Reading Room Document

President's Authority to Deal with Racial Discrimination in Housing Projects Constructed with the Aid of the Federal Government

This opinion concluded that the President had the authority to direct all federal housing agencies to deny funding to “any housing or housing project in connection with which persons are excluded on the basis of their race, color, or creed,” despite the fact that legislative proposals to eliminate discrimination in federal housing failed in 1949, 1953, and 1960.

August 10, 1960