After Black communities and allies put immense pressure on the Washington State Housing Finance Commission (WSHFC) to reckon with its anti-Black policies and practices, WSHFC reversed its plans to exclude all Black projects from it’s 2021 funding allocation. At minimum, it announced funding for The Ethiopian Village and Africatown Plaza. Background here. Let's take a collective pause to celebrate this win.

However, this win, while important, does not address WSHFC’s over 35-year history of anti-Blackness. Accordingly, we are still pursuing a full-audit of WSHFC’s practices, policies, and allocation history. As we continue, we invite community members to please stay engaged in this conversation.

Questions that remain unanswered/unaddressed:

• Does WSHFC's current strategic investment plan move the Black community towards equity convergence, i.e., does it move home-ownership rates etc. toward racial equity in Washington state? If so, name what specific year equity will be achieved.
• Chart out a Capital Investment Plan that brings the Black community towards measurable markers of equity within homeownership within the next five (5) years. No more vague plans that fail to include measurable markers.
• What is the racial demographic breakdown for WSHFC-funded projects since inception? How much total funding has WSHFC awarded-out and to whom since its inception? How much of the total funding went to Black-controlled and, or Black-owned projects?
• What projects were awarded funding in 2021 and why? What is the background of the projects that were funded? Who are the project owners? Where are the projects located? Do they have any connection to WSHFC commissioners?
• Repeat the question above, applied to the last 10 years.
• What’s the racial makeup of WSHFC’s commissioners since its inception?

Stay tuned for investigative and advocacy updates.