Racial Covenants and Blockbusting Reshape Northern Urban Demographics

The 1970s saw dramatic demographic transformation of Northern cities driven by continued Black migration from the South, white flight to suburbs accelerated by FHA subsidies unavailable to Black buyers, and blockbusting by real estate speculators. Black urban populations grew while tax bases shrank. Detroit's Black population exceeded 50% by 1973; Newark, Gary, and Washington DC crossed similar thresholds.