Anti-Discrimination Center

Part 1 of ProPublica's series on the Government's decades-long failure to enforce the "affirmatively furthering fair housing" mandate

Yes it does, but three years after the entry of the Consent Decree no such Implementation Plan exists.

New motion highlights one aspect of Westchester's contempt and acknowledges that continuation of County's course of conduct "will make it all but impossible to achieve the results contemplated" by the Consent Decree. But the Government still fails to ask the Court to remedy Westchester's three-year failure to take action against the exclusionary zoning that pervades the County.

A recent New York Times editorial accurately described Westchester's ongoing resistance to integrated housing as constituting "the battle for Westchester." But, two years and nine months after the entry of the consent decree, the federal government has yet to engage seriously in that battle.

Anyone reading the decision will see that the County Executive's spin is inaccurate and misleading; what people may not realize at first is that the ruling makes all too clear the fact that the Government and the Monitor hadn't even demanded that Westchester be made to do very much.

Pretense of “progress” still being clung to despite fact that the units to be built do not affirmatively further fair housing (AFFH). Review fails to articulate plainly that County has rejected every major premise and violated every major obligation of Decree. Monitor reveals he is prepared to accept Implementation Plan not designed to AFFH. Along with HUD and U.S. Attorney, Monitor fails to assess Westchester’s refusal to meet Decree-ordered obligations of using all housing policies and programs to end segregation. All ignore that evidence is already in on presence of extensive exclusionary zoning and on fact that Westchester has failed to meet its obligation to combat that critical barrier to expanding fair housing choice.

ADC is most disappointed by the Court's failure to exercise its authority to vindicate its own interest in seeing that its order is obeyed.

For more than two years, the Government and the Monitor have done nothing except watch Westchester make a mockery of the Consent Decree.  Last night, a report from the Monitor dealt with a small subset of the outstanding issues.

In these circumstances, there is a natural tendency to lose track of the overall context. In fact, the Government and the Monitor continue to ignore a variety of crucial questions. They proceed as though Westchester has not made it unmistakably clear that it fundamentally rejects the goals, premises, and chosen tools of the Decree, and that it is determined never to comply.

As such, they are still failing to fulfill their responsibility to vindicate the Decree.

As the Westchester Journal News explained in its editorial: "In both deed and stubborn word, Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino has made plain that he has no plans to honor key provisions of the False Claims Act/fair housing settlement...The sooner HUD, the monitor and, ultimately, the U.S. District Court hold him accountable, the better for Westchester and fair-housing choice throughout the county."

Look at aerial images or maps of the kind of development sites that Westchester has been focusing on in order to evade its obligations and minimize change.

Faced with Westchester's comprehensive and unrelenting violations of its housing desegregation obligations under a federal court Consent Decree, and with the failure of the federal government and its Monitor to enforce those obligations, the Anti-Discrimination Center ("ADC") has moved for Court enforcement of the Decree.

Unfortunately, the Monitor has once again closed his eyes to Westchester's persistent refusal to accept even the principles of the Consent Decree -- let alone comply with the obligations set forth in the Decree.

Westchester has failed to comply with yet another of its obligations under the consent decree. The County was required to develop an “analysis of impediments” to fair housing choice that was acceptable to HUD. That meant it was supposed to identify, analyze, and take the actions necessary to overcome all barriers to fair housing. HUD has now found that the AI is indeed “incomplete and unacceptable,” and has rejected the submission.

On August 9, 2010, the County submitted the third iteration of an "Implementation Plan," the first two having been rejected by the Monitor.  As before, the key to the document is understanding that the County's goals were: (1) avoiding committing to taking any specific actions that could then be deemed enforceable obligations under the Consent Decree; and (2) proceeding in a way to maintain the demographic and zoning status quo as much as possible.

On July 23, 2010, Westchester submitted to HUD an Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice ("AI").  The submission was required by the Consent Decree, and, pursuant to paragraph 32 of the Consent Decree, is not compliant unless it is deemed acceptable by HUD.  A brief summary of some of the egregious deficiencies of the AI (along with the full document and attachments thereto) is available by clicking "more."

A statement from Craig Gurian, ADC's Executive Director. 

Some of the key points made in the Monitor's submission.

A compiliation of some of the extensive media coverage of the case, the Settlement Order, and (prospective) implementation.

Read some of the positions that the County took during the litigation.

Fundamental, ongoing, and strikingly violative of its Consent Decree obligations. A brazen challenge to the legitimacy of federal authority not unlike "states rights" battles of the past.

Not even the most basic command, as demonstrated over the last few months.

The nation's premier institutional vindicator of civil rights - despite ADC's pleas - has been missing in action.