Being a little behind today (I teach in, like, 20 minutes), I’m just noodling through some digital history projects I’d like to teach my students. And, in particular, I’d been thinking about my need to update how I handle the New Deal, suburbanization, and redlining.

As projects across the country have begun unraveling examples of racial housing covenants in cities like Minneapolis, Washington, D.C., Hartford, and now—thank goodness—Chicago, other historians have been looking at how those initiatives intersected with policymakers in a way that perpetuated the dispossession of poor and Black properties through the language of “slum clearance” or “urban renewal”.

One resource I’ve been hoping to teach more with this spring is the Digital Scholarship Lab at the University of Richmond’s Renewing Inequality—looking at federally-funded urban renewal programs and the people they displaced.

Renewing Inequality

Spending $13 billion over 20+ years and displacing, conservatively, over 300,000 people, these programs tended to have racially disproportionate impacts:

8% of Lubbock, Texas’s population was of color, but all of the nearly 1,300 families it displaced were. Similarly, 3% of St. Louis County’s population was of color, but 94% of it’s nearly 500 displacements were. In cities where most displaced families were white, families of color were more often then not disproportionately displaced. For example, families of color made up 29% of those displaced in Minneapolis but were a mere 3% of the overall population.

Here’s what that looked like, in map form:

Renewing Inequality (Milwaukee)

Something I really appreciate about the project is the way in which it highlights not just the biggest of the big cities—Chicago, New York, etc.—but mid-sized cities around the country, too: North Chicago. Fargo. Akron. Madison. Grand Rapids. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the effects on Detroit are staggering. And a great feature of the site is the ability to overlay the HOLC redlining maps on the homes displaced. Stunningly, the highways that needed to be built always seemed to find the Black neighborhoods, if there were any in town.

I’d be curious to see what you all find and what you think. There’s a lot out there, and I’m still thinking through how I’d want to teach it in class. But it’s a unique way of building on some of our past understandings of redlining and adding in the effects of urban “renewal” for some, with generational wealth destroyed for others.

Works, Haphazardly Cited

Digital Scholarship Lab, “Renewing Inequality,” American Panorama, ed. Robert K. Nelson and Edward L. Ayers, accessed September 15, 2022, https://dsl.richmond.edu/panorama/renewal/#view=0/0/1&viz=cartogram&text=about.

Thursday Evening

Don’t Watch This

Los Angeles Chargers of Anaheim at Kansas City Chiefs (-4) [7:15pm, Amazon Prime]

{Copa Brasil} Corinthians vs. Fluminense [6pm, Fox Soccer Plus]
{CONCACAF} Herediano vs. Real Espana [7pm, TUDN]
{CONCACAF} Olimpia vs. Diriangen [9:15pm, TUDN]

Watch That

Savannah State Tigers at Benedict College Arnolds

6:30pm | ESPNU | Division II

You, A Serious Person: The NFL offers real offense, especially when it’s Justin Herbert and Patrick Mahomes! Why wouldn’t you watch that?!?!?

Me, A Savant:

Friday Evening

Don’t Watch This

Merrimack Warriors at Harvard Crimson [6pm, ESPN+]

{MSOC} Michigan vs. Maryland [6pm, BTN]
{USL1} Tormenta vs. Tucson [6:30pm, ESPN+]
{CPL} York United vs. HFX Wanderers [6:30pm, Fox Soccer Plus]
{USL} Memphis 901 vs. Charleston Battery [7pm, ESPN+]
{MSOC} Washington vs. Michigan St. [9pm, Pac-12]

Watch That

Florida State Seminoles at Louisville Cardinals

6:30pm | ESPN | FSU -2.5 | O/U 56

Air Force Falcons at Wyoming Cowboys

7pm | CBSSN | AFA -15 | O/U 46.5

Edmonton Elks at Saskatchewan Roughriders

8:30pm | ESPN+

Between the college football games, the latter is more exciting to me than the former; Air Force pounded Colorado and handled FCS power Northern Iowa easily, while Wyoming got boatraced by Illinois but are always a tough out in the Mountain West. I’d lean that one, but Free Shoes-lhvl is likely to be closer.

