Clearinghouse presents archival litigation record for Gautreaux v. Chicago Housing Authority

July 5, 2022

Map of Metro Chicago, 2018 CHA Opportunity Areas by Census Tract

Filed in 1966 and still ongoing as of 2022, Gautreaux v. Chicago Housing Authority is one of the most significant housing desegregation cases ever, leading to the nation's first desegregative housing mobility voucher program. Gautreaux itself assisted many thousands of Chicagoans find stable and integrated housing. And it has served as a model for cities across the U.S. 

In collaboration with BPI, the Chicago public interest organization that has for decades represented the plaintiffs in this case, the Clearinghouse has acquired the full litigation record—over 2100 documents. All told.  All are archived in a google folder; about half will soon display in the Clearinghouse itself. 

To kick off this exciting new archive, the Clearinghouse and BPI are cosponsoring a virtual panel discussion, "Civil Rights Litigation as a Tool for Social Change: Gautreaux v. Chicago Housing Authority."

The panel will discuss equity and justice in housing and the future of civil rights litigation as a mechanism for structural reform. It will be moderated by Chicago civil rights attorney Quinn Rallins, and will feature:

  • Margo Schlanger, Wade H. and Dores M. McCree Collegiate Professor of Law, and the Clearinghouse's founder and director
  • Dr. Norrinda Hayat, Associate Professor of Law and Director of the Civil Justice Clinic at Rutgers Law School, and 
  • Cara Hendrickson, BPI's Executive Director  

The panel will be at 1 pm Eastern/12 pm Central, on July 11. More information and a registration link is available here.  Please join us!

Related Cases

Gautreaux v. Chicago Housing Authority, Northern District of Illinois (1966)

Gautreaux v. HUD [Weaver, Romney, Hills, etc.], Northern District of Illinois (1966)