National

Scalia Could Be Surprise Vote in Supreme Court Housing Case

Published

12 years ago

January 22, 2015

This Aug. 30, 2014, photo shows the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs in Austin, Texas. The Obama administration may need the vote of a frequent conservative antagonist on the Supreme Court to preserve a decades-old strategy for fighting housing discrimination. Justice Antonin Scalia on Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2015, appeared at times to side with the administration and civil rights groups during arguments over the reach of the landmark Fair Housing Act of 1968, a case that otherwise seemed to split the court along ideological lines. Scalia seemed to agree with the court's four liberal justices that the law can be used to ban housing or lending practices without any proof of intent to discriminate. The court is considering a challenge from Texas officials to the use of so-called disparate impact lawsuits, which allege that even race-neutral lending or housing policies can have a harmful effect on minority groups. (AP Photo/Eric Gay, File)

This Aug. 30, 2014, photo shows the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Eric Gay, File)

SAM HANANEL, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration may need the vote of a frequent conservative antagonist on the Supreme Court to preserve a decades-old strategy for fighting housing discrimination.

Justice Antonin Scalia on Wednesday appeared at times to side with the administration and civil rights groups during arguments over the reach of the landmark Fair Housing Act of 1968, a case that otherwise seemed to split the court along ideological lines.

Scalia seemed to agree with the court’s four liberal justices that the law can be used to ban housing or lending practices without any proof of intent to discriminate. The court is considering a challenge from Texas officials to the use of so-called disparate impact lawsuits, which allege that even race-neutral lending or housing policies can have a harmful effect on minority groups.

Scalia said Congress seemed to have such lawsuits in mind when it passed the law in the 1960s, and later amendments in 1988, to eliminate segregation in housing.

“I find it hard to read those two together in any other way than there is such a thing as disparate impact,” Scalia told Texas Solicitor General Scott Keller.

Civil rights organizations have speculated that conservatives on the court took up the case to knock out such lawsuits, which lower courts have uniformly allowed for 40 years. Their only hope is that Scalia or, perhaps Justice Anthony Kennedy, who is sometimes a swing vote, will side with the court’s four liberals to uphold the practice.

Later in the hourlong argument, Scalia made comments critical of disparate impact when he told Michael Daniel, lawyer for a Texas fair housing group, that “racial disparity is not racial discrimination.”

“The fact that the NFL is largely black players is not discrimination,” Scalia said.

The issue has galvanized critics, including banks, mortgage companies and conservative groups, who say federal housing law should punish only intentional acts of discrimination. Two similar cases out of Minnesota and New Jersey reached the court in recent years, but those were settled in 2012 and 2013 just weeks before oral argument — in one case at the behest of the Obama administration.

The latest case involves an appeal from officials accused of awarding federal housing tax credits in a way that steered low-income housing to mostly poor, black neighborhoods in Dallas and generally kept the units out of wealthier white enclaves.

A Dallas-based fair housing group, Inclusive Communities Project Inc., sued the Texas Department of Housing and Community Development in 2008. The group alleged that agency policies were keeping Dallas neighborhoods segregated and denying blacks a chance to move into safer neighborhoods with better schools.

The housing advocacy group couldn’t prove Texas officials were intentionally biased. But a federal appeals court said the group could use statistics to show that the policies still harmed black residents in violation of the Fair Housing Act.

Chief Justice John Roberts was among those expressing serious doubts about the tactic.

“It is very difficult to decide what impact is good and what impact is bad,” Roberts said. What if one community wants to build low-income housing to revitalize minority neighborhoods, while another wants to integrate white areas, he asked. “Which is the bad thing to do?”

Solicitor General Donald Verrilli, who argued in favor of disparate impact, said both plans may ultimately pass muster. As in the Texas case, Verrilli said a community still has a chance to justify a race-neutral policy that has a negative impact on minorities.

But Roberts pressed Verrilli with the same question three times, complaining that he wasn’t getting an answer.

Verrilli said such cases were outliers and said typical cases “in the heartland” such as zoning restrictions or occupancy rules are more straightforward.

In his only comment, Justice Anthony Kennedy said it seemed “very odd to me” that disparate impact could apply to either case.

Scott Keller, the Texas Solicitor General, stressed there was no clear language authorizing discriminatory-impact lawsuits when the housing law was passed in 1968. While employment discrimination laws seem to allow it, he said it is not explicitly covered under the Fair Housing Act.

But Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg called that argument “a little artificial” because the theory was not mainstream until the Supreme Court approved its use for employment discrimination cases in 1971.

Justice Stephen Breyer noted that every appeals court to consider the question for the past 40 years has found disparate impact acceptable in the housing context.

“Why, when something is so well-established throughout the United States, should the court come in and change it?” he asked Keller.

