April is Fair Housing Month
April is Fair Housing Month 2023
April is Fair Housing Month because, on April 11, 1968, President Johnson signed the Fair Housing Act of 1968 after months of ideological gridlock. The legislative breakthrough came only when, on April 4th of that year, the Act's champion, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was murdered in Memphis. The mission of the WSHRC is to eliminate and prevent discrimination in the Washington State through the fair application of the law, efficient use of resources, and establishment of productive partnerships in the community.
Washington State Human Rights Commission (WSHRC) partners with the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO) to eliminate housing discrimination, promote economic opportunity, and achieve diverse, inclusive communities by leading the nation in the enforcement, administration, development, and public understanding of federal fair housing policies and laws.
WSHRC and HUD FHEO’s partnership activities include investigating fair housing complaints and managing fair housing grants.
There are also fair housing organizations and other non-profits that receive funding from HUD through the Fair Housing Initiatives Program (FHIP) and partner with WSHRC. FHIPs assist people who believe they have been victims of housing discrimination. FHIP organizations partner with HUD and WSHRC to help people identify government agencies that handle complaints of housing discrimination. They also conduct preliminary investigation of claims, including sending "testers" to properties suspected of practicing housing discrimination.
The goal of these partnerships is to affirmatively further fair housing.
Please visit the virtual events listed below to learn more about fair housing during fair housing month.
