When searching for sources to assist in furthering my understanding of housing barriers, both past and present in the U.S., I came upon multiple inquiries of interest. Most, but not all, of my findings involve the government’s influence on housing barriers. The first source I selected for closer review is a book entitled “Not In My Back Yard:” Removing Barriers to Affordable Housing (Advisory Commision on Regulatory Barriers to Affordable Housing). This piece of literature is of particular interest to me because it was published on behalf of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development by an Advisory Committee of Fair Housing under President George W. Bush. I’m excited to explore the government’s perspective and proposed initiatives to the ongoing affordable housing crisis and compare the proposed suggestions with the actual outcomes at work today.
The second source I selected is a journal article by Social Forces detailing the current diversity in particular neighborhoods and how this came to be (Defina and Hannon). This article will be useful due to its scientific evidentiary findings that will hopefully ground theories and analyses in concrete fact.
An additional publication I want to review in depth is an article published by the Hartford Courant that expands on a recent Supreme Court decision to aid citizens in defense of discriminatory insurance policies (MacDonald). More information regarding government involvement in affordable housing outcomes will supply me with stronger evidence to support my thesis.
Finally, I selected a NFHA press release detailing housing discrimination in regards to bank owned properties (National Fair Housing Alliance). I’m interested to read this publication to gain a better understanding of what role banks play in housing discrimination. Ultimately, all of these sources mentioned reflect some type of government influence on today’s housing barriers, whether they denote positive or negative actions and subsequent repercussions.
Works Cited
Advisory Commision on Regulatory Barriers to Affordable Housing. “Not In My Back Yard” Removing Barriers to Affordable Housing. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, 1991.
DeFina, Robert, and Hannon, Lance. “Diversity, Racial Threat and Metropolitan Housing Segregation.” Social Forces (2009): n. pag.
MacDonald, John A. “Insurers Lose Bid To Have States Handle Some Bias Matters.” Hartford Courant. Web. 21 Sept. 2012.
National Fair Housing Alliance. “The Banks Are Back- Our Neighborhoods Are Not: Discrimination in the Maintenance and Marketing of REO Properties.” 2012