Town of Arlington, Fair Housing Action Plan (July 2021)

Citation: Town of Arlington, Fair Housing Action Plan (July 2021)
Jurisdiction: Arlington (municipal)
Source: Official source
Original Source: https://www.arlingtonma.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/57214/637641171662530000 ↗

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Race and Ethnicity
MAPC’s data analysis highlighted persons of color as a protected class that is underrepresented in Arlington (see
Race and Ethnicity on page 29 for more information). However, the providers interviewed indicated that
discrimination based on race or ethnicity is subtle and difficult to pinpoint. One interviewee offered two different
anecdotes in which housing applications from families of color were passed over or denied because of minor
errors or omissions in their applications; when the families sought to correct the errors, the provider felt that that
the families were being given an unnecessarily hard time or that assumptions were being made about the family.

National Origin
Discrimination based on national origin was also difficult to pinpoint, though some providers had the sense that it
is not uncommon (the two families mentioned in the previous section, in addition to being persons of color, were
not originally from the United States). One provider noted an example of a building with a high share of
Chinese residents that had developed a culture of “us versus them.” While this does not necessarily equate to a
barrier in securing housing, it may indicate an unhealthy environment for residents.