By Julie Herschfeld Davis and Binyamin Applebaum | The New York Times
The Obama administration announced an aggressive effort on Wednesday to reduce the racial segregation of residential neighborhoods. It unveiled a new requirement that cities and localities account for how they will use federal housing funds to reduce racial disparities, or face penalties if they fail.
The new rules are an effort to enforce the goals of the civil rights-era fair housing law that bans overt residential discrimination, but whose broader mandate for communities to actively foster integration has not been realized. They are part of President Obama’s attempt to address the racial imbalances and lack of opportunity that he says have contributed to unrest reminiscent of the turbulent 1960s in cities like Ferguson, Mo., and Baltimore, where African-Americans have clashed with police officers.
Torey Moore at her new home in Frisco, Tex., a northern suburb of Dallas.
Related: Number of whites favoring housing discrimination falls/The Washington Post
HUD announces “final rule” on Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing project/HousingWire
