Making the connection between vacant properties, community wellbeing, and social justice

In the wake of continued police violence in communities of color across the nation, we have witnessed the strengthening of movements against brutality. With its origins in the events of Ferguson, Missouri, and Baltimore, Maryland, the “Black Lives Matter” movement has pushed the belief that the injustice and violence that Black Americans experience in our…

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Supreme Court’s fair housing ruling could boost true neighborhood revitalization

Cross-posted from Next City, this article is one of a ten-part series inspired by the 2015 Reclaiming Vacant Properties Conference. In what’s being widely hailed as a gigantic victory for civil rights law, the Supreme Court ruled yesterday to uphold the use of disparate impact claims under the Fair Housing Act. The much-debated theory of disparate impact centers around…

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