Race: The Power of an Illusion

View:

All

articles

interviews

Q&A

clips

recently added

Segregated Housing and the Racial Wealth Gap

by Larry Adelman

This explainer shows how government-mandated policies of segregated housing led to the creation of the extreme racial wealth gaps experienced across the US today.

The Hispanic Color Divide

by John Moreno Gonzales

A look at a study that finds black Latinos have higher levels of education, but experience higher rates of poverty, unemployment, and lower household incomes than non-black Latinos.

Racial Preferences for Whites: The Houses That Racism Built

by Larry Adelman

Executive Producer Larry Adelman of the Race Series compares two families - one white, one black - to show how the playing field has been tilted to give whites an advantage over other groups.

The Hidden Cost of Being African American: How Wealth Perpetuates Inequality

by Thomas M. Shapiro, Oxford Univ. 238 pp | Reviewed by: Michael Hout

A look at how the government created massive wealth inequities between African Americans and whites through residential segregation, why those issues still persist today, and what should be done about it.

expert connection

Community & Urban Health: An Interview with Jason Corburn

Jason Corburn, a Professor in the Department of City and Regional Planning and School of Public Health at UC Berkeley, discusses race and city planning, including racial segregation, environmental justice, his safe neighborhoods project, and how place, space and health reflect existing inequalities in the US.

expert connection

The Urban Community: Interview with Jason Luger

Jason Luger, Lecturer of City & Regional Planning at UC Berkeley, discusses how he uses maps and footage from the film to look critically at the built environment, from the concept of an "urban we", to the question of poverty, California as a carceral state, and the "Eight Intersectional Geographies."

expert connection

Interview with Larry Adelman, Executive Producer of the Race Series

Larry Adelman, executive producer of the Race-Power of an Illusion documentary series, discusses why California Newsreel decided to partner with UC Berkeley to redevelop and relaunch a companion website for the series.

expert connection

Interview with john a. powell

john a. powell, Professor of Law and African American Studies, and director of the Haas Institute for a Fair and Inclusive Society, discusses why his institute supports "reawakening" the RACE: The Power of an Illusion series.

2020 panel discussion on Race—The Power of an Illusion, Part III

On Friday, Oct. 9, 2020, we hosted a screening of Part III of Race—The Power of an Illusion followed by a one-hour panel discussion with experts.

How the Racial Wealth Gap Was Created

A 30-minute segment produced by California Newsreel from the series, "RACE – THE POWER OF AN ILLUSION: How the Racial Wealth Gap Was Created" illustrates how government policies and private practices helped create the segregated suburbs and the racial wealth gap.

Are we ready for a "colorblind" society?

Why do we have to pay for wrongs of the past?

Why not base affirmative action on socioeconomic status instead of race?

Why do recent immigrants do better than African Americans socioeconomically?

What policies might integrate the suburbs and remedy some of the inequities that stem from residential segregation?

Are reparations for slavery appropriate?

How do whites feel about race, affirmative action and racial inequality? To find out, Nancy DiTomaso interviewed white people throughout the United States.

Nancy DiTomaso is currently (2019) Distinguished Professor of Management and Global Business at Rutgers Business School—Newark and New Brunswick

Does everyone have the same opportunities to get ahead? Where did the wealth gap between blacks and whites come from, and what should we do about it?

Melvin Oliver is currently (2019) President of Pitzer College. He is also the co-author along with Thomas M. Shapiro of Black Wealth, White Wealth, which won the Distinguished Scholarly Publication Award from the American Sociological Association.

How is race socially constructed? Why can't we get rid of the concept? How do whites benefit without having to do anything? What can we do about residential segregation and inequality?

john a. powell is currently (2019) Professor of Law and African American Studies at UC Berkeley, and the Director of the Haas Institute for a Fair and Inclusive Society.

What is the relationship between housing and wealth? Why does wealth matter and what does this have to do with race?

Dalton Conley is currently (2019) Henry Putnam University Professor in Sociology and a faculty affiliate at the Office of Population Research and the Center for Health and Wellbeing at Princeton University. He is the author of Being Black, Living in the Red: Race, Wealth, and Social Policy in America.

a production of:

Copyright 2018-2019, California Newsreel and Regents of the University of California. This website was jointly produced by California Newsreel, the Othering & Belonging Institute, the U.C. Berkeley Library, and the American Cultures Center at U.C. Berkeley, based on original material created by California Newsreel in 2003.