Winter 2022 Newsletter

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Message from our Executive Director

Executive Director, Allan Lazo.

Gratitude For Our Work Together This Year

This time of the year offers so many endearing and timeless traditions, from cultural and religious celebrations to astronomical milestones, and provides abundant opportunities for gratitude and reflection.

It’s a perfect time to recognize how grateful I am for the hard work, expertise, and dedication to our mission of our team at the Fair Housing Council of Oregon. I’m filled with pride reflecting on the work our team has taken on and accomplished throughout 2022.

There are so many ways our team members are working to uphold our mission to end housing discrimination in Oregon: our enforcement team holding accountable those who violate fair housing laws; our education and outreach team ensuring everyone is aware of their fair housing rights and responsibilities; and our public policy advocacy efforts working to bring impactful change on a more widespread scale.

As the year closes, I’m grateful to the dedicated and caring team members I have the privilege of serving with every day at the Fair Housing Council of Oregon and for the many partners and supporters across Oregon working with us to end housing discrimination and ensure equal access to housing opportunity. Thank you all for your work to build housing justice and create more inclusive communities for everyone in Oregon.

Spectrum 2022 Conference – Passport to Adventure

On Sept. 15th, our Education and Outreach Specialists, Marlee Baker and Eliza Galaher, presented at the Multifamily NW Spectrum 2022 Conference — Passport to Adventure.

Slide from Transcending the Binaries of Housing Rights: LGBTQIA+ Inclusion and Fair Housing Law

Marlee and Eliza gave their presentation, Transcending the Binaries of Housing Rights: LGBTQIA+ Inclusion and Fair Housing Law. 79 statewide housing providers and conference-goers were in attendance. The topics included: a brief history of housing inequity, Oregon’s racist history, current protective housing legislation for LGBTQIA+, and fair housing basics.

Your business or organization can request this or any of our other virtual training presentations using this form on our website!

For more information about LGBTQIA+ Fair Housing protections and updates under the Biden administration, view this recording of one of our quarterly lunch hour programs from last year:

Update on LGBTQIA+ Fair Housing Protections. Presenter: Dario Hunter, former FHCO Education & Outreach Specialist

2022 Housing Oregon Conference

Among several presentations by our team, our Education & Outreach Specialists Samuel Goldberg and Gina Rizk gave our Inclusive by Design: Meeting the Need for Accessible Housing presentation at Housing Oregon ‘s annual Industry Support Conference on Sept. 18. The presentation assesses the current state of our accessible housing crisis, as well as lays out strategies to address it through middle housing.

Education & Outreach Specialist, Samuel Goldberg, presenting at the 2022 Housing Oregon conference

Education & Outreach Specialist, Gina Rizk, presenting at the 2022 Housing Oregon conference

Home4Hope Project Community Connect & Veteran Stand Down

On Oct. 13, Glenda Moyer, our Eastern Oregon Education & Outreach Specialist, attended the annual Home4Hope Project Community Connect & Veteran Stand Down resource fair. It was an outdoor event hosted by Desert Rose Ministries in Hermiston, Oregon.

FHCO offered attendees fair housing resource materials.

One vendor offered haircuts to event attendees. Here are some before and after shots of one attendee who took full advantage of the free service!

Nursing students volunteer every year to assist the attendees with maneuvering to the vendors they need to see. The nursing students also learn lots about the services that are available for people who are without housing or at risk of losing their housing. They also learn about veteran services available.

Oregon REALTORS ® Multicultural Luncheon

Shyle Ruder, our Education & Outreach Director, attended the first Multicultural Luncheon hosted by Oregon REALTORS® on Nov. 15, along with 70 other guests.

We distributed our Homebuyer Discrimination fact sheet to luncheon guests.

This was part of our outreach to combat housing discrimination in homebuying. There was some great conversation about reporting discrimination as a result of disseminating our Homebuyer Discrimination fact sheet at the luncheon.

New Resources on Our Website

American Sign Language Translations

We recently partnered with Bridges Oregon to add ASL translations to our website.

ASL video interpretation has been added to each portion of text on the following webpages:

Contact – Fair Housing Council of Oregon (fhco.org)
Report Housing Discrimination – Fair Housing Council of Oregon (fhco.org)
What We Do – Fair Housing Council of Oregon (fhco.org)
- Included in what we do, ASL interpretation videos have been added to each federal and state protected class

We are excited to continue increasing our online accessibility in the coming year!

Pre-Recorded Fair Housing Courses

We recently uploaded a new history presentation, Fair Housing in Oregon: Uncovering and Recovering History, to our Pre-Recorded Courses webpage.

Check out this presentation to learn about:

How Oregon’s history of discrimination, segregation and white supremacy have influenced housing today
The resilience and agency of historically displaced groups
Current policies and practices that address inequity in our state and country today

Fair Housing Resource Documents

Our 2022 Homebuyers Guide is now up on the Resources page of our website.

Check out our 2022 Homebuyers Guide to Fair Housing Law.

This guide was created in collaboration with community partners including Portland Housing Center, African American Alliance for Homeownership, realtors LaTasha Beal and Emily Aneja Pfenning from Keller Williams, and Community Development Lawyer and FHCO board member, Nancy Murray. We are so grateful for the collaborated effort that went into creating this guide to help people navigate the homebuying process!

Upcoming Trainings

Fair Housing and Restorative Justice

When: Jan. 23, 12 – 12:30 p.m.

About this webinar:

This virtual, no-cost lunch hour presentation will include a discussion on the intersection of fair housing and alternatives to the carceral state. We will discuss the ways incarceration impacts housing access, historical connections between housing discrimination and the criminal justice system, and a future that can be imagined through alternatives to mass incarceration.

Meet our New Staff

Alex Farrington
(he/him/his)

Central Oregon Education & Outreach Specialist

Q: Where are you from and what town or city do you live in now? How long have you been living where you are now?

A: I’m originally from southwest Michigan, but I moved to Oregon in 2015 to attend graduate school at the University of Oregon. I lived in Eugene until this past August when I moved to Bend. I’ve now been in Bend for about four months.

Q: Briefly describe your professional/educational background.

A: I graduated from a doctoral program in political science at the University of Oregon in June 2022. At UO, I had the opportunity to teach classes in political theory and American politics. After graduating, I began working as a Hatfield Resident Fellow with Portland State University. Through my fellowship, I am evaluating the early implementation process of Oregon’s Drug Addiction Treatment and Recovery Act, also known as Measure 110. I will be working part-time at FHCO until my fellowship ends in late February, when I will transition into a full-time schedule.

Q: What sparked your desire to work for FHCO?

A: Working as an Education and Outreach Specialist at FHCO allows me to continue my passions for housing justice and education. Part of my graduate studies and research were focused on housing politics and policy, and I’m excited to dig into fair housing issues in Central Oregon.

Q: What is your favorite way to spend your time when off the clock?

A: I enjoy reading philosophy, listening to music, and being outside. I also listen to a ton of podcasts, let me know if you have recommendations!

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