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Writer's pictureReform Revolution Project
Aug 3, 20202 min read

Housing & Race Pt. 1: The Fair Housing Act of 1968

Updated: Aug 21, 2020


Housing is a fundamental human right that should be accessible to all people. Unfortunately, this has not been the case for BIPOC in the United States for most of our country's history. Notably, in the 1930s, the Federal Housing Administration made it nearly impossible for BIPOC to buy/rent houses by:

  • Refusing to rent housing, sell housing, or negotiate for housing specifically in White neighborhoods

  • Making housing unavailable or lying about the availability of housing

  • Refusing to make or purchase mortgage loans

  • Setting different terms or conditions on loans, such as interest rates or fees

  • Making discriminatory statements or advertising property in a way that indicates a clear preference for a person with a certain background (specifically not BIPOC)

  • Threatening or interfering with anyone’s fair housing rights

This forced BIPOC into low-income impoverished areas with few opportunities to build wealth and improve their living situations. The added stress of housing instability such as trouble paying rent, overcrowding, frequent moving, living with relatives, or spending the bulk of household income on housing severely affected many individual's physical and mental health.


It wasn't until 1968 that The Fair Housing Act prohibited "discrimination concerning the sale, rental and financing of housing based on race, religion, national origin or sex." Though it made some initial steps towards combating housing discrimination, the long-lasting effects of segregation continued to persist as recently as 2015, when The Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing Rule (AFFHR) was passed as a subsection of the Fair Housing Act. Its purpose was to hold "communities accountable for providing fair housing by requiring any town that wanted to receive US Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) funding to document and publicly report racial bias patterns."


Though this new law is another step in the right direction, it has recently been placed in jeopardy. According to David Zimmerman of the Architectural Digest, the Trump Administration has "ramped up its efforts to consolidate support among his base of older, whiter voters. Those efforts now include the reversal of an Obama-era HUD policy, in a not-so-subtle appeal to the racialized fears of white suburban voters." These tactics will not help anyone but the White, wealthy upper class. In the words of Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, "We must hinder President Trump's efforts to segregate communities and discriminate against Black and Brown homeowners and renters, we cannot return to the days of redlining and white flight."


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