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Bronx Communities Called White-Only Enclaves
By
Sabrina Jaszi
Published Feb 6, 2010
Modified Feb 6, 2010
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By
Sabrina Jaszi
Published Feb 6, 2010
Modified Feb 6, 2010
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Two picturesque Bronx developments at the edge of the Long Island Sound are accused of barring blacks from purchasing homes in the quiet confines of their communities. The Fair Housing Justice Center is suing Edgewater Park and nearby Silver Beach Gardens for racial discrimination, as well as one its longtime residents, Realtor Amelia Lewis. Investigators sent fake couples to try to buy homes in the community: a white pair received a warm welcome, but when a black couple inquired they were immediately asked for references and then told by Lewis “there’s no way you’re going to get in there.” Stats revealed that though blacks account for 35 percent of homeowners in the Bronx, they own less than 1 percent of the 1,100 homes in Edgewater Park and Silver Beach Gardens. The prosecution says it was tipped off by the communities’ low profiles. “Any time anything’s hidden or secret,” the justice center’s lawyer told the NY Times, “you have to ask, ‘Why would you want to be hidden?’”
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long island sound
nonprofit
racial discrimination
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Sabrina Jaszi
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