US EditionCould a bold anti-poverty experiment from the 1960s inspire a new era in housing justice?
- In 1966, President Lyndon B. Johnson launched the Model Cities Program in over 60 U.S. Cities to address urban poverty and racial inequality.
- The program arose amid widespread urban decline, segregated housing, and displacement caused by highway construction and urban renewal projects.
- Model Cities facilitated collaboration among housing, education, health care, employment, and community programs within local areas, encouraging active resident involvement and grassroots planning.
- Although the program’s architects aimed for an annual budget of $2 billion, funding ultimately amounted to only $500 to $600 million distributed among over 60 cities, and it encountered political opposition until being discontinued in 1974.
- Its legacy persists in frameworks like participatory budgeting and community land trusts, offering lessons for current crises of housing, climate, and racial justice.
13 Articles
13 Articles
Today’s housing crisis could learn from this 1960s anti-poverty program
In cities across the U.S., the housing crisis has reached a breaking point. Rents are skyrocketing, homelessness is rising and working-class neighborhoods are threatened by displacement. These challenges might feel unprecedented. But they echo a moment more than half a century ago. In the 1950s and 1960s, housing and urban inequality were at the center of national politics. American cities were grappling with rapid urban decline, segregated and …
New Hampshire Bulletin
Could a bold anti-poverty experiment from the 1960s inspire a new era in housing justice?
Model Cities staff in front of a Baltimore field office in 1971. (Robert Breck Chapman Collection, Langsdale Library Special Collections, University of Baltimore, CC BY-NC-ND)In cities across the U.S., the housing crisis has reached a breaking point. Rents are skyrocketing, homelessness is rising, and working-class neighborhoods are threatened by displacement. These challenges might feel unprecedented. But they echo a moment more than half a ce…
Could a bold anti-poverty experiment from the 1960s inspire a new era in housing justice?
In cities across the U.S., the housing crisis has reached a breaking point. Rents are skyrocketing, homelessness is rising and working-class neighborhoods are threatened by displacement.
Could A Bold Anti-Poverty Experiment From The 1960s Inspire A New Era In Housing Justice?
Civil rights activist Whitney M. Young Jr. (center) helped shape the vision of the Model Cities Program. (AP Photo) By Deyanira Nevárez MartínezThe ConversationIn cities across the U.S., the housing crisis has reached a breaking point. Rents are skyrocketing, homelessness is rising and working-class neighborhoods are threatened by displacement. These challenges might feel unprecedented. But they echo a moment more than half a century ago. In the…
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