Why has it been so hard to get housing right in the United States and what are the limits and possibilities of such legislative interventions to address housing discrimination, access, and affordability? Three legislative measures of the 2021 session of the Connecticut General Assembly offer clues about the housing crisis in the state and the nation: the right to housing, zoning reform, and the banning of restrictive covenants in property deeds. These legislative interventions harken back to a longer legacy of slum clearance, redlining, urban renewal, displacement, white flight, the persistent lack of affordable housing, and rampant violations of the Fair Housing Act half a century after its passage in 1968. How have ordinary people been implicated in the social, economic systems that sustain discriminatory housing practices and how have ordinary people empowered themselves and their communities to take action? These questions come in the shadow of a looming eviction crisis nationwide that will keep housing front and center of policy debates and conversations about inequality and the pandemic’s disparate impacts.
Join us October 6, 2021 from 6:00-8:00pm to dissect issues around housing through short readings, small group discussion, and engagement with specialists. Hosted by the Hartford History Center of the Hartford Public Library in collaboration with UConn's Democracy and Dialogues Initiative through the Encounters Series.
To register for the event, please visit: https://tinyurl.com/2wcdftxf
For more information, contact: Brendan Kane at dialogues@uconn.edu