Hi John,

Here are the numbers on “disparate impact theory” — a key civil rights protection safeguarding people from discrimination in housing:

• 45: How many years disparate impact theory has been a critical part of the Fair Housing Act.
• 2015: The most recent year in which the Supreme Court reaffirmed the use of disparate impact theory.
• 4 million: How many instances of housing discrimination happen each year.

One last number: 21. That’s how many days we have left to stop the Trump-Pence administration from gutting this crucial barrier against discrimination in housing.

Not all discrimination looks like discrimination on its face. But just because discrimination can be more covert doesn’t mean it’s any less harmful. That’s why disparate impact theory exists — to protect people from discrimination that appears neutral but has a disparate impact on a particular group of people.

In 21 days, the Trump administration will begin reviewing comments on its rule undermining disparate impact theory. We don’t know how many comments will be submitted. But we do know this: the higher the number, the longer it’ll take the Trump administration to go through them and the longer this important civil rights tool will stay intact. Submit a comment today.

Sincerely,

Melissa Boteach
Vice President of Income Security, Child Care, and Early Learning
National Women's Law Center