1999 Best Practices
Success Stories

Program Name:	Leadership Council for Metropolitan Open Communities
Program Focus:	Fair Housing
Geographic Area:	Midwest

State:	Illinois
City:	Chicago

Executive Summary
In 1966, Dr. Martin Luther King envisioned that in the future all men would be treated equally, and this included equal access to housing. To make his dream a reality, Dr. King founded the Leadership Council for Metropolitan Open Communities. Today, Dr. King’s dream is still making equal access to housing a reality for the residents of Illinois.

To achieve its goals, the Council partners with religious, business, civic, education, and government leaders in the greater Chicago area. Council staff and community leaders feverishly work to develop government policies, advertising, and marketing strategies that will eliminate barriers to integration and create open housing communities. In addition to pushing the housing discrimination button, the council strives to provide a range of services, from investigating complaints to providing technical assistance and fair housing workshops for housing industry leaders.

So are you curious to know the key to the Council’s success? The agency takes pride in its carrot and stick approach. The agency provides training and outreach to housing industry groups while vigorously uncovering violators and enforcing the law. Daily accolades are received for the agency’s continuous efforts. Major corporations are now aware of the harm housing discrimination does to the community and have even made contributions to support the Council’s efforts.

Dr. King’s dream has turned into a reality as the Council works diligently to ensure that residents of the greater Chicago area have fair access to adequate housing.

Partners: Religious, business, civic, education, and government leaders

Financing: Various funding sources.

Point of Contact: David Hudson, Phone: (312) 341-5678, E-mail: dhudson@lcmoc.org