Housing restrictions and covenant laws
In comparison, Burton’s maternal grandparents resided in Chicago during the mid-1900s. Her grandfather was part of the Pullman porters, a group of Black men who worked on trains. They formed a union to secure higher wages, better job security, and increased worker protections, becoming the first Black union to sign a collective bargaining agreement with a major U.S. corporation. While her grandfather was employed as a porter, her grandmother managed the household.
Credit: Courtesy of Michelle Burton
Despite the improved pay and union benefits, racially restrictive laws and policies prevented Burton’s grandparents from owning a home. Restrictive covenants and residential ordinances, for example, dictated where Black families could reside. Additionally, banking structures systematically hindered their ability to secure loans and invest.
These laws impacted Black individuals and People of Color nationwide until 1968 when they were deemed illegal (although remnants of these laws can still be found today, according to an investigative report by NPR.)
“My grandparents lived in the Black belt of the south side of Chicago,” Burton says, “off 47th street and Calumet, in an apartment they rented. My great aunts lived on 55th and Wabash and they rented, too. I always found it odd as a little girl that they didn’t own a house.”
As Burton learned more about the various prohibitions for Black Americans, she began to understand the long-term effect of being barred from buying homes in suburban communities and building equity.
Burton’s maternal grandfather passed away in 1957. Her grandmother lived for many more years but was unable to accrue wealth, despite receiving her husband’s union pension. Burton states, “She died in 1999 and never owned a home.”
