Seicshnaydre Presents Housing Report at NOLA 300 Forum

Tulane Law Associate Dean for Experiential Learning and Public Interest Programs Stacy Seicshnaydre participated Wednesday in the NOLA 300 Forum for Progress and Prosperity, an event sponsored by the Data Center and the New Orleans Business Alliance.

Seicshnaydre discussed the April report, “Rigging the Real Estate Market: Segregation, Inequality, and Disaster Risk,” which she co-authored with Robert Collins of Dillard University, and Cashauna Hill and Maxwell Ciardullo of Greater New Orleans Fair Housing Action Center.

The one-day conference brought together members of the public and private sector, including business and community leaders, policymakers, decision-makers, and scholars to learn more about the implications of the Data Center’s research and collection of reports. By understanding the findings, the goal is to offer actionable recommendations to address systems contributing to housing and other disparities in New Orleans.

The housing report, published in early April, found that metro New Orleans’ 20th century history of segregationist housing practices had largely continued into the modern era, even after the city received billions in recovery money following Hurricane Katrina. The report illustrates the way that housing policies facilitated wealth creation for whites and inhibited upward mobility, wealth, and opportunity for blacks.

“The premise of the paper is to ensure that the City’s future policy decisions do not build on segregationist structures that perpetuate racial isolation and inequality,” said Seicshnaydre, a 1992 graduate of Tulane Law. “The report can also help students make connections between inclusionary housing policy and the health and prosperity of the region as a whole.”

Seicshnaydre, who is also the William K. Christovich Professor of Law, is a leading authority on fair housing and anti-discrimination law, and her research and writing on housing law and policy have been influential in federal civil rights litigation.

As director of the law school’s Civil Litigation Clinic from 2004 to 2016, she guided students in the representation of clients on a variety of civil rights cases in federal courts at the district and appellate levels. She was founding executive director and later general counsel of the Greater New Orleans Fair Housing Action Center.

As dean of experiential learning, she oversees the full range of skills training, experiential, and public interest initiatives at Tulane Law School, including Clinics, Trial Advocacy and moot court, externships, Intersession skills boot camps, and Tulane’s pioneering pro bono program.