On Tuesday, two items–one from a historical perspective and the other forward-looking–will place the government’s role in creating inequitable and racially segregated neighborhoods, and its ability to correct course, into the spotlight.

The first is a study from Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas’ office detailing how mid-20th century “federal government-sanctioned housing discrimination” led to “urban decay and the ensuing exodus of Blacks from Chicago and other major U.S. Cities.”