Fatimah Muhammad, Partnership Coordinator, Community Builders Network
Throughout the 20th century, the community of urban Black Americans connected with the community of urban planning professionals. At times those connections were sources of conflict and oppression, at other times sources of reform and cooperation. Planning tools were and are often used for the purpose of community division and racial segregation.
Some planners – whose ranks gradually became more diversified racially – dedicated their lives to fighting for the rights of the poor and distressed. Such dedication took the form of “social” or “advocacy” planning, neighborhood planning, or equity planning, but often lacks input from the residents that are being affected.
In general, what is needed is an overview of the critical linkages between the urban planning profession and the nation’s most visible racial minority. Race and racial injustice influence all efforts to improve urban society. Urban planning, an active profession, purports to help improve civic life in metropolitan areas. It cannot do so unless its practitioners more clearly understand the historical connections between the people and this field.
