The Courage of Better Homes of South Bend
Hering House on Western Avenue, where Better Homes of South Bend held many of their meetings.
Today, WNYC Studios released a new episode of The United States of Anxiety titled, “A Secret Meeting in South Bend.” In it, host Kai Wright and reporter Jenny Casas tell the story of Better Homes of South Bend: an early African American building co-op formed by Studebaker employees, and discuss what is says about inequity in black homeownership now.
It is required listening. Read the studio’s summary and find links to listen to the show below:
Mike Jackson, like many descendants of the Great Migration, has a family home that was built from protest, resilience and ingenuity. In the spring of 1950, his parents met in secret with 25 other families to create Better Homes of South Bend. Their efforts would later become a collection of homes on the 1700 and 1800 blocks of N. Elmer St. But today, the value of those houses doesn’t match the work it took to put them there. This week: what these family stories of housing in the “heartland” say about inequity in home ownership today.
In the next couple weeks, Jenny will join Dustin and I on the On Purpose podcast for a conversation about the behind-the-scenes reporting process, her impressions of South Bend, and the new questions that her reporting has surfaced.
You can listen to “The United States of Anxiety” podcast via Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, Google Play Music, Spotify, TuneIn, Stitcher, iHeartRadio, RadioPublic, and RSS.
Sign up to receive new stories in your inbox:
"The United States of Anxiety" podcast is hosted by Kai Wright and reported by Jenny Casas.
Additional Notes from WNYC Studios:
Gabrielle Robinson is the author of Better Homes of South Bend: An American Story of Courage. Robinson is currently working with a Washington D.C. based playwright to adapt the Better Homes story into a play.
Andre Perry is a Fellow in the Metropolitan Policy Program at Brookings and the author of The Devaluation of Assets in Black Neighborhoods and the forthcoming book Know Your Price.
The full interview with Leroy and Margaret Cobb, as well as other interviews about South Bend life during the time Better Homes organizing, can be heard through the Oral History Collection of the Indiana University South Bend Civil Rights Heritage Center.