Sussex County Realtors to recognize Fair Housing Month April 19
The five-member Sussex County Council will honor a long-standing tradition by joining with the Sussex County Association of Realtors and acknowledging April as Fair Housing Month in Delaware’s southernmost county Tuesday, April 19.
The formal proclamation, which has become an annual event in council chambers, acknowledges the 48th anniversary of the passing of Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act. Also known as the Fair Housing Act, this legislation makes it illegal to discriminate against potential homebuyers on the grounds of race, color, religion or national origin.
Gender was added to the list of protected classes in 1974, while people with disabilities and families with children were added by the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988.
“The passing of this important piece of legislation nearly a half-century ago was a testimony to the power of the American civil rights movement. It’s also a law that forever changed the real estate industry here in the United States, for the better,” says Frank Serio, 2016 president of SCAOR.
It’s important to note that the Fair Housing Act does not specifically include sexual orientation and gender identity as prohibited classes, though the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development did issue a regulation in 2012 prohibiting discrimination against the LGBT community as it pertains to federal housing programs.
Delaware, however, is one of nearly two dozen states that have passed laws prohibiting housing-based discrimination because of sexual orientation and/or gender identity.
The First State, in fact, has long been ahead of the curve when it comes to equal housing rights. Though former President Lyndon Johnson signed the Fair Housing Act into law on April 11, 1968, at the height of America’s civil rights movement, Delaware had addressed the issue several years prior to that historic date.
A 28-member Human Relations Commission was formed in Delaware in 1961 and began overseeing housing discrimination issues, and still does so today. Appointed by the governor, these men and women hear complaints and rule on cases regarding discrimination and prejudice, particularly as it relates to fair housing.
“With the large immigrant population in Delaware, as well as the growing gay and lesbian community in Sussex County, the work of the Human Relations Commission has never been more important in our state than it is right now,” says Serio. “We’re fortunate here in Delaware that our leaders addressed this issue more than 50 years ago, ensuring that everyone in the state had the same opportunities when it comes to housing. And they did it before being federally mandated to do so, which is definitely something to be proud of.”
For more information go to www.hud.gov and www.scaor.com.
