At BEDS Plus, we know that housing is more than shelter—it’s safety, stability, and the foundation for a better future. But right now, we find ourselves in a deeply uncertain moment. Federal housing programs that our vulnerable clients rely on are facing potential cuts. If enacted, these reductions could jeopardize decades of progress in housing equity and leave more people without the support they need to remain housed.
Despite these looming challenges, BEDS Plus continues to do what we’ve always done: walk alongside those experiencing housing instability and fight for their right to safe, affordable homes.
National Fair Housing Month, celebrates the passage of the landmark 1968 Fair Housing Act (FHA). Earlier Supreme Court decisions had outlawed excluding Black/African American households from specific areas of cities, but de facto segregation persisted. A coalition of Civil Rights organizations including the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the National Committee Against Discrimination in Housing, and the G.I. Forum pushed for further housing legislation. They supported a law that explicitly ended housing discrimination.
On April 4, 1968, the proposed FHA came up for a Senate vote. The same day, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in Memphis, Tennesse. President Lyndon B. Johnson argued that passing the bill would honor King’s memory, and it narrowly overcame a last-minute filibuster. The House passed the FHA less than a week later and was signed into law. The FHA banned housing discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin, and disability. Celebrating the law’s passage, President Johnson declared:
With this bill, the voice of justice speaks again. It proclaims that fair housing for all – all human beings who live in this country – is now a part of the American way of life.
In 1988, the Fair Housing Amendment Act added family statuses and disabilities to the FHA’s list of protected groups. Some states have included further people in individual legislation.
Sadly, reality falls far short of the FHA’s ideal of fair housing for all. Racial/ethnic housing disparities persist, and housing discrimination is difficult to prove. Households that believe they have been discriminated against must secure legal counsel. Many vulnerable individuals and families cannot afford lawyers, and they turn to nonprofit organizations to review and litigate discrimination cases.
The current Presidential administration cut federal funding to these agencies, which effectively enforce the Fair Housing Act (in 2023, they handled 25,500 claims, a record high). While we do not directly handle these cases, many of our clients have faced housing discrimination, and we help them regain and sustain fair, affordable housing in their communities. In honor of Fair Housing Month, you can make a financial gift, in-kind gift, or volunteer.
Fair housing is not just an ideal—it’s a necessity. And as long as it remains under threat, we’ll be here doing the work, standing with those who need it most.
We urge you to contact your federal representatives and senators to reemphasize the need for fair housing policies.