OHNY hosted a conversation about residential segregation in cities today, and how New York is advancing an equity agenda for tomorrow.

How do our communities reflect discriminatory policies and further reinforce racial disparities in society?

OHNY Board Member Saundra Thomas facilitated a conversation with author Sheryll Cashin about her experiences writing White Space, Black Hood (Beacon Press, October 2022). They specifically illuminated racist policies that concentrate poverty in predominantly Black neighborhoods against those that direct resources to white spaces.

Cashin unpacked how urban systems have created a “residential caste” in cities across the country, including New York and Chicago, and called for investment in new infrastructures of opportunity in Black neighborhoods.

“Riveting and beautifully written, White Space, Black Hood convinces the reader of the centrality of geography in economic and social inequality.” —Henry Louis Gates, Jr.

Purchase White Space, Black Hood here.

Author Bio

Sheryll Cashin writes about race relations and inequality in America. She has written commentaries for the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, Salon, The Root, and other media and is currently a contributing editor for Politico Magazine. Cashin is Professor of Law at Georgetown University where she teaches Constitutional Law, and Race and American Law among other subjects. She is an active member of the Poverty and Race Research Action Council and worked in the Clinton White House as an advisor on urban and economic policy, particularly concerning community development in inner-city neighborhoods.

OHNY Stacks

OHNY Stacks is a series of book talks exploring the unknown, the unseen, and the unnoticed. Join us on Thursdays, 5:00—6:00pm ET with authors of highly acclaimed books critical to understanding the past, present, and future of New York—as well as national trends or global issues that influence the shape, structure, and experience of cities and urban life today.