I wanted to do something special for the month of April, but I wasn't sure how to kick it off. I guess sometimes, fate decides to pitch you an easy hit. This is a story that's too... good and bad... to pass up.
As most of you are already fully aware, April is national Fair Housing month. I'm one of those very VERY odd people who actually finds the complexities and complications of the Fair Housing Acts to be quite engaging. I enjoy the legal side - lord only knows why, but I'm guessing it's because I love to argue.
However, there's no arguing with this news story:
Had the story broke on April 1st, I would have thought it an April Fools Joke, because I guess inside I still hope for the best in all people. The very sad thing is that it's not a prank. And that it just happened. And that it just happened in my Seattle metro area. The ironic timing of this massive Fair Housing violation makes the whole thing almost hilarious, if it weren't so dang tragic.
If you haven't recently refreshed your own knowledge on fair housing, or you haven't worked with bringing your team's knowledge of local and state (as well as federal) statutes up to date, take about half an hour this week and do that.
It's just the smart thing to do.