HUD claims discrimination in Hurricane Harvey relief grant awarding

HOUSTON — The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is claiming the Texas General Land Office (GLO) discriminated based on race when awarding grants for Hurricane Harvey recovery efforts.

Former Houston mayor and current Congressman Sylvester Turner is scheduled to join Congressman Al Green Wednesday morning to discuss HUD’s findings.

“For too long, equitable access to recovery resources has been wittingly or unwittingly withheld from communities of color, leaving these communities struggling to recover,” Green said in a news release. “The DOJ has a duty to investigate HUD’s shocking allegations of intentional discrimination.”

Green said the HUD found that the GLO’s processes were shown to favor predominantly white communities and neglected African American and Hispanic communities.

The congressman went on to say an order from President Donald Trump’s administration prevents the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division from filing new complaints or briefs until further notice.

“The question is whether the Justice Department will allow Houstonians to continue to suffer from Hurricane Harvey by simply not acting on these claims of invidious discrimination,” Green said.

Congressmen Green and Turner will be joined by community leaders at 10 a.m. Wednesday.