Graphics courtesy of: Housing Action Illinois
WHO WE ARE
The Illinois Housing Equity Collective (ILHEC) is a collaborative to sustain the fair housing movement and fight for housing equity across Illinois.
​Our goal is to preserve and expand the rights to equal access to housing free from discrimination.
​Together, we will develop structures and sustainable strategies to effectively carry out our work and meet the needs of communities impacted by historical inequities.
ILHEC Members
OUR ROLE
Since 1987, the federal government, through the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), has funded and trained non-profit organizations to assist in fair housing enforcement across the country. When people face housing discrimination, they seek help in understanding their rights and what they can do.
As regional fair housing organizations, we are dedicated to ensuring access to safe, stable homes and safeguard public and private investments in our communities. When clients face housing discrimination they seek help in understanding their rights and what they can do. We help people mistreated by housing providers, lenders, realtors, property management companies, condominium and homeowner’s associations, and more.
THE CRISIS
Recent federal cuts threaten to dismantle the nation’s fair housing network. Over the last year, the federal administration has attempted to terminate half the grants without warning, issued guidance and executive orders that adopt new, ahistorical and unsupported legal interpretations of existing protections, and threatened non-profit agencies to fall in line or lose funding. Several of our members have had to remove decades of accomplishments and fair housing material from their websites, stop using paper outreach materials, and even take down billboards.
OUR ROLE
Patterns of residential housing segregation persist. Alarmingly, HUD has drastically reduced its enforcement personnel, jeopardizing the investigation of numerous housing discrimination cases and leaving affected individuals with no pathway to seek redress.
COLLABORATING TO PROTECT FAIR HOUSING
Illinois, compared to other states, is uniquely positioned to lead on fair housing. Our network of fair housing organizations have a depth and diversity of experience. Recently, the Illinois Housing Equity Collective (ILHEC) received $500,000 in seed funding from the Chicago Community Trust to support planning efforts for a more streamlined and centralized way, given recent fair housing challenges.
Every community in Illinois deserves a local agency that provides high-quality resources for anyone with housing concerns. A significant annual investment from the State of Illinois is needed to preserve and expand core fair housing and legal services. Some ideas include:
- Centralizing intake,
- Creating joint education and outreach materials,
- Providing technical assistance funding for municipal government support and training for other advocates,
- Collaborating on investigations and fair housing testing, and
- Strengthening statewide training and professional development opportunities.