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7.

8.

9.

20.

Discrimination on account of sex frequently is
"layered" with discrimination on account of some
other characteristic of a woman, e.g., her race,
source of income or marital status.

Lending institutions have "discounted", partially
or totally, a woman's income in making decisions
on applications for mortgage credit. Some lend-
ing institutions will condition a mortgage loan
on sundry devices which discourage child bearing
by the mortgagors. We found conflicting evidence
on the extent to which these practices of lenders
continue.

Sex-based discrimination in the law, especially in
laws relating to property, to family and to domi-
cile, further reinforce sex discrimination in
housing. Similarly, sex discrimination in other
areas of American life, e.g., in employment,
are interwoven with and reinforce such sex dis-

crimination.

Women are virtually excluded from key policy-
making jobs in the Nation's shelter system.
This appears to be equally true in the public
and private sectors.

Yet, we are

These findings paint a bleak picture. convinced that the Nation can, if it will, remove the inequities that women face in seeking and maintaining shelter in this country. This optimism, we believe, stands on solid footing.

It is knowing, for example, that the women's movement in this country continues to grow, showing impressive gains in many facets of American life. And while "shelter" has not been a priority item on the agenda of most women's organizations pressing for the elimination of sex-based discrimination, this is changing.

It is witnessing in Washington, D.C., on September 14, 1974, representatives from 100 women's organizations with a constituency of 60 million women, pledge their support to the Women and Housing Project. It is the concern and support of the First Lady, Ms. Betty Ford, who addressed the September 14, meeting. It is what

we heard in workshops in Atlanta, in St. Louis, in San Antonio, in San Francisco and in New York City

from hundreds of women agreeing to work through local coalitions for the elimination of sex bias in the housing system. It is knowing that in four of these cities, coalitions of women's organizations are indeed at work. Finally, it is the prospect that the new federal legislation and implementing regulations will, at last, place a "tariff" on sex discrimination, whether overt or subtle, and therefore remove this barrier of prejudice to a truly fair, rational and open housing market.

We have laced this Report with more than 20 recommendations in an attempt to encourage solutions to the problems delineated by these findings. Like the problem, which has many facets, its solution hardly lends itself to a simple recipe. Mindful of this, we recommend an attack on many fronts, including

public education efforts to inform women
of problems and remedies as they relate
to sex bias in housing, as well as to
explode myths about women which underpin
institutionalized sex discrimination;

vigorous and persistent government com-
pliance efforts;

data collection to facilitate monitoring
of industry and government practices, to
pinpoint problem areas, and to measure
progress;

imaginative and affirmative administration
of housing-related government programs in
order to expand equal housing choice for

women;

coalitions of women working for reform at the local level; and finally

expanding opportunities for women to participate in policy-making decisions which shape the growth and operation of the shelter system.

While these recommendations outline important tasks for HUD, we do not believe that any single agency can or should be expected to shoulder this responsi

bility alone.

Thus our recommendations are made

through HUD to others as well -- the American public,
the Congress, the State and local governments, industry,
and most importantly, to the nation's women.

*

This report was prepared for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity pursuant to a Contract. The statements and conclusions contained herein are those of the Contractor and do not necessarily reflect the views of the United States Government in general, or HUD in particular. Neither the United States Government nor HUD makes any warranty, expressed or implied, or assumes responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of the information herein.

Chapter 1

POWER AND POWERLESSNESS:
THE SEXIST BACKDROP

I definitely think there is a need for edu-
cation. One (reason) is the fact that women
feel very helpless and powerless when they
are confronted with this kind of discrimin-
ation.

-- Woman witness, St. Louis Hearing,
January 10, 1975

For some readers of this Report, this chapter should logically be the last, not the first. It is true that here we jump somewhat ahead of the story by setting forth conclusions for which only later do we offer documentation. It is also true that in Chapter 1 we suggest explanations for institutions' behavior which we do not describe until subsequently. There is, finally, the risk that those who disagree with what we say up front will forsake us and not be around for valuable material more narrowly focused on shelter itself.

Yet, these possible shortcomings in the order of our presentation are, in our opinion, outweighed by the need at the beginning of this Report to place "sex discrimination in housing" in its historical and social context.

To do this we are required to examine matters which transcend housing; to look back before we can look ahead; to make peace with history before we try to make sense of the present. To do this is also to be faithful to what so many women have told us in workshops and hearings around this land: that inequities women endure at the hands of the housing market are but part and parcel of the web of discrimination women tangle with in many facets of American life. They are inexorably all connected, each related to the other, like the gridwork in a super steel bridge, supporting a male-dominant and male-valuing society. As one witness told the Panel in San Francisco:

Few women do, indeed, understand the extent of discrimination
against them in the housing market. [Why?] I think, essen-
tially, it is because of the intricate pattern of discrimi-
nation that women have faced all their lives. We have been
so used to being part of a male decision-making world that
we have accepted the discrimination against us without too
much concern. [1]*

What is this "intricate pattern"? What is its genesis? Its present manifestations? Turning to these questions, we devote the ensuing sections to discussions of:

Urbanization and the American Family

Myths Widely Current about Women in America

Male-valuing Society and the Laws of Property and Family

Male Domination of the Housing System

Powerlessness and the Non-recognition of
Discrimination

*

Ed. Note: Notes are designated by [ ] and follow each chapter.

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