The Santa Monica City Attorney’s Consumer Protection Unit office haslaunched a comprehensive campaign for the month of April to improve community awareness of the fair housing laws and to help eliminate housing discrimination in the city. April is National Fair Housing Month, and it is the forty-first anniversary of the federal Fair Housing Act.
The City Attorney’s 2009 fair housing awareness campaign includes the following:
- Fair Housing Poster Contest: A record number of elementary and middle-school students from across Santa Monica participated in the Consumer Unit’s annual 2009 Fair Housing Poster Contest, creating colorful works that featured the 2009 theme, “Fair Housing Rocks.” Diane Varady from the City Attorney’s office said that a panel of six judges spent an afternoon on the challenging task of selecting nine finalists from 435 worthy submissions. The nine finalists’ posters will be on display in the lobby of City Hall during the week of April 20. Four of the striking posters will also be published as calendars for 2010 and will be part of the City’s fair housing ad campaign. Ms. Varady said that the 2009 Fair Housing Calendars have been available from the City Attorney’s office since January and are free to the public.
- Fair Housing Ad Campaign: The City will place community awareness advertisements (featuring the students’ work) in local newspapers beginning the week of April 6. The ads will also notify residents where they can learn more about the fair housing laws such as www.fairhousing.com, fair housing videos on www.youtube.com (just type in “fair housing” into YouTube’s search feature) as well as the City Attorney’s consumer-oriented website at www.smconsumer.org. The City Attorney’s office encourages all local news groups, print and online, that publish any advertising for the sale or rental of any housing to republish the ads as many times as possible during April.
- Fair Housing Seminar: The Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles (AAGLA), the California Department of Fair Employment & Housing (DFEH), and the City Attorney’s Consumer Protection Unit are co-sponsoring a fair housing workshop on April 20, 2007 from 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m. at the Santa Monica Library. The workshop is part of the City’s, DFEH’s, and AAGLA’s efforts to increase awareness in Santa Monica of the fair housing laws during April, Fair Housing Month. For more information and to register go to www.smconsumer.org.
The workshop’s presenters will explain federal and state fair housing laws that prohibit housing discrimination. They will also discuss anti-smoking laws as they relate to housing, families with children, reasonable accommodations for tenants with disabilities, insurance coverage issues, and alternatives to litigation such as mediation and the administrative complaint process.
The presenters include Beth Rosen-Prinz, Deputy Director at DFEH; Adam Radinsky, Deputy City Attorney; and Kathy Bellville, partner at the law firm of Kimball, Tirey & St. John. Lainy Parry, AAGLA Board Member and Santa Monica resident, said, “Fair housing for all is a practice vigorously pursued by AAGLA. Everyone deserves a fair shot at getting an apartment, and AAGLA takes pride in promoting equal opportunity.” Parry also noted that, “This cooperative venture between AAGLA and the City of Santa Monica has already proven to be the beginning of good things to come, as we have found common ground for other projects.”
Gary Rhoades, Deputy City Attorney, agreed: “The continuing venture with AAGLA, now in its third year, has helped both of us to reach many more folks with this valuable community education service. Over 230 persons have attended these workshops, and we’ve seen firsthand how the better informed owners and tenants resolve fair housing disputes without having to go to court.”
The Planning Committee members include Parry, Mat Millen and Al Rosen from AAGLA, along with Deborah Freeman, Cynthia Garcia, and Rhoades from the City Attorney’s office. This year they welcomed Beth Rosen-Prinz, Deputy Director of DFEH, to the workshop as a third partner.
All owners, property managers, advocates, attorneys, social service providers, and interested tenants are invited to attend free of charge. Free parking, a continental breakfast, and continuing legal education credits (MCLE) are available to attorneys. Please go to www.smconsumer.org to register for the workshop (register early as space is limited) or call 310-458-8345 with any questions.
Fair Housing Turns Big Blue: Fair Housing posters will be placed in all of the City’s Big Blue Buses. This is the third year that the City has utilized the display ad space in the buses for consumer-oriented awareness messages
Fair Housing Enforcement: As it has for many years, the Consumer Protection Unit investigates and prosecutes violations of the fair housing laws in Santa Monica.
The federal Fair Housing Act, including its amendments in 1988, prohibits housing discrimination that is based on race, religion, national origin, gender, or disability. The federal laws also protect families with children. California’s own Fair Employment and Housing Act adds additional categories for which discrimination is prohibited, including ancestry and sexual orientation. Please go to www.smconsumer.org for more information.
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