Property Rights are the Solution to Racism

In my book, The Affordable Housing Crisis: Causes and Cures, I provide numerous examples of how racism has prevented non-whites from owning a house and building wealth. Zoning, occupational licensing, eminent domain, and numerous other government policies have often been founded on racism. All of these policies, and many more, are a violation of property rights. The solution to racism is the protection of property rights.

The right to property means the freedom to produce, use, and trade material values. It means that individuals should be free to engage in economic activities on terms that are acceptable to all involved. This is true no matter the race of the individual.

However, zoning, occupational licensing, eminent domain, and numerous other government policies prohibit individuals from producing and trading as they deem best. Zoning dictates how property owners can use their land. Occupational licensing prohibits individuals from offering professional services without first obtaining government permission. Eminent domain is used to seize private property without the owner’s consent.

While explicitly racist policies are largely a relic of history, the remnants of past racist policies remain in effect. For example, when the interstate highway system reached urban areas, large sections of neighborhoods that were predominantly non-white were frequently demolished to make way for the highways. Today, when expansion of those highways occurs, the same neighborhoods loose housing, businesses, churches, and other land uses.

If the right to property were truly respected, then there would be no restrictions on the production, use, and trade of material values. If a property owner wanted to build housing for low-income households in a neighborhood, zoning laws would not stop him. The right to property would protect his freedom to produce and trade as he judged best. If an individual wanted to start an African hair-braiding business, occupational licensing would not stop her. The right to property would protect her freedom to produce and trade as she deemed best.

We can’t undo the racist government policies of the past. But we can prevent them from occurring again, as well as remove the remaining vestiges of those policies, by protecting property rights.