summer 2008 lott leadership exchange: race, religion and reconciliation in a comparative dialogue...
TRANSCRIPT
Summer 2008 Lott Leadership Exchange:Race, Religion and Reconciliation in a
Comparative Dialogue
Presentation by the National Fair Housing Alliance
July 3, 2008
Mission Statement
The National Fair Housing Alliance is the voice of fair housing. NFHA works to eliminate housing discrimination and to ensure equal housing opportunity for all people through leadership, education, outreach, membership services, public policy initiatives, advocacy and enforcement.
Program Areas
EnforcementMembership ServicesHurricane Relief ProjectIndustry RelationsEducationPublic Policy
Fair Housing Act
HistoryPurposeProtections
It shall be unlawful, because of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin, to restrict or attempt to restrict the choices of a person by word or conduct in connection with seeking, negotiating for, buying or renting a dwelling so as to perpetuate, or tend to perpetuate, segregated housing patterns, or to discourage or obstruct choices in a community, neighborhood or development. (24 CFR Part 14, Section 100.70(a)).
The First Fair Housing Law
Civil Rights Act of 1866– All citizens of the United States shall
have the same right, in every State and Territory, as is enjoyed by white citizens thereof to inherit, purchase, lease, sell, hold, and convey real and personal property.
Federal/State/Local Fair Housing Laws
100 State and Local Fair Housing Laws•Additional Protected Groups
– Marital Status– Source of Income– Sexual Orientation– Matriculation– Political Affiliation– Section 8 Voucher Holder– Survivors of domestic violence– Personal Appearance– Gender Identification and/or Expression
Historic Precedents
Trafficante v. Metropolitan LifeHavens Realty Corp. v. Coleman
Testing
Paired testSandwich Test
Research v. Enforcement
What’s the incidence of discrimination each year?
Fair Housing Trends Report: In 2007, 27,023 combined total complaints filed with private fair housing groups, state and local agencies, HUD and DOJ.•Breakdown by Protected Class:
– Race: 23% – Disability: 49%– Familial Status: 14% – National Origin: 9%– Sex: 3%– Religion: 3%– Other: 3%
Breakdown by Discriminatory Practice
(NFHA Complaints Only)
Rental: 77% Real Estate Sales: 5%Mortgage Lending: 7%Homeowners Insurance: <1%Other: 10%
Types of Discrimination
Availability/AppointmentsSteering Denial of ServiceIllegal CommentsFinancial Incentives
Discrimination by the Public Sector
“Restrictive Ordinances”Family DefinitionsOccupancy Restrictions
Immigration Status
Discriminatory Policies
Public Housing Policies
Discrimination by the Private Sector
Discriminatory Lending
Practices
Historically included:redlining of AA and LA neighborhoodsfailure to have branches in minority
neighborhoodsrefusal to write loansdifferential pricing, etc.
Subprime Housing
Crisis
More Costly Credit
Subprime loans are priced higher, in theory to cover higher risk*
However, many subprime borrowers could qualify for prime loans but are courted only by subprime lenders*
Other subprime borrowers are charged more than is justified by risk. Origination fees are typically higher and prepayment penalties are more common*
*Center for Responsible Lending
Groups Negatively Impacted
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
% of Group Recvg. Subprime
Loan
African-American
Latino
Women
Discrimination contributes to continued patterns of
residential segregation. • Measures of segregation show that it declined
by 4-12% between 1980 and 2000 • But: almost 65% of African-Americans live in
segregated neighborhoods; and • Almost 52% of Latinos live in segregated
neighborhoods• The average White person in metropolitan
America lives in a neighborhood that is 80% White
Discrimination contributes to large gaps in homeownership.
Homeownership Rates in 2004:
• Non-Hispanic Whites: 76%
• Blacks: 49.1%• Latinos: 48.1%• The gap in
homeownership is larger now than it was in 1940 when it was 23%.
Residential Segregation leads to School Segregation.
• Almost every school district studied by the Harvard Civil Rights Project showed an increase in segregation since 1986 for Black and Latino students.
• Segregated schools result in fewer resources for schools with minority students.
Westchester County, NY
• School districts– Tarrytown
•47.7 Latino– Elmsford
•50.7 Black– Irvington
•11% Black/Latino
– Hastings on Hudson•7.9%
Black/Latino
“Recent analyses of data prepared for school finance cases in Alabama, California, New Jersey, New York, Louisiana, and Texas have found that on every tangible measure – from qualified teachers to curriculum offerings – schools serving greater numbers of students of color had significantly fewer resources than schools serving mostly White students. … The continuing segregation of neighborhoods and communities intersects with funding formulas and school administration practices that create substantial differences in the educational resources made available in different communities.”
Policy Priorities
AppropriationsHousing Fairness Act
Hurricane Relief Project
Report for the International Convention on the Elimination of All
Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD)
National Fair Housing Alliance1101 Vermont Avenue, NW, Suite
710Washington, DC 20005
(202) 898-1661www.nationalfairhousing.org
www.aricherlife.org
Deidre Swesnik – [email protected] Goldberg – [email protected] Duong – [email protected] Alarcon – [email protected]