Rally to end racist discrimination in housing!

Ending systemic racism MUST include dismantling housing discrimination based on conviction records!

Join us virtually or in person at the Bellevue Men's Shelter at 400 East 30th Street in Manhattan at 11:00am on Wednesday, August 26th.

The Fair Chance for Housing campaign is holding a rally in person and online to end racist discrimination in housing. The rally will feature:

• Directly impacted advocates from the Campaign and Exodus Transitional Community

• City Council Member & Chair of the Committee on General Welfare Stephen Levin

• City Council Member & Chair of the Committee on Criminal Justice Keith Powers

• Deputy Public Advocate of Housing Equity, the Public Advocate's Office Delsenia Glover

• Faith leaders, advocates, and more

Join us as we rally to end racist background checks in NYC housing once and for all!  

Where: Bellevue Men's Shelter (400 East 30th Street) or Virtually on Zoom
When: Wednesday, August 26th at 11am
Register: bit.ly/FairChanceHousingRally/ 

Hotels for detainees? Funding for temporary COVID-19 program nearing end

Those getting out of city jails in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic may not have the option to take a hotel to isolate after funding runs dry at the end of June.

Advocates in front of the Manhattan Detention Center – known as the Tombs – called on the city government replenish the funds that not only help detainees and convicts getting on their feet, but homeless individuals, who may be experiencing difficulties with housing discrimination.

Read the full story from amNY.

Countdown Rally: Housing for System-Impacted People During COVID-19 and Beyond

Join us virtually or in person at the Tombs/Manhattan Detention Complex, 125 White Street, New York, NY 10013 on June 15, 2020 from 1:00-2:00pm.

June 15 is 15 days until NYC’s hotel funding for people exiting jail and people in unsafe shelter conditions expires. We need action NOW to keep people safe for the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, and to ensure that system-impacted people have access to permanent, safe housing in the future.

As we have seen, communities of color are disparately impacted by both COVID-19 and the injustice of the criminal legal system. Protests are demanding accountability to Black lives – investing away from police and towards structural change, including change to our housing systems and laws. Be part of the solution, as advocates demand housing access for people impacted by a racist criminal legal system. Rally with us!

Criminal Records Create Cycles of Multigenerational Poverty

As many as 1 in 3 people in the United States have criminal records, creating barriers across several domains. Certain groups in particular—including people of color, sexual minorities, transgender and nonbinary people, people with disabilities, people with serious mental illness, and people living in poverty—experience disproportionate, negative impacts related to the criminal legal system. These disparities reflect discriminatory policies that fuel systemic inequalities, burdening families for generations and perpetuating a cycle of poverty.

Read the full story from Center for American Progress.

Landlords can’t conduct criminal background checks in Berkeley anymore

Berkeley has joined a small number of cities that ban landlords from conducting criminal background checks on prospective tenants or asking about their records at all.

The “fair chance” proposal, months in the making, managed to secure not just a unanimous vote from the Berkeley City Council on Tuesday, but also the endorsement of the Berkeley Property Owners Association and passionate approval by local residents who’ve spent time in prison.

Read the full story on Berkelyside.

Automated Background Checks are Deciding Who's Fit for a Home

Mikhail Arroyo had made it out of the coma, but he was still frail when his mother, Carmen, tried to move him in with her. The months had been taxing: Mikhail was severely injured in a devastating fall in 2015. He had spent time in the hospital, and by 2016 was in a nursing home where his mother visited him daily, waiting until they could live together again. Carmen planned to move him to a new apartment with her in the Connecticut residential complex where she was staying. The only task left was the paperwork.

Read the full story on The Verge.