Virginia’s Public Universities Have a Long History of Displacing Black Residents
Virginia’s Public Universities Have a Long History of Displacing Black Residents

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Virginia’s Public Universities Have a Long History of Displacing Black Residents

College towns just outprice many black residents now. Black people, on average, have a much lower income than white people. As rents in desirable college towns rise, and they're rising faster than a lot of other towns in the country, more black people are displaced.
I grew up in a once-affordable college town in Indiana. You're lucky these days if you can find rent under $2000 a month. Obviously, this affects white people too, but it affects black people more.
While economics is a big factor, it’s usually also true that there’s less local outcry over displacing minority residents compared to whites from a similar economic background.
This is actually the opposite of what I've seen. When neighborhoods get gentrified, the sympathy all goes to the minorities being forced out, not the poorer white people being forced out.
To be clear, I'm not saying that doesn't make sense -- minorities are disproportionately affected. But that's what I always see.