Final answer:
The segregation experience differed as white ethnics generally faced less discrimination and had more housing options, while African Americans faced systematic housing segregation and severe prejudice.
Step-by-step explanation:
The experience of segregation for white ethnics in cities like Chicago differed from that of African Americans in several ways. While both groups faced forms of discrimination and economic challenges, African Americans suffered from more severe segregation and prejudice. In the case of housing, for example, African Americans faced systematic housing segregation, as white homeowners often refused to sell to black individuals, and practices such as redlining by banks denied them loans, which was not legal until 1948. This denial of housing contributed to the creation of overcrowded and segregated African American communities, while white ethnics, although facing their own set of challenges, generally faced less discrimination and had more housing options available to them. White ethnics, such as European immigrants, often established their own neighborhoods but did not experience the same level of forced segregation and could often assimilate into the broader white majority over time.