News and stories about our work to protect and advance the civil legal rights of low-income Texans.
After a hurricane struck her home, Sierra received an eviction notice just a week later—a devastating shock. She couldn’t understand why, as she had paid her rent in full. Confused and anxious, she reached out to Lone Star Legal Aid for help. Sierra had qualified for public housing, which provided her with an affordable rent. Securing public housing requires a […]
Houston, TX – August 28, 2023 Violet Mae Richardson, through her attorney at Lone Star Legal Aid, is challenging a reverse mortgage lender’s unauthorized foreclosure, aiming to overturn the foreclosure and assert her rights. In 1948, the Pleasantville neighborhood was established to help form a community for marginalized groups dealing with housing discrimination at the time—namely middle income African Americans, […]
If you’re living in “affordable housing,” you’re probably surrounded by poverty. It’s not supposed to be this way. When the poorest people are crowded in the least hospitable neighborhoods, it results in a lower standard of living. Ideally, subsidized housing would be constructed in areas with fewer poor people and less racial concentration. When developers try to build affordable housing […]
Each April, local communities, fair housing advocates, and fair housing organizations across the country commemorate Fair Housing Month by hosting an array of activities that highlight HUD’s fair housing enforcement efforts, enhance Americans’ awareness of their fair housing rights, and emphasize the importance of ending housing discrimination. Our Fair Housing team focuses on the right to stay in decent and […]
The Houston Housing Authority board has voted to reopen the waiting list for 10 public housing developments on January 15, 2023. The waiting list closed in August 2018 due to the high volume of applications. Although there is still a backlog of applicants on the waiting list, some developments have shorter waiting lists than others. The waiting lists will open […]
Gregory, a Houston father, contracted COVID-19 and then his family’s life took a turn for the worst. Gregory lost his job due to contracting the virus, his landlord illegally locked the entire family of their home for not being able to come up with enough money to pay the rent, and they had no medical coverage. Gregory could not work […]
Houston, TX – It has been almost five years since the seniors living at 2100 Memorial, a Houston Housing Authority (“HHA”) property with a view of Downtown Houston, were displaced due to Hurricane Harvey. Now, they are on their way home. The HHA broke ground Tuesday morning on an affordable senior living facility to replace the former building, subject to […]
Each April, local communities, fair housing advocates, and fair housing organizations across the country commemorate Fair Housing Month by hosting an array of activities that highlight HUD’s fair housing enforcement efforts, enhance Americans’ awareness of their fair housing rights, and emphasize the importance of ending housing discrimination. Our Fair Housing team focuses on the right to stay in decent and […]
January is Poverty Awareness Month, a month-long initiative to raise awareness and call attention to the growth of poverty in America. We fight to end poverty by creating equity and opportunity. Throughout the month of January, we’ll be talking about how and why poverty continues to impact so many people. From housing and healthcare, to personal and family safety, we […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Houston, Texas – Tenants of Coppertree Village Apartment and Lone Star Legal Aid’s Fair Housing Team are celebrating a U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals win. In litigation that spanned over 3 years, Coppertree Tenants shared stories of the deplorable living conditions in the Section 8 Project where they lived. Unable to leave, for fear of losing […]