Speaking of Wyoming, I’m unemployable for a number of reasons, but that won’t stop me: Hey, Wyoming! Want someone who’s a ‘Pokes enthusiast to fill this Honors College teaching position in the humanities/history? I even have teaching experience at an R1 Honors College! I’d be the rootin’-tootin’est of all your facult...

...I understand. Thank you for considering me.

Saturday Morning

Don’t Watch This

Southern Illinois Salukis at Northwestern Wildcats [11am, BTN]
Wofford Terriers at Virginia Tech Hokies [10am, ACCN]
#1 Georgia Bulldogs (-24, O/U 52) at South Carolina Gamecocks [11am, ESPN]
UConn Huskies at #4 Michigan Wolverines (-46.5, O/U 60.5) [11am, ABC]
Youngstown State Penguins at #9 Kentucky Wildcats [11am, SECN]
Texas State Bobcats at #17 Baylor Bears (-30.5, O/U 51.5) [11am, FS1]
Abilene Christian Wildcats at Missouri Tigers [11am, SECN+]
Villanova Wildcats at Army West Point Black Knights [11am, CBSSN]
Cincinnati Bearcats (-22, O/U 51) at Miami Hydroxide Redhawks [11am, ESPNU]
Long Island Sharks at Kent State Golden Flashes [11am, ESPN3]
Towson Tigers at West Virginia Mountaineers [12pm, ESPN+]
Buffalo Bulls at Coastal Carolina Chanticleers (-14, O/U 59) [12pm, ESPN+]
Bucknell Bison at Central Michigan Chippewas [12pm, ESPN3]

{EPL} Tottenham Hotspur vs. Leicester City [11:30am, NBC]
{La Liga} Valencia vs. Celta de Vigo [11:30am, ESPN+]
{Bundesliga} Borussia Monchengladbach vs. RB Leipzig [11:30am, ESPN+]
{Eredivisie} Vitesse vs. Volendam [11:45am, ESPN+]
{MLS} New York City FC vs. New York Red Bulls [12pm, ESPN+]
{Super Lig} Istanbulspor vs. Besiktas [12pm, beIN]

Watch That

#6 Oklahoma Sooners at Nebraska Cornhuskers

11am | FOX | OU -11.5 | O/U 67

Purdue Boilermakers at Syracuse Orange

11am | ESPN2 | EVEN | 58.5

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers at Indiana Hoosiers

11am | BTN | IU -6.5 | O/U 61.5

(I’m sure those lines have changed; I wrote these Tuesday morning. I don’t care, PurdueBot420_69.)

I am very here to see whether Oklahoma makes this a public execution or whether it really was Scott Frost all along. I’m sure excited to find out which, and I’m not sure which I want it to be more.

Whether Indiana wants to or not, Western Kentucky is going to do it’s damnedest to turn this thing into a shootout. The same will likely happen in Purdue-Syracuse, but that won’t be intention so much as incompetence.

Saturday Afternoon

Don’t Watch This

South Alabama Jaguars at UCLA Bruins (-15.5, O/U 59) [1pm, Pac-12]
Ohio Bobcats at Iowa State Cyclones (-18, O/U 49.5) [1pm, ESPN+]
Rutgers Scarlet Knights (-17.5, O/U 42.5) at Temple Owls [1pm, ESPN+]
Old Dominion Monarchs at Virginia Cavaliers (-10, O/U 56) [1pm, ACCN]
Murray State Racers at Ball State Robotbirds [1pm, ESPN+]
California Golden Bears at Notre Dame Fighting Irish (-10.5, O/U 41) [1:30pm, NBC]
Tulane Green Wave at Kansas State Wildcats (-15, O/U 48) [2pm, ESPN+]
#12 BYU Cougars at #25 Oregon Ducks (-3.5, O/U 57.5) [2:30pm, FOX]
#20 Ole Miss Rebels (-16, O/U 63.5) at Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets [2:30pm, ABC]
Colorado Buffaloes at Minnesota Golden Gophers (-27.5, O/U 46.5) [2:30pm, ESPN2]
New Mexico State Aggies at wisconsin badgers (-37.5, O/U 46.5) [2:30pm, BTN]
Stony Brook Seawolves at UMass Minutemen [2:30pm, ESPN3]
Troy Trojans at Appalachian State Mountaineers (-12.5, O/U 52.5) [2:30pm, ESPN+]
Georgia Southern Eagles at UAB Blazers (-11.5, O/U 56.5) [2:30pm, Stadium]
UL Monroe Warhawks at #2 Alabama Crimson Tide (-49, O/U 60.5) [3pm, SECN]
UT Martin Skyhawks at Boise State Broncos [3pm, FS1]
A Team at #19 Wake Forest (-16.5, O/U 63.5) [3pm, ACCN]
Colorado State Rams at Washington State Cougars (-16.5, O/U 50) [4pm, Pac-12]
Marshall Thundering Herd (-16.5, O/U 52.5) at Bowling Green Falcons [4pm, NFL Network]

