Zoe Alvarez
Former US President Donald Trump has been accused of racism and bigotry throughout his decades in the public eye. One of the accusations against him is that he refused to rent apartments to Black tenants. In the 1970s, the federal government sued Trump for allegedly discriminating against Black apartment seekers. Testimony showed that applications filed by Black apartment seekers were marked with a C for colored and that Trump's agents were told their company discouraged rental to blacks. Trump denied these charges, and the case was settled without any admission of guilt, with Trump agreeing to familiarize himself with the Fair Housing Act. However, in 1978, the Trump Organization was sued again for allegedly continuing to refuse to rent to Black tenants.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Date | 1970s |
| Parties Involved | Donald Trump, Trump Organization, FBI, New York City Human Rights Division, Black renters |
| Allegations | Refusing to rent to Black tenants, racial discrimination |
| Evidence | Testimonies from Trump agents and doormen, coded language for Black applicants, interviews with tenants and employees |
| Outcome | Settled in 1975, sued again in 1978 for violating the settlement, Trump denied charges |
| Related Incidents | Trump's history of racist remarks and actions, including the Central Park Five case |
| Recent Developments | Claims of Trump allowing a homeless Black woman to live in Trump Tower rent-free |
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What You'll Learn
- The Trump Organization was sued in 1978 for refusing to rent to Black tenants
- Trump denied the 1978 charges and settled without admitting guilt
- The FBI investigated Trump's company in the 1970s for racial discrimination
- Trump's agents used codes to label and discourage Black rental applicants
- Trump Tower resident claims Trump allowed her to stay rent-free for years
The Trump Organization was sued in 1978 for refusing to rent to Black tenants
In 1978, The Trump Organization was sued for refusing to rent to Black tenants, marking the second time the company faced legal action on these grounds. The first lawsuit, settled in 1975, required Trump to familiarise himself with the Fair Housing Act, advertise that Black renters were welcome in his properties, and provide a list of vacancies to the Urban League.
However, in 1978, The Trump Organization was once again accused of racial discrimination in the rental of apartments. Testers from the New York City Human Rights Division found that prospective Black renters were told there were no apartments available, while white renters were offered apartments in the same buildings. During the investigation, four of Trump's agents admitted to using a "C" ("colored") or "9" code to label Black applicants. These agents also stated that they were instructed by the company to discourage rental applications from Black people. Three doormen testified to giving false information to Black prospective renters, either by lying about rental prices or claiming there were no vacancies.
Trump and his lawyer, Roy Cohn, denied the charges. However, in 1983, the Metropolitan Action Institute noted that two Trump Village properties were still over 95% white. This suggests that, despite the 1975 settlement, The Trump Organization may have continued to engage in discriminatory rental practices.
It is important to note that, while The Trump Organization was sued for racial discrimination in rental practices, there is also an anecdote suggesting that Trump allowed a homeless Black woman to live in Trump Tower rent-free for eight years. This incident, reported by InfoWars in 2016, has not been independently verified.
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Trump denied the 1978 charges and settled without admitting guilt
In the 1970s, Donald Trump was accused of racial discrimination in the rental of apartments from his real estate company. The federal government sued Trump for allegedly refusing to rent apartments to Black tenants. Testimonies showed that applications filed by Black apartment seekers were marked with a "C" for "coloured" or a 9 code. Trump's agents admitted to using these codes and stated that they were told their company "discouraged rental to blacks".
Trump denied these charges and settled the case without admitting guilt. He claimed that the case was brought against many real estate firms and that there was no admission of guilt. However, in the settlement, the Trumps acknowledged that they "failed and neglected" to comply with the Fair Housing Act, although they never explicitly acknowledged that discrimination had occurred.
The Trump Organization was sued again in 1978 for violating the terms of the 1975 settlement by continuing to refuse to rent to Black tenants. Trump and his lawyer, Roy Cohn, denied these charges as well, and it is unclear how this case was resolved.
Despite Trump's denials and the lack of explicit admission of guilt, there is significant evidence suggesting that Trump and his company engaged in racial discrimination by refusing to rent to Black tenants. The impact of these practices can be seen in the demographic makeup of Trump's properties, with two Trump Village properties still being over 95% White as late as 1983.
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The FBI investigated Trump's company in the 1970s for racial discrimination
In the 1970s, the FBI investigated Donald Trump's real estate company for alleged racial discrimination in the rental of apartments. The investigation was prompted by claims that Trump's company refused to rent apartments to Black tenants in predominantly white buildings. Testers from the New York City Human Rights Division found evidence supporting these claims. They discovered that Black prospective renters were told that there were no apartments available, while White prospective renters were offered apartments in the same buildings.
During the FBI investigation, interviews were conducted with Trump building tenants, management, and employees. While most interviewees were unaware of any discrimination, some Black rental applicants recounted experiences of being told that no apartments were available, while whites were offered leases for the same apartments. Additionally, four of Trump's agents admitted to using a "C" (for "colored") or "9" code to label Black applicants. These agents also stated that they were instructed by the company to discourage rental applications from Black individuals. Corroborating this, three doormen testified that they were told to lie about rental prices or claim vacancies were unavailable when dealing with Black prospective renters.