Keller said disparate impact claims would essentially force the state to make race-conscious decisions to avoid liability.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Up Next

In Tamir Rice Case, Many Errors by Cleveland Police, Then a Fatal One

Don't Miss

1st Racial-Impact Law Seen as Having Modest Effect in Iowa

Oakland Post

Click to comment

Business

Port of Oakland, Army Corps Sign Historic Harbor Design Agreement

OAKLAND POST — Oakland Port Commission President Stephanie Dominguez Walton called the agreement a historic milestone that will support thousands of jobs. “Today marks a historic occasion for the Port as we sign the inaugural Design Agreement for the Turning Basin Widening Project, which will keep Oakland competitive,” said Walton.

Published

1 day ago

September 14, 2026

Post News Group

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) San Francisco District and the Port of Oakland commemorated the signing of the inaugural Design Agreement for the Oakland Harbor Turning Basins Widening Project during a ceremony aboard the USS Potomac at Jack London Square. (L-R) Major General Jason Kelly, USACE Deputy Commanding General for Civil and Emergency Operations, Oakland City Councilmember Carroll Fife D-3, Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee, Oakland Port Commission President Stephanie Dominguez Walton, Alameda Mayor Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft, Port of Oakland Executive Director Kristi McKenney, U.S. Representative Congresswoman Lateefah Simon D-12, Lt. Col. Virginia Brickner, and commander of the USACE San Francisco District. Photo by Carla Thomas.

By Carla Thomas

A $642 million project designed to accommodate larger cargo ships and strengthen the Port of Oakland’s position as a major Pacific trade gateway moved a significant step closer to construction on Aug. 27.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) San Francisco District and the Port of Oakland commemorated the signing of the inaugural Design Agreement for the Oakland Harbor Turning Basins Widening Project during a ceremony aboard the USS Potomac, the presidential yacht once used by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

The project will widen the Port’s Inner and Outer Harbor turning basins, allowing today’s increasingly larger and longer vessels more space to safely maneuver and turn around. The current basins are narrow, creating delays and operational inefficiencies.

Oakland Port Commission President Stephanie Dominguez Walton called the agreement a historic milestone that will support thousands of jobs.

“Today marks a historic occasion for the Port as we sign the inaugural Design Agreement for the Turning Basin Widening Project, which will keep Oakland competitive,” said Walton.

The agreement advances the project into its preconstruction engineering and design phase following years of planning and collaboration.

Lt. Col. Virginia Brickner, commander of the USACE San Francisco District, said the signing represented tangible progress toward construction.

“We are moving forward. We are showing progress,” Brickner said.

Major General Jason Kelly, USACE Deputy Commanding General for Civil and Emergency Operations, said dredging is critical for maritime dominance, supply chains, and economic competitiveness.

“Dredging sustains our national economic infrastructure,” he said. “The future demands more, the taxpayer deserves more, and together we’re going to deliver.”

For U.S. Representative Congresswoman Lateefah Simon (D-CA-12), the Port project will support jobs beyond its completion. “This will impact workers and businesses, and every shipping container represents multiple jobs.”

Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee described Oakland as a gateway to international markets and spoke on earlier efforts to deepen Oakland’s shipping channel to 50 feet. While serving in the California Legislature, Lee helped bring together labor, business, environmental advocates and Port officials to resolve disputes surrounding dredging and environmental protections.

“We want the Port to remain competitive economically,” Lee said, excited about both protecting the environment and generating sustainable jobs in the region. “We want to make sure that we create good-paying union jobs, and that the Port continues to not just survive, but thrive.”

Port of Oakland Executive Director Kristi McKenney said economic growth is dependent on investments in the Oakland Harbor’s infrastructure.

“This investment and staying competitive will fuel our economy for years to come,” said McKenney.

The Port of Oakland, with its partners, supports more than 98,000 regional jobs and $174 billion in annual economic activity. The Port oversees the Oakland Seaport, the Oakland San Francisco Bay Airport (OAK), and nearly 20 miles of waterfront, including Jack London Square.

Post News Group

Posts by Post News Group

Community

Democratic Clubs Interview Candidates for Oakland School Board

OAKLAND POST — For the first time, the interviews were jointly sponsored by the John George Democratic Club, Wellstone Democratic Renewal Club, Oakland East Bay Democratic Club, Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA), Niagara Democratic Club, Block by Block Organizing Network and Oakland African American Chamber of Commerce.

Published

1 day ago

September 14, 2026

Post News Group

(L-R) Sylvia Williams, Mike Hutchinson, Kathryn Camp

By Ken Epstein

Local Democratic clubs and community organizations interviewed candidates running for Oakland school board in the November elections, including incumbents Jennifer Brouhard in District 2, Mike Hutchinson in District 4 and Valarie Bachelor in District 6.

For the first time, the interviews were jointly sponsored by the John George Democratic Club, Wellstone Democratic Renewal Club, Oakland East Bay Democratic Club, Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA), Niagara Democratic Club, Block by Block Organizing Network and Oakland African American Chamber of Commerce.

The Democratic clubs interviewed only registered Democrats.

John George and Wellstone endorsed Brouhard and Bachelor. Neither endorsed Hutchinson.

