Recently U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said, “There is racism physically built into some of our highways.” It is this recognition that has shaped President Joe Biden’s plan to improve U.S. infrastructure. Dr. Eric Avila, Professor of History, César E. Chávez Department of Chicana/o and Central American Studies, and Urban Planning, was recently interviewed by PBS SoCal and NPR where he discussed the history of how communities of color were uprooted by highway construction.
In the PBS SoCal piece, Dr. Avila says, “I think that the conversation we’re having now about race, inequality and infrastructure at this level is new, and to me that’s encouraging.” To read the full article, “How infrastructure has historically promoted inequality,” click HERE.
To read and/or listen to the NPR segment “Beneath The Santa Monica Freeway Lies The Erasure Of Sugar Hill,” click HERE.