As a result of these findings, a settlement was reached in 1975, in which Trump agreed to familiarize himself with the Fair Housing Act, advertise that Black renters were welcome, and provide a list of vacancies to the Urban League. However, Trump and his lawyer, Roy Cohn, denied the charges, and Trump maintained that the case was settled "without any admission of guilt."
Despite the settlement, Trump's company was sued again in 1978 for violating the terms of the 1975 agreement by continuing to refuse to rent to Black tenants. This persistent pattern of racial discrimination in Trump's rental practices continued to be evident in the following decades, with the Metropolitan Action Institute noting in 1983 that two Trump Village properties remained over 95% White.
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Trump's agents used codes to label and discourage Black rental applicants
In the 1970s, the federal government sued Donald Trump for allegedly discriminating against Black apartment seekers. The FBI released nearly 400 pages of records on an investigation into alleged racial discrimination in the rental of apartments from Trump's real estate company.
Testers from the New York City Human Rights Division found that prospective Black renters at Trump buildings were told there were no apartments available, while prospective White renters were offered apartments in the same buildings. During the investigation, four of Trump's agents admitted to using codes to label Black applicants. They used "C" ("colored") or "9" to denote Black applicants and stated that they were told their company "discouraged rental to blacks" or that they were “not allowed to rent to black tenants." They were instructed to send prospective Black renters to the central office, while White renters could have their applications accepted on-site.
Three doormen testified that they were told to discourage prospective Black renters by lying about rental prices or claiming no vacancies. In 1975, a settlement was reached, in which Trump agreed to familiarize himself with the Fair Housing Act, take out ads stating that Black renters were welcome, and provide a list of vacancies to the Urban League. However, in 1978, the Trump Organization was sued again for allegedly continuing to refuse to rent to Black tenants, a charge that Trump and his lawyer, Roy Cohn, denied.
Trump has been accused of racism and bigotry throughout his public life, including derogatory remarks about Native Americans, African Americans, and people from El Salvador, Haiti, and African countries. He has also been criticized for his involvement in the "Central Park Five" case, where he took out full-page ads calling for the death penalty for five Black and Latino teenagers accused of rape, despite evidence suggesting they were innocent.
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Trump Tower resident claims Trump allowed her to stay rent-free for years
In 2016, a video went viral on social media, featuring a homeless woman claiming that former US President Donald Trump allowed her to live rent-free in Trump Tower for eight or nine years. The video, which was published by Infowars and also circulated on fake news outlets like Libertywritersnews.com, shows a woman in her pajamas standing by a window, claiming to have sneaked into the building and squatted in an empty room until she was discovered. She further asserts that instead of being evicted, Trump allowed her to stay and provided her with daily meals and weekly flowers. However, this story was quickly debunked by various sources, including AP News, BuzzFeed News, and Snopes. A Trump Hotels spokesperson confirmed that the woman was not a guest, and there was no validity to the video.
Separately, there have been longstanding allegations that Donald Trump and his organization have a history of racial discrimination in their rental practices. In 1975, the New York City Human Rights Division found that prospective black renters at Trump buildings were told there were no apartments available, while white renters were offered accommodations in the same buildings. Four of Trump's agents admitted to using codes like "C" for "colored" to label Black applicants and stated that they were instructed to discourage rental to blacks. Despite a settlement in 1975, the Trump Organization was sued again in 1978 for continuing to refuse to rent to black tenants. Trump and his lawyer, Roy Cohn, denied the charges. In 1983, it was noted that two Trump Village properties were still over 95% white.
Additionally, Trump has been criticized for his racial remarks and derogatory comments about various ethnic groups. According to columnist Afua Hirsch, Trump has a history of describing largely black-populated areas as "infested." In 2018, during an Oval Office meeting, Trump reportedly referred to El Salvador, Haiti, and some African nations as "shithole countries," comments that received widespread condemnation. These incidents, along with other controversial statements and actions, have led to accusations of racism against Trump.
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Frequently asked questions
Yes. In the 1970s, the federal government sued Trump for allegedly discriminating against Black apartment seekers. Testimonies showed that applications filed by Black apartment seekers were marked with a "C" for "coloured" and that Trump's agents were told their company "discouraged rental to Blacks".
The lawsuit ended in a settlement in 1975, in which Trump agreed to familiarise himself with the Fair Housing Act, take out ads stating that Black renters were welcome, and give a list of vacancies to the Urban League.
Yes. In 1978, the Trump Organization was sued again for violating the terms of the 1975 settlement by continuing to refuse to rent to Black tenants. Trump denied the charges.
No. When asked about the 1970s racial discrimination case in 2023, Trump said the case was settled "without any admission of guilt" and that the case was brought against "many real estate firms".
In 2016, a video was published that purportedly showed a homeless Black woman living in Trump Tower in New York revealing that Trump had allowed her to stay in the hotel for free for years. However, the validity of the footage could not be confirmed.
