The zoning battles are just as frequent in the suburbs with growing Hispanic populations. The darker the hue, the more pronounced the discrimination. But sometimes, the segregation is self-imposed. A black enclave Lucille Brown moved into Chatham in 1965, about 10 years after white residents rapidly fled. She stands as an example of the proud people in the neighborhood, black and solidly middle-class.
People here are just good citizens.
Brown is living in one of the city's most segregated neighborhoods. The reality is that many middle-class blacks in Chatham say they want to live among people of their same race and economic status, even if it means remaining segregated. In some ways, the tactic used by Chatham residents to create such a neighborhood was similar to methods whites had used against them for years. Black Chatham residents created a monopoly on housing. Generations of families held on to homes, only selling to buyers from their own circles.