Addressing Racism in Housing
A conversation with Chief Behavioral Health Officer Lawanda Williams
Q: What does everyday housing discrimination sound like?
It can be very subtle. A landlord will ask me what Health Care for the Homeless will do to make sure this person would be a "good tenant." When that happens I ask if that’s a question for all tenants or just ones with subsidized vouchers. There is no relation between personal economics and character, but those often get conflated.
Q: What impact does discrimination have at the community level?
It leads to concentrated poverty in neighborhoods with less investment and fewer opportunities. Food access is a good example. Like Ryan (on page 4), people who live in poorer areas are just as interested in getting quality food as those in wealthy communities, but they live in food deserts and have to travel long distances to access nutritious options. Housing shouldn’t be just a place to survive, it should be somewhere you can thrive.
Q: How can readers fight housing discrimination?
Start with yourself. If you are a person with privilege, recognize your role. Think about your housing and how your experience differs from others. Don’t accept that people with less privilege need to prove they deserve housing. When you hear stigmatizing language, correct it. When we ask others to cope with racism, we are accepting it. Call your legislators and vote to reverse the policies that force our neighbors to be "resilient" to injustices they should never face in the first place.
More Recent News
Registration is LIVE for the 2026 Rock Your Socks to Health & Home 5K! Join us Saturday, November 7 at our new location, Lake Montebello, as we lace up our sneakers to end homelessness in Baltimore.
After nearly eight years with Health Care for the Homeless, Tammy Montague, PhD, LCSW-C is stepping into a brand new Director of Recovery Services role! After roles in our Housing Services team as a Therapist Case Manager (TCM) for clients with HIV and Lead TCM, Tammy most recently oversaw the agency’s administration of the Assistance in Community Integration Services Program (ACIS), a state Medicaid program that provides care and support to help people maintain their housing after experiencing homelessness. Read on to learn what drew Tammy to this exciting opportunity...
Nine Health Care for the Homeless staff members have taken on new roles this year at the agency. See who they are and what they are looking forward to in their new positions.
In 2027, federal Medicaid requirements are changing. These requirements only apply to some adults. Check in to see what this means for you.