Introduction I often hear Black Americans say, “Whenever we try to build anything, ‘they’ tear it down.” While this statement holds some truth, it’s only half true. The truth is, our communities and economies weren’t just burned down by riots or destroyed by mobs. Many were dismantled by a much quieter weapon: called integration. Segregation and Jim Crow were oppressive and cruel. To be Black in that era meant enduring relentless hardship and discrimination simply for existin