The Digital Press

The article discusses the dramatic decline in American internal migration over the past decades, exploring how restrictive housing policies and local activism have contributed to this mobility crisis and its economic and social consequences. Yoni Appelbaum's book "Stuck" examines how historic figures like Jane Jacobs influenced current zoning laws that limit housing development, thereby reducing opportunities and mobility for many Americans.

Why it matters: Declining mobility undermines economic opportunity, social agency, and the traditional American dream of upward mobility.

The big picture: Post-WWII America had high migration rates enabling economic dynamism; today’s restrictive zoning and community veto powers have frozen that mobility.

The stakes: Geographic immobility costs the U.S. about $2 trillion annually in GDP and contributes to political polarization and social alienation.

Commenters say: Readers express skepticism about blaming Jane Jacobs alone, emphasize generational wealth and corporate ownership as key housing issues, and note mobility’s decline also reflects deeper social and economic shifts beyond zoning laws.