It ' s not just the slavery , it ' s the abuse and mistreatment that still happens today albeit to a far lesser extent . If you want people to behave well then you have to treat them well , you can ' t single them out as inferior then expect them to fit in . This will continue to be a problem for the US until the government try to empower these regions and ghettos . Detroit didn ' t have a problem with slavery but it did have severe economic troubles which is why crime is so high . You ' re just contradicting your point that it ' s not to do with economics by highlighting the case where it ' s entirely to do with economics . In reality , it will be a combination of their history and current economic troubles that makes the black community a hostile environment .