redlining

First National Bank of Pennsylvania discriminated against Black and Latino homebuyers in North Carolina for a period of at least four years, the Justice Department said Monday, the latest in a long list of banks who have been caught redlining.

The Justice Department accused the bank of discrimination by refusing to underwrite mortgages in predominately Black and Latino communities.

"We see a really clear association between how these maps were drawn in the '30s and the air pollution disparities today," says an author of a study on the effects of the discriminatory policy.

A Winston-Salem exhibit that highlights the history and impact of discriminatory lending practices has been extended through January. 

Researchers analyzed the lingering harms of of decades-old racist lending policies known as redlining. Their project lets you explore the current impacts on maps of 142 cities.

In the early 20th century, the federal government categorized neighborhoods, based largely on race, to determine mortgage eligibility. A new site combines the maps — and their revealing backstories.