consequences of Racial and Ethnic Segregation in Housing and Schools in Metropolitan Hartford, Connecticut a. In 2020, the State of Connecticut and the Hartford Metropolitan Region Are Extremely Segregated by Race and Ethnicity ............................................................................................................7 b. Contemporary Evidence Related to Zoning, Housing, and Lending Indicates Ongoing Discrimination and Disparate Harms to Black and Latinx Residents of Connecticut ..................................8 c. Continuing Exclusionary Zoning in Suburbia, Coupled with State Government Housing-Related Policies and Program Practices, Reinforces Segregation ................................................8 d. Testing and Other Investigations Show That Housing Discrimination Continues in the State of Connecticut ......................................................................................................................9 e. Data from the 2000s Illuminates That Unequal Opportunities by Race and Ethnicity Are a Legacy of Housing Policy and Practices That Create and Maintain Segregation ............................10 f. In the 2000s, Racial Disparities in Lending Persist in Connecticut ..........................................................12 PART 2: ................................................................................................ 13 The Roots, Maintenance, and Enforcement of Racial and Ethnic Segregation in Housing and Schools in Metropolitan Hartford, Connecticut a. In the 1830s,

FAQs

What does the report say about current housing and school segregation in Metropolitan Hartford?

It describes the region as extremely segregated by race and ethnicity and links ongoing disparities to discrimination in zoning, housing, and lending, as well as continued exclusionary suburban zoning practices.

How does the report explain the origins of segregation?

It traces overt discrimination in early government practice and policy, then connects later federal housing loan subsidies and “urban renewal” with racial segregation in greater Hartford.

What historical mechanisms does the report identify as maintaining and enforcing segregation?

It highlights public and affordable housing policies, government-subsidized suburban growth, state government decisions rejecting regionalism, and unstable or insufficient commitments to desegregation and enforcement.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Angel