Could a bold anti-poverty experiment from the 1960s inspire a new era in housing justice?

The Great Society’s Model Cities Program wasn’t perfect. But it offered a vision of what democratic, community-based planning could look like.

By: Deyanira Nevárez Martínez, Michigan State University, The Conversation

Outlets: The Conversation

Published: June 20, 2026

Words: 1,487

Last Updated: 1 month ago

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By Deyanira Nevárez Martínez, Michigan State University

In cities across the U.S., the housing crisis has reached a breaking point. Rents are skyrocketing, homelessness is rising and working-class neighborhoods are threatened by displacement.

These challenges might feel unprecedented. But they echo a moment more than half a century ago.

In the 1950s and 1960s, housing and urban inequality were at the center of national politics. American cities were grappling with rapid urban decline, …

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