The desire to achieve 'The American Dream'

  The American dream, smiling wife, two and a half kids, white picket fence, car, a job you are passionate about, retirement, and a home to be the center of your universe. This dream infects all races & creeds, even if some have less of a hope to obtain it. In ARITS, the Younger family dreams of having an easy life. Their neighbor, however, warns them that they will get bombed if they try to improve their situation. This was common, as white family's American dream in the '50s seemed to include not living near a black family. The Klu Klux Klan (KKK) often lit black people's homes on fire if they tried to build in a white neighborhood.
  The instance with Mr Linder was very common, but not as personal as with the Youngers. Building committees and home associations would set up laws that taxed builders for getting a permit, with the largest tax of this kind was about $1,000 and the average about $200. These laws were not very discriminatory, but most people who were building their own home were black people. Also, they were enforced virtually only on black people, even arresting them for setting up a hut on their own property. They also created laws that created excuses to demolish the buildings in black suburbs, like rules against using recycled wood, just to get rid of black people.

I recommend this excerpt. Its where I get my 'facts'.

http://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/896412.html