Friday, December 19, 2008

Accessible Housing Still A Dream For Many

MASSACHUSETTS FORUM

By Aviva Rothman-Shore and Sean Caron

Since the election of Barack Obama, there have been frequent discussions about the implications of this historic election on the state of inequality in the nation. Many have said that the landslide election of an African-American raised in a humble setting by a single parent demonstrates that while racism and socio-economic inequality are stains on America’s history, they are no longer a significant part of our societal fabric.

However, this pivotal moment should not cloud the truth about social and racial inequality in the Commonwealth today. Greater Boston remains one of the most segregated metropolitan areas in the nation. The bulk of the Commonwealth’s people of color, regardless of their incomes, reside in urban centers.

In fact, the Commonwealth’s seven largest cities (Boston, Springfield, Worcester, Lowell, Brockton, New Bedford, and Fall River) have only 20 percent of the total population, but are home to 41 percent of the Commonwealth’s people of color and 40 percent of residents living below the federal poverty line.

Multi-family housing that is accessible to low- and moderate-income households is nearly impossible to build under local land use regulations in a majority of the Commonwealth’s municipalities. In many areas the lack of affordable housing could be improved with a change in zoning that would increase the number of multi-family dwellings.

For those that continue to suffer from the significant affordability barrier, income is partially to blame, but it doesn’t completely explain the disparity. That is why Fair Housing Laws are also an important part of the solution. Governor Patrick has made enforcing fair housing laws a priority. His efforts to secure housing opportunities for low income families, people of color, and people with disabilities by properly enforcing the Fair Housing Act should be applauded.

A 2004 Harvard Civil Rights Project study found mere financial affordability fails to explain the segregation that currently exists. The study compared the actual number of owners/buyers in each municipality by race and found that in 80 percent of cities and towns, the number of black and Latino buyers is less than half what researchers anticipated if affordability was the sole barrier. African-American and Latinos face greater affordability constraints on average, but affordability alone does a poor job in explaining segregation.

Residents of both cities and suburbs must have housing choice for our Commonwealth to truly overcome inequalities of the past. We must also allow residents of all cities and towns the opportunity to choose from a variety of communities through expanded housing options for people of color and for a multitude of incomes.

However, there is a significant amount of state and local work left to be done to break down practices that perpetrate racial and social inequality.

The governor and the legislature should reform exclusionary land use laws that lead to unattainable housing for people of color and people of modest means in the coming legislative session. Municipal officials can also help solve this problem by welcoming families with children to their communities and supporting additional local initiatives to promote multi-family housing.

It will take a focused effort at the federal, state, and local level to bring about the equality that President-Elect Obama has called for so convincingly. Even a president that changed history can’t do it alone.
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Caron is director of public policy at Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association. Rothman-Shore is director of outreach and policy at the Fair Housing Center of Greater Boston.
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Copyright © 2008 by the Massachusetts Forum.

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