BLACK HAT

We envision a California with thriving, healthy, resilient Black communities—where all Black people have a home 

We aim to create thriving, resilient Black communities in California with secure homes for all. We need elected officials to support us in rebuilding Black commercial districts, recovering from housing losses, and delivering affordable housing. Our vision includes strong neighborhoods with new homes and businesses, rooted in robust institutions. To achieve this, we must address past and ongoing harm from anti-Black policies and practices. With the support of BARHII, we developed a strategy to establish a statewide Black Housing Fund. Our mission is to protect and sustain Black communities, addressing housing needs and creating inter-generational wealth and health. Stable housing will promote workforce development, access to services, and upward mobility. 

Black Communities are the hardest hit by California’s housing crisis due to decades of systemic racism and disinvestment and have long been denied access to wealth, prosperity, and opportunity, including homeownership and affordable housing. Discrimination, redlining, unequal access to wealth and jobs, and systemic issues have disadvantaged Black people in the state's housing market for generations. Additional factors like eminent domain, predatory lending, and state-sanctioned housing discrimination have further contributed to severe disparities in wealth, housing stability, and health. 

No major California ethnic group is as over-represented in the state’s homeless count as Black people, and of the more than 150,000 Californians who experience homelessness on any given night, nearly 30 percent are Black.  

In the last 30 years, Black residents have faced a tidal wave of displacement. Black people are moving away from their networks, supports, schools, services, jobs, and possibly even families to find affordability.  While the places of migration may be more affordable, families may need additional support and navigation than these communities can support for a sustained quality of life. 

California Statewide Black Housing Fund  

We have an unprecedented opportunity to secure the future of Black communities in California through the first-ever statewide Black Housing Fund.  

The California Black Housing Fund aims to make housing more accessible and affordable for Black families, with $300 million per year for five years in the state budget. This historic fund focuses on expanding capital for Black developers and supporting organizations that serve Black communities. It will increase homeownership, reduce rent burden, and enable community planning for future projects. By investing in greater housing options for Black Californians, all Californians benefit. The fund can serve as a model for addressing long-standing inequities and improving Black communities' health and well-being.