evidence: Conservatives mocked Pete Buttigieg for saying racism is "built into" America's highways. [...] Highways constructed throughout Black and low-income neighborhoods suffocated once-thriving communities, putting residents through the trauma of losing their homes and communities. It's what Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg spoke to when he told the Grio in an interview in early April, "there is racism physically built into some of our highways." [...] Now, Mingoya works to empower residents of neighborhoods like the one she grew up in to advocate for a healthy environment for their communities. Mingoya agrees with Sec. Buttigieg: racism is built into our roads. And though the people who designed the last century's racist infrastructure are long gone, that infrastructure still exists today, Mingoya said.