01/16/2023
Happy MLK Day, and today- I’m GRATEFUL for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and all of his many accomplishments— since this is a Real Estate Page we’re going to talk about fair housing!
Article 10, REALTOR CODE OF ETHICS REALTORS®, in their real estate employment practices, shall not discriminate against any person or persons on the basis of race, color, religion, s*x, disability, familial status, national origin, s*xual orientation, or gender identity. (Amended 1/23)
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s 13+ years as the leader of the American Civil Rights movement pushed more forward progress towards racial inequalities than in the previous hundreds of years, and while his rightful impact in the establishment of legislations like the Civil Rights Act of 1963 and the Votings Rights Act of 1964 is often well known, Dr. King took up a fight against housing inequality that is often overshadowed by some of his other accomplishments.
When Dr. King shifted his focus to economic justice, he rallied alongside the Chicago Open Housing Movement (The Chicago Freedom Movement) and other equal rights organizations to ask local government and businesses to end discriminatory housing practices.
“We are here today because we are tired,” Dr. King said. “We are tired of paying more for less. We are tired of living in rat-infested slums… We are tired of having to pay a median rent of $97 a month in Lawndale for four rooms while whites living in South Deering pay $73 a month for five rooms.” Dr. King suppported bringing The Fair Housing Act, - which would become known as Title VIII of the Civil RIghts Act of 1968-a federal legislation that later on passed to prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, s*x, disability, family status and national origin to Congress in 1966. It was overlooked for years—until Dr. King's assassination. Just seven Days after Dr. King was murdered, Congress gave the final push and President Lydon Johnson signed Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 into law - which now protects people when they are renting, buying, securing a mortgage, or other housing-related activities.
#2023