The chairman of the New York City Commission on Human Rights today urged anyone who has been denied rental or purchase of housing accommodations because of race or religion to file a complaint with the Commission. In a letter to Edward D. Moldover, president of the New York Chapter of the American Jewish Committee, Simeon Golar asked the A.J. Committee to advise victims of housing discrimination of their right of recourse to the commission. He also asked Mr. Moldover for any information his organization may have on illegal practices within the commission’s jurisdiction. The letter was prompted by a statement which the A.J. Committee released
May 21 charging that more than 100 privately owned cooperative apartment buildings in Manhattan were discriminating against Jews and other minority group members. The charge, made by Frederic S. Berman, former Commissioner of Rent and Housing Maintenance, was based on a year of investigation of discrimination in housing by the A.J. Committee. Mr. Berman is chairman of a new committee set up by the New York Chapter to deal with the problem.
He said that discrimination was not only “reprehensible” but aggravated the city’s already severe housing shortage. He pinpointed older buildings on the East Side, managed by large realty firms, as the main offenders.
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