Dark Ghettos: Injustice, Dissent, and Reform

"Why do ghettos persist?" Tommie Shelby asks in Dark Ghettos. Today, ghettos are widely seen as social problems that public policy should aim to solve. Shelby calls this the "medical model" because it portrays ghettos as sick patients in need of treatment. In his view, this model ignores the political agency of the ghetto poor and the underlying social structures that perpetuate disadvantage in black communities. Shelby argues that we should conceive of ghettos within a "justice paradigm" instead. Adopting a Rawlsian framework, he considers the existence of ghettos as a sign of deeply embedded social injustice, and he offers a "nonideal" social theory, establishing what the government and citizens are obligated and permitted to do within fundamentally unfair conditions. His theory arises through practical considerations: should the American government enforce residential diversity? Should welfare programs disincentivize single motherhood? For those who live in ghettos, is voluntary non-work--or street violence, or hip-hop--a just and valid form of dissent? Ultimately, Shelby aims to establish principles that will lead to the abolishment of ghettos through just reform.--