Although some progress has been made in purging some of the most blatant and obvious forms of discrimination from the housing markets, significant levels of discrimination continue; much of which builds directly on the infrastructure created by decades of discrimination. This perpetuating nature of discrimination ensures that the legacy of past discriminatory practices will not easily fade as mere relics of the past. In part, this lack of success in purging discrimination from the markets is directly attributable to the fact that enforcement of fair housing and lending laws is woefully underfunded and low on the public policy priority agenda. For example, although the Fair Housing Act was passed in 1968, the U.S. Department of Justice did not prosecute a major case against a mortgage lending institution until the early-1990s — the case against Decatur Federal S&L. …..The Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 provided enormous enforcement powers to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), including the power to the HUD Secretary to initiate fair housing cases even if not connected with a complaint. HUD’s enforcement powers, for various reasons, have largely remained under-utilized. In 2003, HUD charged only four racial discrimination cases, although it had received more than 2,700 complaints that year. Nearly 40 years after the passage of the federal Fair Housing Act, at least 3 million fair housing violations still occur each year (National Fair Housing Alliance, 2004).…….
Because housing is the centerpiece of opportunity in the U.S., equal access to housing markets is central to achieve equal opportunity. Significant progress in providing equal access to housing markets can be made by simply enforcing current fair housing and fair lending laws. Each day, thousands of home-seekers enter the markets to relocate. They have worked hard, done all the right things. They have, as we like to say, pulled themselves up by their own bootstraps. But when they enter the housing markets – both rental and homeowner -- their attempts at improving their living circumstances are stifled by illegal discrimination. And because of the critical link between housing and other opportunities, substantial progress can be made in improving social and economic equality. Simply enforcing current non-discrimination laws would result in higher minority homeownership rates, sustained and successful homeownership for minorities in the neighborhoods of their choice, reduced segregation, and elimination of the costs of housing discrimination (such as higher search costs) that minority families currently bear. This would lead to the indirect effects of better schools for minority children, better access to jobs, and better neighborhoods for minority families. …..
The most recent national Housing Discrimination Study (HDS 2000) found that while discrimination in sales and rental markets had decreased since the previous HDS of 1989, significant levels of discriminatory behavior against minority groups nevertheless remain. Phase I of the study found that African Americans and Hispanics who visit rental or real estate offices to inquire about the availability of advertised apartments and homes face a significant risk of less favorable treatment than comparable white customers. African American renters receive unfavorable treatment more than one out of five times, and Hispanic renters receive unfavorable treatment more than one out of four times. More than one in six African American and Hispanic homebuyers receives unfavorable treatment compared to equally qualified whites (Turner et al., 2002). …..The HDS 2000 found that steering of African Americans has actually increased since 1989. Steering directly reinforces existing segregation, and prevents integration that might naturally occur as African Americans seek new neighborhoods of their choice."
Not just with words, but with deeds - by investing in our schools and our communities; by enforcing our civil rights laws and ensuring fairness in our criminal justice system; by providing this generation with ladders of opportunity that were unavailable for previous generations. It requires all Americans to realize that your dreams do not have to come at the expense of my dreams; that investing in the health, welfare, and education of black and brown and white children will ultimately help all of America prosper.
“A high quality educational system, skills training, safe neighborhoods, the creation of good jobs, access to jobs and transportation, access to affordable credit, reliable avenues for wealth-accumulation, affordable healthcare, and reliable social safety nets (including secure retirement) are necessary to preserve our economic system and improve U.S.-competitiveness in world markets. Segregation and restrictions to housing opportunities pull us down as a nation by keeping millions of our citizens in failed schools, unsafe neighborhoods, and with their intelligence, skills and creativity largely untapped.
…….. Often, discussions on integration lose sight of the real meaning and purpose of that concept. In America, opportunities are directly linked to communities. And, America has more a half century of experience that demonstrates that attempting to ensure equal access to opportunities without removing the artificial barriers to residential mobility will not work. Today, the nation’s schools, for example, are re-segregating. Attempting to enhance seriously the quality of the nation’s educational system, while ignoring the reality of the relationship of residence and opportunity, is a recipe for failure.Interestingly, policies to shore up the growing instability of America’s middle class, such as improved access to quality education, good jobs, adequate health care, and reasonable retirement savings are also essential to the upward mobility of lower-income and minority households.Only through sound and thoughtful public policy that honestly examines the complex threats facing the nation in the years ahead, and takes deliberate action to address those challenges, will we ensure the stability of America’s middle class and Americans’ way of life. And only through actions that eliminate the additional, artificial, and counterproductive barriers presented by residential segregation will we achieve our greatest potential as a nation and society. Today, we face very significant challenges in a rapidly changing world. Our recommendation is that we address those challenges with sound government policies, as we have done in the past; but this time, with the inclusion of all Americans.”
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