In its place he favors a purely legal theory of de jure racial segregation (p. Rothstein could be forgiven for not replaying the history of racism in the US to concentrate on the 20th century, if he did not commit the sin of blithely dismissing the theory of "structural racism" derived from years of study of American history by race scholars. They have done so by keeping people of color – natives, Africans, Asians, and Latins – "in their place" economically, legally and geographically. The racial order of this country goes back to the colonial era and has been reinforced again and again by people of European heritage looking to strengthen and defend White Privilege. Rothstein spends precious little time on the history of white dominance over American society and how it was imposed in the 18th and 19th centuries, with and without the aid of governments. The first fundamental error of this thesis is that it underestimates the power of White Supremacy as the ruling order of the United States from its foundation. Rothstein's central argument – as stated in the subtitle of the book – is that the federal government imposed the modern racial order on this country in the 20th century, particularly residential segregation. Whatever his good intentions, Rothstein's dubious scholarship has some very bad, if unintended, consequences. Indeed, Rothstein ends up bolstering conservative positions on several fronts, starting with the idea that racism is not a structural element of US civil society and that government is the problem not the solution. His errors of theory and fact seriously undermine the value of the book as a work of historiography and are a disservice to progressive politics today.
On the other hand, Rothstein is wrong in ways that mislead readers about the causes and course of racial segregation. This country's sorry record on race needs to be aired as an essential part of our urban history. So, to the extent that it helps educate the young and especially white Americans about certain harsh realities, The Color of Law serves a good purpose. This is not exactly news, but it is an important truth that bears repeating for every generation.
Rothstein is correct to attack the systematic racism that has long plagued this country and to lay bare the way our cities have been racially segregated – and continue to be to this day. Rothstein has toured the country lecturing about the book, has been interviewed on National Public Radio and other outlets many times, and has been widely praised and cited by mainstream liberals – and even some on the left. Richard Rothstein's Color of Law has made quite a splash and is widely praised for its no-holds barred look at American racism.
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