Map experts dig for roots of racial separation in metro Denver neighborhoods

By Ellis Arnold

In 1967, Black Americans were mired in "the long, hot summer." Frustrations over poverty, unemployment, discrimination and myriad other issues spilled into the streets, leading to clashes with police and arrests in many places, including Denver. The widespread tensions over race left President Lyndon B. Johnson searching for answers.

So, he issued an executive order for a report that would detail what caused the chaos. He wanted it to answer a crucial question: How can the country prevent more unrest in the future?

When the report arrived seven months later, it laid out hundreds of pages of analysis and recommendations for improving race relations in America.

But its message was best summed up in a sentence: 

"To continue present policies is to make permanent the division of our country into two societies: one, largely Negro and poor, located in the central cities: the other, predominantly White and affluent, located in the suburbs and in outlying areas."

Read the rest of the story here.

This story is from Colorado Community Media. CBS News Colorado is a newsgathering partner with CCM, a network of two dozen newspapers and online publications serving eight metro-area counties on the Front Range.