Fair Housing Center of Greater Boston, Inc.

The Fair Housing Center of Greater Boston was founded in 1998 by local housing and civil rights professionals and works to eliminate housing discrimination and promote open communities throughout the region. Service Area and Target Population We serve the communities of Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Middlesex, and Plymouth counties and seeks to promote fair housing for all protected classes under federal, state, and local laws. Our current programs target discrimination based on race and national origin, family status (the presence of minor children), and source of income (particularly use of Section 8 housing subsidies). We focus on these groups because of the prevalence of discrimination against them, as well as the lack of focused resources for their defense. We partner with urban community organizations serving home seekers, suburban community organizations promoting diversity within their communities, and attorneys experienced in civil rights litigation. Why the Fair Housing Center is needed Discrimination in housing not only takes away our freedom to choose where we live, it also limits the variety of people with whom we can interact and the opportunities available to us in our own neighborhoods. Where we live often determines the quality of our children's education and our access to jobs. The Greater Boston region remains one of the nation's most segregated housing markets for African Americans and Latinos. The Fair Housing Center's discrimination testing audits have documented that racial discrimination is the norm rather than the exception for people of color attempting to rent or purchase homes in our region.