{CFL} Winnipeg Blue Bombers at Hamilton Tiger-Cats [3pm, ESPN+]

{Bundesliga2} Hamburger SV vs. Fortuna Dusseldorf [1:30pm, ESPN+]
{EFL} Middlesbrough vs. Rotherham United [1:45pm, ESPN+]
{La Liga} Athletic Club Bilbao vs. Rayo Vallecano [2pm, ESPN+]
{Ligue 1} Lille vs. Toulouse [2pm, beIN]
{MLS} Atlanta United vs. Philadelphia Union [2:30pm, TUDN]
{CPL} Edmonton vs. Cavalry [3pm, Fox Soccer Plus]

Watch That

North Texas Mean Green at UNLV Rebels

2pm | TheMW | UNLV -3 | O/U 62.5

#22 Penn State Nittany Lions at Auburn Tigers

2:30pm | CBS | PSU -3 | O/U 49

Vanderbilt Commodores at Northern Illinois Huskies

2:30pm | CBSSN | NIU -2.5 | O/U 58.5

Kansas Jayhawks at Houston Cougars

3pm | ESPNU | UH -10 | O/U 59

Vandy has not looked bad in either of their first two games—though Hawai’i is horrifically awful—and yet they’re still dogs on the road to NIU. It’s beautiful. Add to that two teams that won’t be able to help but score on each other in UNT-UNLV and the fact that I’m not entirely sold on Houston at this point, even against resurgent Kansas, and...well, there’s plenty of room for entertainment on Saturday afternoon.

Y’know, in fact, so much so that I just went back and added the strikethrough text to the Penn State-Auburn game. Life’s too short to listen to Gary Danielson decide if he’s going to verbally fellate his current or future masters.

Saturday Evening

Don’t Watch This

Mississippi State Bulldogs (-2, O/U 53) at LSU Tigers [5pm, ESPN]
N.C. A&T Aggies at Duke Blue Devils [5pm, ACCNX]
Campbell Fightin’ Camels at East Carolina Pirates [5pm, ESPN+]
Toledo Rockets at #3 Ohio State Buckeyes (-31.5, O/U 61) [6pm, FOX]
UA Pine Bluff Golden Lions at #8 Oklahoma State Cowboys [6pm, ESPN+]
Missouri State Bears at #10 Arkansas Razorbacks [6pm, ESPN+]
Akron Zips at #15 Tennessee Volunteers (-47.5 O/U 67) [6pm, ESPN+]
Texas Tech Red Raiders at #16 NC State Wolfpack (-10.5, O/U 55.5) [6pm, ESPN2]
Jacksonville State Gamecocks at Tulsa Golden Hurricane [6pm, ESPN+]
Northwestern State Demons at Southern Miss Golden Eagles [6pm, ESPN3]
Arkansas State Red Wolves at Memphis Tigers (-14, O/U 65.5) [6pm, ESPN+]
Charlotte 49ers at Georgia State Panthers (-19.5, O/U 60) [6pm, ESPN+]
Tennessee State Tigers at Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders [6pm, ESPN+]
South Florida Brahman Bulls at #18 Florida Gators (-24.5, O/U 59) [6:30pm, SECN]
#23 Pittsburgh Panthers (-10, O/U 49.5) at Western Michigan Broncos [6:30pm, ESPNU]
Nevada Wolf Pack at Iowa Hawkeyes (-23, O/U 39.5) [6:30pm, BTN]
Maine Black Bears at Boston College [6:30pm, ESPN3]
Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns (-12, O/U 51) at Rice Owls [6:30pm, ESPN+]
Louisiana Tech Bulldogs at #5 Clemson Tigers (-34, O/U 52.5) [7pm, ACCN]
UTSA Roadrunners at #21 Texas Longhorns (-11, O/U 61.5) [7pm, LHN]
Montana State Bobcats at Oregon State Beavers [7pm, Pac-12]

