(Washington, D.C.) — Housing and Urban Development Secretary Marcia Fudge withdrew a Trump-era rule that would allow federally funded single-sex shelters to discriminate against tenants based on gender identity. Proposed last July, the rule would have rolled back transgender protections included in HUD’s 2016 Equal Access rule, which mandated access to shelter based on a person’s self-expressed gender identity. HUD submitted the withdrawal this week on Thursday. The following is a statement from Diane Glauber, director of the Fair Housing and Community Development Project at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law:
“HUD’s withdrawal of this discriminatory Trump-era rule is critical to reaffirm our national commitment to gender equity, tenant’s rights, and ensuring that no person is denied housing access or essential services because of their identity. The proposed 2020 shelter rule would have allowed for federally-sanctioned and funded discrimination against transgender and gender non-conforming communities who are facing inordinately high rates of homelessness and an increased risk of displacement.
“Our federal institutions must do everything within their authority to ensure that all people can live healthy lives and have access to a safe and affordable place to live, free from the threat of insecurity.”
###
About the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law – The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law (Lawyers’ Committee), a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, was formed in 1963 at the request of President John F. Kennedy to involve the private bar in providing legal services to address racial discrimination. The principal mission of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law is to secure, through the rule of law, equal justice for all, particularly in the areas of voting rights, criminal justice, fair housing and community development, economic justice, educational opportunities, and hate crimes. For more information, please visit https://lawyerscommittee.org
