Greenline Housing Foundation

greenlinehousing.org

While studying for her California real estate license exam, Jasmin Shupper was struck by a fact that would eventually shape her life’s calling: it wasn’t until 1968 that it became illegal in every state to discriminate on the basis of race (among other protected classes) in the sale, rental, and financing of real estate. Which means that before then, in many states, lenders and sellers could use race as a legal reason to deny extending loans and transferring property. It is a well known fact that one of the greatest accumulators of wealth occurs through real estate that is passed down from generation to generation, and the wealth from the appreciation of those assets is often what funds future real estate purchases, education, and businesses. However, due to the fact that discrimination in housing was legal and pervasive through practices such as redlining, restrictive covenants, imminent domain, and more, generations of people of color, and specifically Black people, have been left behind. Jasmin, recalling her own lived experiences of blatant racism and discrimination, and angry with what this legacy means for people of color, dreamed of a way to increase minority homeownership and provide a solution to a systemic problem that has impacted generations. Greenline Housing Foundation is that solution. Stewarding her anger and translating it into righteous action to bring about lasting change, Greenline is providing down payment grants, home maintenance grants, and financial education to qualified people of color to help restore justice, one home at a time.