Leading Housing Policy Researcher and Author of The Color of Law, Richard Rothstein to Speak at MATC

MILWAUKEE (October 15, 2018)– Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) Milwaukee, the Metropolitan Milwaukee Fair Housing Council (MMFHC) AFT Local 212, and Milwaukee Area Technical College (MATC) proudly welcome Richard Rothstein, Professor and author of The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America for a community-wide discussion on how over 100 years of deliberate discriminatory policies and practices have led to metropolitan Milwaukee’s segregation and inequities many experience event today.

Rothstein is lauded as a leading historical expert on housing policy. In his groundbreaking book, Rothstein explores the idea that de jure segregation – laws and policy decisions at every level of government, promoted discriminatory patterns that have had lasting and pervasive effects for communities of color.

“Rothstein makes it painfully clear that our segregated housing patterns didn’t happen by accident or in some so-called ‘natural’ way,” says Kori Schneider Peragine, who leads MMFHC’s Inclusive Communities Program. “Racial segregation – and the inequities that rise from that segregation – have been deliberately created in ways that restrict the housing opportunities of people of color. Because segregation was created and continues to be reinforced by public policies and by illegal housing discrimination, we need to take proactive steps to undo it. We hope that Rothstein’s visit and our community book read will kickstart some meaningful action plans to promote integration and expand housing opportunities for everyone in our region.”

Sponsored by WPR: The Ideas Network and AFT Local 212 at MATC, a moderated conversation will take place on October 16, 2018, at Milwaukee Area Technical College’s Cooley Auditorium, 1015 N. 6th Street. LISC Milwaukee and MMFHC invite community members to MATC’s Cooley Auditorium from 5:30 – 7:00 pm to begin a dialogue to recognize and understand the injustices inflicted upon communities of color through systemized, legalized, and strategic discriminatory housing policies. This discussion will focus on the impact segregation and lack of investment have had on communities of color and possible steps forward to deal with Milwaukee’s complex unreconciled issues with racial and economic segregation. Register for this free event here.

Throughout the summer LISC Milwaukee and the Metropolitan Milwaukee Fair Housing Council facilitated a large-scale community book read of Color of Law. MMFHC and LISC’s goal is to foster a shared understanding of the past to bring about a more equitable future.

About LISC: Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) is the recognized leader in neighborhood development. Since 1980, LISC has marshaled over 10 billion dollars from investors, lenders and donors to foster the revitalization of more than urban neighborhoods and rural communities. Since 1995, LISC Milwaukee has invested $143 million in the central city by mobilizing resources for neighborhood revitalization and investing these funds through grants, loans and technical assistance to neighborhood-based community development efforts. More information is available at www.lisc.org or www.lisc.org/milwaukee.

About MMFHC: The Metropolitan Milwaukee Fair Housing Council (MMFHC) is a private, non-profit organization. Its purpose is to promote fair housing throughout the State of Wisconsin by combating illegal housing discrimination and by creating and maintaining racially and economically integrated housing patterns. MMFHC provides assistance to persons alleging unlawful housing and lending discrimination; outreach and education for housing consumers and providers; and technical assistance and support to community organizations, financial institutions and policymakers. Persons who feel they may have experienced unfair lending practices or illegal housing discrimination should call 414-278-1240 or 1-877-647-FAIR (a toll-free number for use outside the 414 area code). For more information, visit www.fairhousingwisconsin.com.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. It has not been verified for its accuracy or completeness.