Race and Residential Segregation (A Comparison of United States and South Africa)

Residential segregation is a normal condition in any capitalist society because of class differentiation (the wealthy versus the rest); however, when you superimpose on it racial segregation for political/economic reasons through law, then you create the conditions for institutionalized racism.
In a capitalist society, the neighborhood where you are born and live matters; it sets the stage for how your life will evolve from the perspective of achieving social mobility (moving up the socioeconomic ladder), as well as the general quality of life. By comparing residential segregation in the United States and South Africa, residential segregation gives us a window into what has come to be known as "white privilege" even for those whites who are at the bottom of the socioeconomic ladder (relative to other whites).