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In response to the announcement today from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) that it will begin enforcing the Fair Housing Act to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, Congresswoman Jennifer Wexton (D-VA) issued the following statement:

“HUD’s actions today to fully enforce the Fair Housing Act will guarantee protections for our LGBTQ friends and neighbors and ensure every American is able to access housing free from discrimination.

“Housing saves lives. I fought relentlessly to protect the right to shelter for transgender Americans when it came under attack during the last administration because we know discrimination against vulnerable LGBTQ Americans remains prevalent and that discrimination can often lead to real danger.”

Congresswoman Wexton was an outspoken critic of the previous administration’s unsuccessful proposed rule change to the Equal Access Rule that would allow federally funded emergency and temporary shelter providers to turn away transgender Americans. After an exchange with former HUD Secretary Ben Carson during a House Financial Services Committee hearing in which Carson falsely claimed his Department had no intention of making any changes to rollback protections for LGBTQ people seeking emergency shelter, Wexton called on him to resign his position.

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