The Lens, a newsletter that spotlights Racial Equity Initiatives in Iowa City. Recent highlights:
Shine a Light on Discrimination: Criminal Background Checks
The United States incarcerates more of its population than any other country in the world. Incarceration has a disproportionate impact on communities of color. Black men are over five times more likely, and Hispanic men are almost three times more likely, to have been incarcerated than white men. Similarly, black women are five-and-a-half times more likely, and Hispanic women over two times more likely, to have been incarcerated than white women.
While “a person with a criminal history” is not a protected class per se, refusing to rent to people who have such histories without individual consideration of their circumstances may be unlawful.
The Fair Housing Act (FHA) states that it is illegal to refuse to sell or rent a dwelling to any person because of race, color, disability, religion, sex, familial status, or national origin. The Fair Housing Act can be violated in two ways through use of criminal history.
The first is by direct discriminatory treatment. In these cases, a landlord treats an applicant differently because of race, national origin, or other protected characteristic, using the criminal history as a pretext for the discrimination.
The second type of violation can lead to liability even without discriminatory intent. This is called disparate-impact discrimination. Criminal history policies that operate to exclude protected classes from housing may violate the FHA unless they are narrowly tailored to “serve a substantial, legitimate, nondiscriminatory interest” that cannot be served by another policy with a less discriminatory effect.
If you have faced discrimination by any Iowa City housing rental company or landlord, please do report the discrimination to the Office of Equity and Human Rights at 319-356-5022. Please feel free to also fill out an online complaint form to report the discrimination.
The Office of Equity and Human Rights has handled hundreds of complaints in the areas of housing, employment, and public accommodation. Every complaint received gives the office insight into problems that people are experiencing in this community and helps them to identify and prioritize problems for action.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Quarterly Meeting
The University of Iowa, City of Iowa City, and Iowa City Downtown District held its Quarterly Meeting on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Montserrat Fuentes, Executive Vice President and Provost, and Kevin Kregel, Executive Vice Provost and Senior Associate Provost for Faculty, provided campus updates that included Fall 2019 Student Diversity Enrollment, Preliminary Faculty Diversity Numbers, and 2019-2021 Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Action Plan Update.
Bridging the Gap between Disability and Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
The University of Iowa’s Division of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion is hosting the Iowa Regents Institution Disability Awareness Summit from 9 a.m. to 4:20 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 3, 2019 in the University of Iowa's Old Capitol Town Centre.
This year’s summit will include networking opportunities with others from post-secondary institutions in the state of Iowa, a session on emotional support animals, reasonable accommodations in the workplace, students with autism, and much more.
The City Manager’s Roundtable took place on Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2019. City staff met with and heard from representatives from the following organizations: Refugee and Immigrant Association, Center for Worker Justice, Neighborhood Centers of Johnson County, Johnson County Empowerment Board, Community Police Review Board, Resurrection Assembly of God Church, League of United Latin American Citizens, Inside Out Reentry, and the Black Voices Project.
Everyone Has a Role: Vacancy on the Iowa City Human Rights Commission
Get involved in your community!
There is currently one vacancy to fill on the Human Rights Commission: an unexpired term, upon appointment, that runs until December 31, 2020.
Applications must be received by 5 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2019.
The commission meets once a month for regularly scheduled meetings. Duties include: planning programs and activities designed to eliminate discrimination, educating the public about unlawful discrimination and civil rights, reviewing and making recommendations to the Iowa City City Council for funding selections on the Social Justice and Racial Equity Grant.
Those interested in the position must live in Iowa City and be at least 18 years old. State law requires commissions to be balanced according to gender. There are currently 4 men and 5 women on the human rights commission
Forms are available online at icgov.org/boardscommissionsandcommittees and can be completed and submitted online, or printed and delivered to the City Clerk's Office at City Hall, 410 E. Washington Street, Iowa City.
The annual HousingIowa Conference was held from Sept. 4 to Sept. 6 at the Double-Tree by Hilton Cedar Rapids Convention Complex.
This year’s conference tackled topics like homeownership, homelessness in Iowa, housing development, rentals, and leadership. Attendees learned about Iowa’s housing market and how to tackle homelessness in their communities from experts like Darren Woodson, Daniel Ruettiger, and Tami Evans. Staff from Neighborhood and Development Services and Human Rights attended the conference.
One Iowa will hold its 3rd annual Cedar Rapids/Iowa City LGBTQ Workplace Cultural Summit from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 22, 2019 at the Kirkwood Regional Center at the University of Iowa. The City of Iowa City is an Advocate Sponsor of this summit.
Formerly known as the Eastern Iowa LGBTQ Workplace Culture Summit, this event provides resources and networking opportunities for employers and LGBTQ employees to cultivate safe and inclusive workplaces.
Employers will learn more about the LGBTQ community, how to make more inclusive policies, and retain LGBTQ talent, while LGBTQ employees and allies will learn about their rights and strategies for creating effective LGBTQ employee resource groups (ERGs).
For more information regarding the event visit www.oneiowa.org.
Inside Out Reentry held a parole simulation on Friday, Sept. 20, 2019 at St. Andrew Presbyterian Church. The program was sponsored by the City of Iowa City’s Social Justice and Racial Equity Grant.
The Parole Simulation was developed by the U. S. Attorney’s office. Participants assume the identity of a returning citizen who has just been released from prison. They are charged to take care of all their living expenses and court ordered appointments within the month (four 15-minute weeks). Over the course of the simulation, they interact with an employment office, clinics, rehabilitation center, transportation office, treatment program, parole officer, court system, bank, driver’s license office, shelter and even a jail. Following the simulation, participants heard from returning citizens in this community directly.
This simulation aimed to help community members gain greater understanding of what it is like to return home after incarceration, as well as join together to provide a supportive community for those coming home. This event is a precursor to Inside Out's Reentry Summit on Oct. 17 and 18. To learn more about Inside Out Reentry visit this link.
Upcoming Events
Center for Worker Justice 2019 Gala Fundraiser at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 5, 2019. Click here for more information.
Neighborhood Centers for Johnson Country Fundraiser is from 4 to 6 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 6, 2019. Click here for more information.
Stay Connected to Equity and Human Rights news
For detailed information on current trainings, initiatives, or programs, visit icgov.org/SJREinitiatives, and scroll to Social Justice and Racial Equity Quarterly Updates.
Subscribe to this newsletter and other City news and information at icgov.org/subscribe. Thanks, and welcome!
