Race for Profit

“A groundbreaking new book.”—The New Yorker

“Details bungling mismanagement, gross corruption, distorted incentives, civil rights regulations that went unheeded and unenforced—what Taylor calls a system of 'predatory inclusion' that was distinct yet not entirely free from the racist system of exclusion that preceded it.”—The New York Times

“In this meticulously researched and well-written volume, Taylor . . . highlights an important chapter in African American history, focusing on how mortgage bankers and the FHA turned the promise of black home ownership into an urban nightmare, ultimately reinforcing historic urban-suburban racial segregation.”—CHOICE

“Essential for readers wishing to understand the depth and differentials of U.S. racial discrimination, Taylor’s masterly exposé of the political economy of the racially bifurcated market systematically lays bare how residential segregation made profits from race; it also illustrates the mismatch of market solutions to racist policies and practices and underscores the limits of legislation alone to undo institutional racism.”—Library Journal

“Like many historians, Taylor stays close to the history she documents and doesn’t set out to address the present day in a sustained or direct way. She doesn’t propose a solution to these perpetual abuses, and certainly not a neat, bipartisan policy move. In her telling, the problems are deep and abiding. They have to do with the degree to which the 'American Dream' has become synonymous with the big yet also small accomplishment of owning a house.”—The New Republic

“Among the myriad strengths of Race for Profit is Taylor’s thoughtful and poignant analysis of the structures of meaning that undergird the racialized political economy of homeownership in this period.”—H-Net Reviews

“Taylor grounds her analysis in extensive archival research and in conversation with the historiography that it both extends and challenges.”—Metropolitics

“The product of a seasoned author, Taylor’s book strikes a tough balance. It details the intricacies of HUD policy while holding readers close through very human depictions of the experiences and manipulations of those policies. . . . There’s within its pages new ways to interrogate the story we tell about policy gone wrong.”—Black Perspectives

“Taylor lays bare the naked racism, unethical practices, and rampant profiteering that saturated all aspects of the federal government and real estate industry’s treatment of Black America.”—Planning Perspectives

“In her thorough examination of a purposefully erased chapter of housing policy, Taylor achieves a compelling history for both specialists and the general-interest reader. The concept of predatory inclusion, perhaps Taylor’s most important contribution, offers an important framework for critiques of housing under capitalism. . . . [and] suggests a more revolutionary rethinking of our contemporary relationship to housing.”—Carolina Planning Journal