Opening Arguments The Supreme Court Case That Stopped School Integration
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Oct 13, 2025 Michelle Adams, a University of Michigan law professor and author of "The Containment," dives deep into the landmark case Milliken v. Bradley and its impact on school desegregation in Detroit. She explores how housing policies reinforced segregation, the white backlash against integration, and how legal strategies linked housing to education. Adams discusses the narrow interpretation of desegregation that arose from Milliken and its consequences—white flight and limited educational opportunities. Their conversation emphasizes the importance of civic engagement in shaping future legal landscapes.
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Buying Through A White Intermediary
- Michelle Adams recounts her family buying a house through a white intermediary because sellers refused to sell to Black buyers before the 1968 Fair Housing Act.
- She uses this memory to introduce how Northern segregation operated through private barriers and government-sanctioned practices.
Northern Jim Crow Was Governmental
- Northern Jim Crow differed from Southern Jim Crow but was equally supported by government policy and private practices.
- Adams argues many people mistakenly think the North lacked governmental segregation when it in fact had an interlocking system supporting it.
A Personal Frame For Legal History
- Adams frames her book with memoir elements to invite nonlawyers into a legal history and show the personal stakes of segregation.
- She intentionally wrote accessibly while preserving doctrinal nuance to reach broader audiences.
