Abstract
On its release in 1968, the Kerner report, with its “two societies” warning, was the subject of intense public attention. However, within a year, concerns arose that the report’s influence was limited and that its recommendations were not being implemented. This perception has not changed noticeably since then. Fifty years later, it is important to accurately assess the report’s legacy and whether the nation has avoided becoming two societies. It has become clear, however, that the report has been implemented more than previously thought and that it has been and continues to be influential. It has also been determined that despite progress toward eliminating the disparity between blacks and whites, it has unfortunately not yet been as extensive as is needed.
- urban policy
- racial discrimination
- public policy
- civil rights
- African American socioeconomic status
- riots
- © 2018 Russell Sage Foundation. Loessberg, Rick, and John Koskinen. 2018. “Measuring the Distance: The Legacy of the Kerner Report.” RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences 4(6): 99–119. DOI: 10.7758/RSF.2018.4.6.05. Please direct correspondence to: Rick Loessberg at rloessberg{at}dallascounty.org, 411 Elm St., 3rd Floor, Dallas, TX 75202.
Open Access Policy: RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences is an open access journal. This article is published under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.