A Campaign for Civil Rights & Worker Dignity
DEAR AMERICA:
YOUR RIGHTS
ARE ON THE LINE
We are the federal workers who protect America from discrimination. The federal government is dismantling YOUR right to safe housing and essential services—and silencing us to hide it from you. We break that silence and ask you to stand with us, before it’s too late.
“Federal workers at HUD are being silenced and retaliated against for doing their jobs—fighting to protect people from discrimination while being forced to violate their oath to serve the American public."
01 — THE CRISIS
CIVIL RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT IS UNDER ATTACK
Workers are being blocked, punished, and removed for doing their jobs — enforcing the laws that protect families from housing discrimination.
02 — THE WORKERS
GUARDIANS OF OUR CIVIL RIGHTS
We are not bureaucrats. For years, we have worked to stop discrimination in housing and protect vulnerable families. Now we are being silenced for it.
03 — THE STAKES
WHEN ENFORCEMENT STOPS, ABUSE SPREADS
Landlords discriminate freely. Banks go unchecked. Without federal workers willing and able to stand up and do their jobs, civil rights protections only exist on paper.
why we’re speaking out
Federal civil rights workers at HUD are being silenced and retaliated against for doing their jobs—protecting people from housing discrimination and upholding the law. When those on the frontlines of enforcement are blocked or punished, the public loses critical protections, and our basic rights are put at risk.
What’s Happening
Our Words. Our Truth.
These letters come from current and former federal workers, as well as surrogates and allies, sharing their personal experiences. All contributors are speaking in their individual and union capacities—not on behalf of their agencies—and submitted their letters independently, on their own time, and without using government resources.
FIRSTHAND ACCOUNTS
“It just takes people speaking up and doing the right thing.”
“As a supervisor, I saw myself as having two roles: Ensure we fulfilled our obligation to serve the public and enable my staff to do their best work. Both tasks became impossible at the start of the second Trump administration. Every day, heart wrenching choices were thrown at me. Withdraw a case and leave the victims without assistance or lose my job. Fire an attorney whose career was just getting started or face punishment.”
—A former HUD supervisor
“IT IS DIFFICULT TO ABIDE THE DISMANTLEMENT OF CIVIL RIGHTS PROTECTIONS IN THE FAIR HOUSING ACT THAT I SEE OCCURRING.”
“If I had to pick one word to describe the last year working in HUD's Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, it would be "disdain," for the law, civil rights, and even us. A handful of political appointees with no expertise in fair housing is deciding whose housing rights are worth protecting and whose aren't.”
—A federal employee
“When we allow those in power to dismantle our institutions based on a false assumption that government workers are lazy, the American public has, and will continue, to be hurt.”
“I have worked at HUD for many years. I, like many of my colleagues, see our work as public servants as a way to serve our country. Yet we are often accused of being lazy and uncaring, of taking too long to do our jobs, or of actively taking steps to defraud the Department or the American public. Nothing could be further from the truth.”
—A tired HUD employee
what’s at stake
CIVIL RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT IS UNDER ATTACK
Without enforcement, the Fair Housing Act is just words on paper. Real families — denied loans, turned away from housing, trapped in unsafe conditions — have nowhere left to turn.
GUARDIANS OF OUR CIVIL RIGHTS
Millions of Americans depend on language access protections to assert their legal rights. Those protections are being stripped without explanation or announcement.
WORKER INTEGRITY & FREE SPEECH
Federal workers are being punished for following the law. When public servants cannot speak up about illegal conduct, corruption hides in silence — and the public pays the price.
DEMOCRATIC ACCOUNTABILITY
When enforcement is politicized, agencies stop serving the people and start serving whoever holds power. A government that ignores the law becomes a danger to democracy and the people it's supposed to serve.
PROTECTION FROM DISCRIMINATION
Fair housing law protects people on the basis of race, sex, religion, age, disability, familial status, and national origin. Dismantling enforcement is not a policy choice — it is a civil rights violation.
GOVERNMENT FOR THE PEOPLE
Without independent enforcement, power concentrates among the bigoted, wealthy, and well-connected. Government becomes a tool of the powerful — not a protection for everyone else.
What we’re demanding
Immediate rehiring of the Fair Housing 3
1
Congressional investigation into HUD leadership
2
Immediate restoration of language access protections
3
End to political interference in civil rights enforcement
4
Full reinstatement of paused and rejected fair housing cases
5
Full staffing and funding for fair housing, including the end of retaliatory reassignments
6
you are not alone
We want to hear from you.
Federal workers—current and former—and the allies who stand with you are not alone. If you’ve experienced being targeted, silenced, fired, or discriminated against, your story matters.
Share your experience here.
Together, our voices are stronger—and together, we can stand up for each other and the rights we all deserve.
*Dear America will keep all identities anonymous, but we cannot guarantee against all and any risk of retaliation. While we do not retain any identifying information, we cannot protect you from being discovered due to the content of your letter or other general actions taken by the administration to find out who submitted these letters.
This Is Not Over. Take Action.
Federal workers are speaking out—but we need you to stand with us. Tell those in power to stop the attacks on civil rights and hold leadership accountable.
Contact Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Scott Turner
Ask him to reverse fair housing reassignments and firings and to stop politicizing civil rights and interfering with investigations.
Contact Senator Tim Scott (R, S. Carolina), Chair of Senate Banking Committee
Ask him to use his oversight authority to stop HUD leadership's interference, dismantlement, and weaponization of civil rights.
Phone - DC: (202) 224-6121
Contact Representative French Hill (R, Arkansas) Chair of House Committee on Financial Services Committee
Ask him to use his oversight authority to stop HUD leadership's interference, dismantlement, and weaponization of civil rights.
Phone - DC: (202) 225-2506
LIttle Rock Office: (501) 324-5941
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