Disparate Impact

The latest in a series of compendia gathering news and analysis about the effects of the COVID-19 on the built and natural environments—now and long into the future.

February 17, 2021 - James Brasuell

The nation is now tasked with the challenge of changing course in the middle of multiple, global crises. The necessity of finding a way to overcome the failures of the past and lay the groundwork for a new kind of future has never been more clear.

January 31, 2021 - James Brasuell

The nation's fair housing policies are built on a foundation of assumptions that neglects the community and culture of low-income neighborhoods.

January 18, 2021 - Shelterforce Magazine

The Department of Justice has proposed a change to the interpretation of disparate impact in Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and many anti-discrimination laws that followed.

January 7, 2021 - The Washington Post

The Fair Housing Act (FHA) imposes liability upon landlords and governments whose policies have a discriminatory effect against racial minorities. However, the courts have interpreted this doctrine narrowly.

March 30, 2020 - Michael Lewyn

A former housing and urban development secretary and a professor of sociology oppose the Trump administration's proposed changes to the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing rule.

February 18, 2020 - The New York Times

The Trump administration last week published its latest attempt to undermine a fair housing rule adopted during the Obama administration.

January 13, 2020 - Curbed

A new rule proposed by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development raises the burden of proof in cases of disparate impact, and provides additional defenses for defendants.

August 22, 2019 - CityLab

The Supreme Court upheld the disparate impact doctrine at the heart of fair housing rules, along with many other anti-discrimination policies, in 2015. Still, the Trump administration is looking for ways to undermine disparate impact.

January 9, 2019 - The Washington Post

Chicago's own city government, in the form of aldermanic prerogatives and privileges, contributes to racial and economic segregation, according to a new study.

July 10, 2018 - Chicago Tribune

The retirement of Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy introduces the possibility that a future court will overturn the doctrine of disparate impact central to fair housing practices and policies.

July 2, 2018 - CityLab

The largest private landlord in the U.S. faces a discrimination suit for refusing to rent to people with criminal records.

January 4, 2018 - Center for Investigative Reporting

A new feature-length documentary film raises the question of whether public transportation is a civil rights issue.

February 16, 2017 - Mass Transit

All eyes are on Texas to see whether fair housing policies enacted by the Obama Administration will have any chance to stick.

February 4, 2017 - Next City

Rules protecting minorities' access to housing have been strengthened under the Obama administration. That progress could be lost under a HUD Secretary who opposes Fair Housing altogether.

December 6, 2016 - CityLab

Describing a seminar on "Sprawl and the Law" at the University of Pittsburgh.

December 10, 2015 - Michael Lewyn

Laura Bliss argues that implicit discrimination in the boundary-shaping policies of school districts necessitates reform of the property-tax funding system.

July 30, 2015 - CityLab

An interview with a leading academic on the subject of fair housing offers perspective on the new Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing rule created by the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

July 25, 2015 - Salon

A New York Times op-ed predicts that recent changes to Fair Housing could prompt unintended consequences—such as new support for the Republican Party among middle class white populations.

July 16, 2015 - The New York Times

A highly anticipated Supreme Court ruling on the concept of "disparate impact" at the heart of the Fair Housing Act.

June 25, 2015 - CityLab