Just published a new edition of Fair Housing E-News. Check it out:

FAIR HOUSING E-NEWS

August Edition

July-August, 2010 - Vol. 16, No. 4

==================================================

Welcome to this edition of the GBCHRB's Fair Housing E-News! This newsletter is produced by the GBCHRB as a public service. More info/resources: http://www.gbchrb.org. To read this issue of Fair Housing E-News, click here: fhnews10aug.pdf. Just a few of the August headlines are:

In Justice Department Fair Housing News...

Justice Department Files Lawsuit Alleging Disability-based Housing Discrimination at Louisville, Kentucky, Apartment Complex. Read the August 10, 2010, DOJ Press Release.

Jury Awards $115,000 to Victims of Housing Discrimination & Sexual Harassment.

Read the August 6, 2010 DOJ Press Release.

Justice Department Files Fair Housing Lawsuit Against Dalton Township, Michigan.

Read the July 28, 2010 DOJ Press Release.

Maryland News...

The "Day of Dignity" for the Homeless Will Be Held on September 4, 2010 at Massjod Ul Haqq. http://www.dayofdignity.com/

Fair Housing Legal Round-Up - Source of Income Discrimination Legislation Defeated in Maryland House of Delegates. Read the legislative summary.

Interesting Reading...

Brown in Baltimore: School Desegregation and the Limits of Liberalism.

The Making of African America: The Four Great Migrations.

Green Metropolis: Why Living Smaller, Living Closer, and Driving Less are the Keys to Sustainability.

Family Properties: Race, Real Estate, and the Exploitation of Black Urban America.

The Subprime Virus: Reckless Credit, Regulatory Failure, and Next Steps .

Housing Policy in the United States.

The Housing Boom and Bust.

Rest In Peace

David Ginsburg, Urban Advocate, 98.

Mario Obledo, Hispanic Rights Leader, 78.

History of Human Rights

Check out fora.tv - http://fora.tv/2009/03/30/Geoffrey_Robertson_on_the_History_of_Human_Rights - for a very interesting video available online about the history of international human rights with Geoffrey Ronald Robertson QC (born 30 September 1946 in Sydney, New South Wales). Robertson is a human rights lawyer, the founder and head of Doughty Street Chambers, a UK set of barristers doing crime, family, property, human rights and civil liberties work.

April is National Fair Housing Month!

Did you know that April is National Fair Housing Month?

National Fair Housing Month celebrates the passage of the Fair Housing Act of 1968, which prohibited discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, and familial status in the sale or rental of housing. The Act was passed in the aftermath of the Civil Rights struggles and the assassination of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Click here to read more about the Month and its celebrations in Maryland.

FAIR HOUSING MARYLAND

Greetings! Welcome to our FAIR HOUSING MARYLAND Blog! We will post interesting articles, opinions, and bits about Fair Housing, housing discrimination, neighborhood quality of life, etc. The info will be about the Baltimore region, Maryland, & also interesting national and sometimes international stories, as well. Let me know - mailto:wkladky@gbchrb.org - if you would like more info or materials from us. We hope you find this interesting!

About Us Because this is our first blog, we better introduce ourselves.

First, the official description -

The Greater Baltimore Community Housing Resource Board, Inc. (GBCHRB), was organized by the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in 1976. Incorporated in 1991, the GBCHRB today is

an independent 501(c)(3) Maryland nonprofit corporation governed by a 15-member board of directors. The GBCHRB's purpose is to provide Fair Housing education and advocacy in the Baltimore metropolitan area and across Maryland. Our work includes the related issues of community quality of life, neighborhood stability and development, and affordable housing. We work cooperatively and positively with governments, community organizations, the faith community, the real estate and finance industries, businesses, nonprofit organizations, and individuals interested in supporting Fair Housing and better communities. The GBCHRB's primary sources of funding are the HUD CDBG Programs of Baltimore City, Baltimore County, and the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development.

OK, so what do we do really? First, check out our website: http://www.gbchrb.org. The GBCHRB does a number of things trying to educate everyone about their rights (& responsibilities) against housing discrimination and to promote Fair Housing: 1. We produce a weekly cable-TV show Neighborhood Beat that airs on 12 stations in 9 counties in Maryland. The show features interviews with community leaders, experts, etc. Dr. Bill Kladky, that's me, is the host. 2. We produce a weekly radio show Living in Baltimore that also has interviews with community leaders, experts, and others. Click here to listen to an interview about foreclosure prevention. Again, I am the host, and I am always looking for interesting people to interview. If interested, just mailto:wkladky@gbchrb.org or telephone 410-453-9500. Click here to listen to interviews 3. We distribute Fair Housing brochures, posters, self-help guides, and other materials FREE to anyone who would like it. 4. We email our 7-page Fair Housing News (left) to anyone. Our newsletter has news about Fair Housing, discrimination, human rights, affordable housing, book reviews, obits of historical Civil Rights personalities, other relevant issues. Just email me for a free subscription. Click here to read an issue. 5. We provide custom Fair Housing training free for anyone. Let me know what your training needs are, & we will talk. 6. We do studies of Fair Housing issues - mortgage lending discrimination, housing segregation, zoning, etc. Copies are on our website. 7. We write & provide Fair Housing curricula for school systems, other organizations, etc. 8. I serve on the Board of Directors of a few organizations working for Fair Housing related objectives - like the Community Assistance Network and the Central Maryland Ecumenical Council. I provide them technical assistance. 9. I work with various faith organizations and congregations on the mentioned issues. 10. We refer people to resources & agencies that can help their problem or issue. For example, if you are having problems paying your mortgage, go to http:www.mdhope.org. Well, that's a not-so-short summary! In my next blog, I will talk a bit more about what is going on in Fair Housing. Till then, mailto:wkladky@gbchrb.org.