In District 4, Wellstone ranked Sylvia Pfeiffer Williams first and Kathryn Camp second. John George ranked Camp first and Williams second.

Hutchinson, an Oakland native and Oakland public schools graduate, highlighted his record.

“I was in board leadership and chaired the Budget and Finance Committee,” he said. “We passed balanced budgets and paid off the state loan early, which allowed us to finally leave state receivership after 22 years.”

Hutchinson said the district faces a financial crisis requiring changes in board leadership and district policies.

“We need a different majority so we can get back on track, end school closures, and manage our resources better,” he said.

Williams taught adult education in Oakland for 18 years.

Williams said her philosophy “comes from the disability justice world, to center the needs of the most vulnerable. When we center the needs of the most vulnerable, we create environments, systems, and learning experiences in which everyone can thrive.”

Williams framed potential school closures as an equity issue.

“Are we thinking about closing schools up in the hills?” she asked. “Or are we thinking about closing schools where communities are in crisis right now?”

Camp, a Bay Area native and Oakland resident of 25 years, has a son in second grade.

“Our kids are only getting one shot at a great education, and I’m running to bring pragmatic, student-centered leadership that restores trust, builds responsibility, and delivers results for every child,” she said.

On her website, Camp pledged accountability and transparency. “As a proud OUSD parent, I know our schools need more than promises – they need fiscal responsibility, equity, and meaningful action guided by long-term strategy,” she said.

“That means protecting classrooms, supporting teachers, using resources wisely, and making decisions that reflect clear priorities and real accountability,” said Camp. “It also means bringing people together and providing the kind of steady leadership that can navigate complex systems, ask hard questions, and stay grounded in what matters most: student outcomes, thriving schools, and a district that works for the communities it serves.”

Wellstone’s Education Committee said it opposed Hutchinson because he frequently challenged the board majority and superintendent.

“He also claims that the teachers’ contract is illegal that a grand jury should be called. He is not endorsed by the teachers’ union; he has been disruptive and non-collaborative at meetings,” and he has been absent 26% of the time, the committee said.

“He claims that the teachers’ contract is illegal and that a grand jury should be called,” the committee said. “He takes individual credit for accomplishments, including paying the state loan, when in fact these changes came from the work of the entire board, or were the result of following through on policy.”

Next week: District 6 school board candidates.

Post News Group

Posts by Post News Group

Black History

Nuna Phillips-McKee Celebrates 100 Years: ‘A Century of Faith, Family and God’s Amazing Grace!’

OAKLAND POST — Nuna’s life has been one of Christian service. A longtime member of Wings of Love Maranatha Ministries, now Incredible Church, she serves as director of Community Services and is actively involved in the church’s Food Ministries.

Published

1 day ago

September 14, 2026

Post News Group

Nuna Phillips-McGee, far right, will be celebrating her 100th birthday with sisters (l. to. r.) Donna Hayes, Ida Williams, Sandra Phillips and Enis Harrison. Photo by Carol Dossman.

By Special to The Post

Nuna Phillips-McKee will reach an extraordinary milestone on Sept. 24 —her 100th

birthday, marking a century filled with faith, family, service, laughter and the amazing grace of God.

Born Sept. 14, 1926, in Oakland, Nuna has witnessed a world of change during her lifetime, yet the values that have guided her remain constant: a deep faith in God, devotion to family, a strong work ethic and a heart for serving others.

She enjoyed a distinguished career as a civil servant for more than 40 years, demonstrating the dedication, dependability and strength that have characterized so much of her life.

Nuna’s life has been one of Christian service. A longtime member of Wings of Love Maranatha Ministries, now Incredible Church, she serves as director of Community Services and is actively involved in the church’s Food Ministries.

Through the years, she has continued to help meet the needs of others—not merely with food, but with kindness, compassion and a genuine desire to serve. Her ministry reflects a simple principle by which she lives: when God blesses you, you bless others.

Nuna is the proud mother of one son, whose memory she carries in her heart, and the beloved grandmother of three grandchildren, as well as six great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild.

At 100, she has the rare blessing of seeing several generations of her family carrying forward a legacy that began long ago.

She remains the loving, intelligent, witty, and, when the occasion calls for it, delightfully sassy Nuna that her family and friends know so well. Her contagious laugh, quick wit and youthful spirit have endeared her to generations of relatives, church members and friends.

Nuna was born into the large and loving Phillips family of seven sisters and one brother, with bonds that formed in childhood and have remained precious throughout the decades. Their shared love, faith, and family traditions have continued to be a source of joy, strength and countless treasured memories.

As family and friends gather for this special occasion, they will celebrate far more than a number. They will celebrate 100 years of prayers prayed and answered; 100 years of lessons learned and wisdom shared; 100 years of family, faith, laughter and love; 100 years of serving God and serving others.

Most of all, they will celebrate a life that stands as a testimony to God’s faithfulness through every season.

Nuna’s century-long journey can be summed up in the words chosen to commemorate this remarkable occasion: “100 years of God’s amazing grace.”