The Chicago Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law is suing craigslist for 100 allegedly discriminatory ads posted by our Chicago users in a 6 month period.
Craigs list disputes fair housing lawsuit. According to craigslist: "Some were roommate ads involving constitutionally protected speech and the right to free association, such as "prefer christian roommate", or were ads containing incidental and harmless remarks such as "near St Gertrude’s church," and "Buddhist temple nearby." Others simply celebrated the diversity and tolerance of the local community ("vibrant southwest Hispanic neighborhood offering great classical Mexican culture, restaurants, and businesses"), or sought to appeal to some groups without excluding anyone ("Great apartment for graduate students, married couple, or small family"). And for a few it is difficult to determine what protected classification is at issue ("wants one nice quiet person").
Craigslist is a free service that anyone can post to or search on. There are rules and they are enforced by "flagging". If a reader finds an ad offensive or believes that it violates craigslist rules and guidelines they can click a link to flag the posting, if it gets enough flags the post is removed.
According to craiglist the online community is exersizing freedom of speach and they are not responsible for the content of the posts.
To learn more about fair housing read: http://www.hud.gov/offices/fheo/FHLaws/index.cfm
Craigslist has been really hard of Realtors posting ads. They want disclosures and are being really thought.
Craigslist has been really hard of Realtors posting ads. They want disclosures and are being really thought.