{"product_id":"planning-white-supremacy-rebecca-coleen-retzlaff-9780817322540","title":"Planning White Supremacy: Civil Rights and City Planning in Montgomery, Alabama, 1920-1970","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eAn unflinching account of how city planning was deployed to enforce white supremacy in Montgomery, Alabama--the birthplace of the Civil Rights Movement--and how Black activists fought back, block by neighborhood block.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAt the heart of the Civil Rights Movement was a city meticulously designed to enforce inequality. In \u003ci\u003ePlanning White Supremacy: Civil Rights and City Planning in Montgomery, Alabama, 1920-1970\u003c\/i\u003e, Rebecca Coleen Retzlaff traces how city officials used the tools of modern planning--zoning, infrastructure, housing codes, public investment, and highway construction--to suppress political power, economic opportunity, and spatial freedom for Black citizens.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAs the birthplace of the Civil Rights Movement, Montgomery became a battleground where urban planning and direct-action protest collided, shaping the city's culture in ways that still resonate today. Retzlaff's analysis exposes the calculated use of municipal power to control land use, displace Black communities, keep schools and neighborhoods segregated, and preserve white political dominance. By placing urban planning at the center of Montgomery's story, this groundbreaking work reframes the movement not only as a fight for voting rights and legal equality, but as a struggle for space, housing, mobility, education, and the right to live with dignity. Retzlaff also highlights the resilience and joy of the close-knit Black neighborhoods that nurtured the civil rights activists who changed history.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRetzlaff reveals how urban planning decisions systematically targeted Black neighborhoods, reinforcing racial inequality under the guise of modernization. With historical depth and critical insight, \u003ci\u003e Planning White Supremacy\u003c\/i\u003e situates Montgomery within the broader context of American urban history--offering a vital perspective on the intersection of race, space, and power. Essential for scholars of urban planning, history, and racial justice, this book also provides urgent insight into how these legacies continue to shape cities and Black socioeconomic opportunities today.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Rebecca Coleen Retzlaff\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 081732254X\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780817322540\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e University Alabama Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 11\/15\/2025\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 346\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.00lbs","brand":"Rebecca Coleen Retzlaff","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":47419115569407,"sku":"9780817322540","price":110.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_921b7835-7920-4011-8dd5-8171b14ad05f.jpg?v=1761509543","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/planning-white-supremacy-rebecca-coleen-retzlaff-9780817322540","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}