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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Rothstein say black families were unprepared to do as a consequence of purchasing from blockbusters?

2. Which Constitutional Amendments does Rothstein say are violated by housing discrimination?

3. What effect does Rothstein say the federal government had on segregation in housing?

4. What position did Frederick Law Olmsted Jr., America’s pre-eminent landscape architect, take on integration in housing?

5. How recently has the U.S. Supreme Court said that de facto segregation is beyond its jurisdiction?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Rothstein say that he started his book in San Francisco Bay?

2. How did civil rights groups shifted their strategies in the 1960s, according to Rothstein?

3. What does Rothstein say the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights concluded about the American government’s role in creating segregation?

4. How did towns and developments find ways around the Buchanan decision?

5. What was the evidence published in Appraisal Journal on the question of whether black families affect housing prices?

6. How did life change in the South in 1877?

7. What is blockbusting?

8. What is the distinction Rothstein makes between de jure and de facto segregation?

9. What does Rothstein identify as the force that made blockbusting possible?

10. How did community associations evolve out of racially restrictive covenants?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an evaluative review of The Color of Law. What is this book’s place in our culture? Who will find this book most useful? What are its uses? What are its limitations?

Essay Topic 2

What do you think it would take, to change the laws on a national level, to remedy the injustice that was perpetrated since reconstruction began in 1877? Could a charismatic leader do it? Would it take a grass-roots movement? Would it take a crisis that would allow hard decisions to be made?

Essay Topic 3

Write a character sketch of the author based on his style and content. What can we tell about him, based on the choices he makes in terms of description, characterization and plot? What values does he hold dear? What are his hopes and fears? What kind of person do you think he is? Anchor your sketch in passages in the book.

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This section contains 999 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample