The era from which Moses came to power, in the 1930s, NY State was almost exclusively white. In 1930 - NY City was over 95% white, and upstate cities like Buffalo were 98% white. Race was something NY Citizens never had to confront before, as a multi-racial society was now suddenly upon them after the great migration of blacks starting in the Depression and even more in WWII for jobs in industry. Blacks were not only seen as a small minority, they were also seen by many NY’ers as outsiders, southerners without roots, who came for work, and their neighborhoods as temporary.
If people were moved or inconvenienced by Moses, of course the vast majority were white. Blacks did not have roots in NY State, so which neighborhoods are they going to settle in? And at the time, who is going to oppose those neighborhoods being torn down? His works were nearly universally seen by all as signs of “progress.”
Well, the author only has to look at the film West Side Story to see who got impacted by Lincoln Center. It wasn’t blacks.