Walter F. Mondale (’56) Calls for New Dedication to Fair Housing

In a speech delivered to a standing ovation yesterday at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in Washington, D.C., former Vice President Walter Mondale (’56) said that America is witnessing "the most important moment for fair housing since 1968." That year saw the passage of the landmark Fair Housing Act, which then-Sen. Mondale co-authored and shepherded through a difficult legislative process to enactment. However, he said, citing recent riots in cities such as Ferguson, Mo., and Baltimore, as well as nearly 50 years of governmental foot-dragging and legal fights over the law's intent, "the Fair Housing Act has unfinished business." Now, thanks to a recent Supreme Court ruling and new rules requiring communities that receive HUD funds to "affirmatively further" fair housing, the time is right for the inclusive, integrative vision enshrined in the Fair Housing Act to become a reality.