After the U.S. Supreme Court’s rulings earlier this year on affirmative action and voting rights that some viewed as against minorities’ interests, civil rights groups hope that the Fair Housing Act case involving Mount Holly, N.J., that the court’s slated to hear as soon as December settles out of court.
Distinguishing between the “intent” to discriminate and the “impact” of discrimination is at the heart of the case. Currently, the Fair Housing Act is enforced by the impact of discrimination in sales, rentals, zoning or lending to minorities, which is much easier to prove than intent of unfair treatment, a lawyer for the minority residents in the case said as quoted in a USA Today article.
Since the Supreme Court has a 5-4 conservative majority, some feel that there’s a good chance it will set a precedent focused on intent.
Thus, the president of the Fair Housing Alliance and the plaintiffs’ attorney say they want the case to settle.
Source: USA Today
