Fair Housing Groups Complain N.Y. Human Rights Commission Found Inefficient and Tardy

    i eee 
President 

Hon. Francis E. Rivers 
PRESS RELEASE Director Counsel 

egal efense und ep caae 
NAACP LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATIONAL FUND, INC. pa 10 Columbus Circle, New York, N.Y. 10019 * JUdson 6-8397 FOR RELEASE NIGHT NUMBER 212-749-8487 

WEDNESDAY 
January 18, 1967 

FAIR HOUSING GROUPS COMPLAIN 
N.Y. HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION 
FOUND INEFFICIENT AND TARDY 

Legal Defense Fund Files Formal Complaint 

NEW YORK---Attorneys of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, 
Inc. (LDF) today filed formal complaint with the New York State Com- 
mission for Human Rights against its "delay in investigating and 
otherwise acting upon cases of housing discrimination, " 

The LDF acted in behalf of Fair Housing Committees in eight 
greater metropolitan area communities, 

The complaint condemns the Commission's performance "in discharg- 
ing its statutory obligation to eliminate unlawful discriminatory 
housing practices.” 

The attorneys are seeking a “prompt hearing" on the complaint. 

Jack Greenberg, LDF director-counsel, asserted that "the Commis- 
sion has erroneously failed to interpret and enforce the law as re- 
quiring it to act promptly and expeditiously on complaints," 

He added that the Commission has failed "to seek temporary in- 
junctions where necessary to prevent the sale or rental of housing 
accommocations pending the investigation of the complaint." 

The LDF complaint was filed on behalf of Lillian Hicks and 
Elizabeth Brooks and their families, all of Yonkers, who are still 
seeking housing. 

Also cited in the document were 31 othor cases unsatisfactorily 
handled by the Commission from the five boroughs, Westchester, and 
Long Island. 

The LDF complaint asks for a complete review of the Commission's 
policies and practices with regard to housing discrimination because 
of the Commission's: 

* Failure To Obtain Housing--The Commission found housing for 
complainants in only 18 instances out of 122 complaints, filed throuch 
the Yonkers Fair Housing Committee, in which it found probable cavs-, 
Housing became available in nine of these instances only because cash 
deposits were placed by white friends. 

* Delay-~-The Commission has consistently failed to seek injunc- 
tions authorized by state law even though resisting landlords rentcd 
or sold housing after learning that complaints had been filed, Oniy 
six injunctions were secured out of a total of 202 cases filed with the 
Commission by the Yonkers group between 1962 and 1966, 

* Conciliation Terms--Conciliation terms offered by the Commission, 
after finding probable cause, "have not been addressed to the needs and 
difficulties of Negro complainants." 

* Enforcement--Letters from Negro complainants and others "con- 
cerning non-compliance have either not been answered or were answered 
only after considerable delay and contained little or no information 
concerning compliance, State law gives the Commission power to move 
against those "who wilfully violate an order of the Commission," 

(more) 

Ss 



FAIR HOUSING GROUPS COMPLAIN January 18, 1967 
N.Y. HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION 
FOUND INEFFICIENT AND TARDY 

The LDF complaint, prepared by Assistant Counsel Sheila Rush Jones, 
stated that "representatives of private fair housing organizations have 
held at least seven conferences with representatives of the Commission 
since 1964, 

At such conferences, the following Commission practices and poli- 
cies were complained of: 

1, Its delay in investigating and otherwise acting on cases, 

2, %Its failure to notify complainants of developments pertinent 
to their complaints, 

3, Its reluctance to seek injunctions, 

4. Its terms of conciliation, 

5. Its failure to consult complainants in framing conciliation 
terms, and 

6. Its failure to enforce conciliation terms and to take enforce- 
ment steps against multiple violators resulted in few complainants ob- 
taining the housing accommodations (or comparable ones) denied or 
withheld on the basis of race, 

=30- 

The following is the complete text of Jack Greenberg's statement: 

This petition, filed with the Commission, emphasizes the need for 
significant reforms in the administration of New York State anti- 
discrimination laws. 

The New York State Commission has been a pioneer and, under 
Commissioner George H. Fowler, has remained in the vanguard of state 
Commissions across the country devoted to securing equal rights under 
law. But it has hardly done enough. The extent of statewide racial 
discrimination in the crucial areas of housing and employment is so 
pervasive that additional and more effective weapons are needed, 

At a minimum, the State Commission should be centralized under 
the direction of the Chairman who should be given power to establish 
deadlines for investigation, reporting, and compliance. 

As things stand now, these procedures are left up to the individue 
schedules of individual Commissioners, 

The Commission also needs substantial increases in appropriations 
and personnel, 

Moreover, the Commission has erroneously failed to interpret and 
enforce the law as requiring it to act promptly and expeditiously on 
complaints, and to seek temporary injunctions where necessary to pre- 
vent the sale or rental of housing accommodations pending the investi- 
gation of a complaint.