Race, Rights, and the American Dream

(3 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

For many, owning a single-family house in the suburbs is the epitome of the American Dream. How did that particular ideal come to be a popular aspiration? How did race shape who could realize this ideal? How did the popularization of this form of the American dream shape racial inequality? This course will investigate these and other questions as we examine the histories of real estate, property, and housing in the U.S. We will trace two intertwined stories. First, we will chart how the process and meaning of buying, selling, owning, and renting a home changed. We will look closely at the development of government policies, real estate practices, as well as cultural ideas. Second, the course will explore the ways that race shaped those histories of real estate, property, and housing. We will consider the evolution of forms of racial exclusion and segregation as well as the ways that people demanded and seized housing rights.