{CFL} BC Lions at Calgary Stampeders [6pm, ESPN+]

{USL} Miami FC vs. Atlanta United II [6pm, ESPN+]
{USL} Hartford Athletic vs. Las Vegas Lights [6pm, ESPN+]
{USL} Louisville City vs. Loudoun United [6:30pm, ESPN+]
{MLS} New England Revolution vs. CF Montreal [6:30pm, ESPN+]
{MLS} Orlando City SC vs. Toronto FC [6:30pm, ESPN+]
{MLS} Chicago Fire vs. Charlotte [7pm, ESPN+]
{MLS} Sporting Kansas City vs. Minnesota United [7:30pm, ESPN+]
{USL} Rio Grande Valley vs. Colorado Springs [7:30pm, ESPN+]
{USL} San Antonio FC vs. New Mexico United [7:30pm, ESPN+]

Definitely Watch—No, Thump’s Not Holding Me Hostage, How Dare You

Detroit City FC vs. Tampa Bay Rowdies

6:30pm | ESPN+

Watch That

SMU Cocaine Ponies at Maryland Terrapins

6:30pm | FS1 | MD -3.5 | O/U 73.5

#11 Michigan State Spartans at Washington Huskies

6:30pm | ABC | Wash -3.5 | O/U 56.5

UCF Citronauts at Florida Atlantic Owls

6:30pm | CBSSN | UCF -9 | O/U 60.5

UTEP Miners at New Mexico Lobos

7pm | TheMW | UTEP -3 | O/U 39.5

It’s Cocaine Ponies-Turtles for me, then everything else a mile down. But there’s some sneak-ugly out there, with UTEP and New Mexico both so bad that I’m very, very tempted to take the under on a 39.5-point total.

It’s late and I’m drunk...

Don’t Watch This

#13 Miami Hurricanes at #24 Texas A&M Aggies (-5.5, O/U 47) [8pm, ESPN]
San Diego State Aztecs at #14 Utah Utes (-21, O/U 49) [9pm, ESPN2]
Eastern Michigan Eagles at Arizona State Sun Devils (-20, O/U 55.5) [10pm, Pac-12]
Duquesne Dukes at Hawai’i Rainbow Warriors [10:59pm, Team1Sports (mobile/tablet only)

{MLS} Austin FC vs. Nashville SC [8pm, ESPN+]
{MLS} Real Salt Lake vs. Cincinnati [8:30pm, ESPN+]
{MLS} Vancouver Whitecaps vs. Seattle Sounders [9pm, ESPN+]
{USL} Monterey Bay vs. Indy Eleven [9pm, ESPN+]
{USL} Oakland Roots vs. New York Red Bulls II [9pm, ESPN+]
{USL} San Diego Loyal vs. Phoenix Rising [9pm, ESPN+]
{MLS} San Jose Earthquakes vs. FC Dallas [9:30pm, ESPN+]
{MLS} LA Galaxy vs. Colorado Rapids [9:30pm, ESPN+]
{USL1} Central Valley Fuego vs. Charlotte Independence [9:30pm, ESPN+]

Watch That

Fresno State Bulldogs at #7 USC Trojans

9:30pm | FOX | USC -12 | O/U 73.5

North Dakota State Recycling Sorting Plant and Remedial Bathing School Bizon at Arizona Wildcats

10pm | FS1 | NDSU -1 | Total TBD

Ohhhh Arizona. You’ve made the mistake, and now it’s time to find out.

USC should hypothetically be able to blow the Bulldogs away, but Fresno went blow-for-blow with Oregon State last week—while the Beavs are no Trojan offense, I’d take a 52-35 donnybrook under the LA lights. And I’m sorry...I just can’t watch Hawai’i right now. They’re wide-open and trying, but they are so bad and so rebuilding under Timmy Chang...man. Can they play UMass or something, just for some REAL disgusting stuff?

Enjoy the games, everybody.