The "white flight" mostly happened with the riots in the 60's. At least in the mid-West.
I think it's fair to say that race caused the riots, but to say that racism caused people to move is just silly. I don't care if black or white people are setting fire in my neighborhood, if I can move somewhere safer, I will.
That’s not the timeline in Chicago. Racial covenants were deemed unconstitutional in the early 40s. White flight occurred in the 50s. By the time of the riots the neighborhoods that suffered from riots (and landlords burning their property for insurance fraud) were already majority black.
I think it's fair to say that race caused the riots, but to say that racism caused people to move is just silly. I don't care if black or white people are setting fire in my neighborhood, if I can move somewhere safer, I will.