Uncovering America: Life in Chicago’s South Side shaped by ‘redlining’

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0 January 11, 2026 11:36

Recently, the term "the U.S. kill line" has gone viral on social media, sparking widespread discussion. Netizens use it to describe a financially unstable situation in which individuals or households have almost no buffer against mistakes – a scenario where even a single unexpected event can trigger a swift and potentially permanent downfall. "Uncovering America" is a series that focuses on the lives of ordinary Americans, examining the challenges they face today from multiple angles and perspectives.

Beneath Chicago’s skyline lies the city’s South Side, a predominantly African American area that forms an integral part of the U.S. metropolis. While socially and culturally diverse, the region has long faced challenges in urban governance, including high levels of gang-related crime and limited access to quality public education.

Before 1968, the United States implemented the redlining policy, which restricted racial groups to specific neighborhoods. Although this policy was formally abolished decades ago, de facto "redlined communities" have persisted to this day. Chicago’s South Side was one of the most typical areas marked by the "red line" at that time. Today, the legacy of redlining remains visible. In some cases, a single street highlights a stark contrast in living conditions between its north and south sides. On the north side, largely white neighborhoods, average house prices may exceed $1 million, and schools are well-funded; whereas on the south side, predominantly African American neighborhoods face depreciated property values, frequent shootings and scarce educational resources.

CGTN Stringer went to Chicago’s South Side to examine how redlining has spanned a century and continues to influence daily life, opportunities, and long-term prospects for hundreds of thousands of Americans, decades after the policy officially ended.

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