Fair Housing Act – 50th Anniversary

Written on: April 11th, 2018 in Blog Posts

April 11th, 2018 is the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Fair Housing Act of 1968. The Fair Housing Act made it illegal to discriminate in housing.

Why it Matters

Signed on April 11th, 1968, the Fair Housing Act made it illegal for landlords or property sellers from discriminating based on race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial status, or national origin. The Fair Housing Act was signed four years after the Equal Accommodations Act of 1964, which outlawed discrimination in places of public accommodation (such as stores, restaurants, parks, hotels, etc.).

Martin Luther King Jr. was an advocate for the Fair Housing Act, as well as the NAACP, and other major civil rights organizations. The national’s first fair housing legislation was the Civil Rights Act of 1866, but by law housing discrimination, which included laws enacted by municipal, local, state and federal governments, created segregated and unequal communities. Because of that, legislation was necessary to support the right to housing equality.

The federal legislation was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson a week after Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated.

States passed their own Fair Housing legislation, including Delaware.

Resources in Delaware

Individuals who believe they have experienced housing discrimination can file a complaint with The Division of Human Relations. The Division is the investigative and enforcement agency in Delaware for violations of both the Equal Accommodations Law and the Fair Housing Law in Delaware. Reach out if you feel like you are being discriminated against.