1973 DOJ Housing Discrimination: Trump and Father Sued for Refusing to Rent to Black Applicants
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The DOJ suit was based on a year-long investigation by the Fair Housing Division, including undercover testers who posed as prospective renters. Black testers were told no apartments were available or were given discouraging treatment; white testers at the same buildings were shown units and given applications. Trump applications were alleged to contain a 'C' code — interpreted as standing for 'colored' — to flag non-white applicants. Trump hired Roy Cohn, who filed a $100 million countersuit against the DOJ (dismissed). The 1975 consent decree required anti-discriminatory practices but did not require Trump to admit wrongdoing. Three years later, the DOJ found Trump Management had violated the decree.
Overview
The first major legal action against Donald Trump's business career was a federal civil rights lawsuit documenting systematic racial discrimination in rental housing. The evidence was specific: undercover testers, coded applications, a pattern documented across 39 properties. Trump hired Roy Cohn, sued the government for $100 million, and lost.
Three years after the consent decree, the government found he had violated it.
The Testing Evidence
Fair housing investigations use paired testing because landlords rarely discriminate in writing. A white tester and a Black tester visit the same building on the same day. The white tester is shown a unit and offered an application. The Black tester is told nothing is available.
This is what DOJ investigators documented at Trump Management properties across Queens, Brooklyn, and Staten Island — repeatedly, across multiple buildings. The evidence was not marginal. It described a systematic practice.
The Applications
The DOJ alleged that Trump Management applications were coded to indicate the race of applicants — a 'C' marker described as indicating "colored." Superintendents and rental agents allegedly used these codes to screen applicants before management decisions were made. Trump denied the codes were racial, but offered no explanation for their presence.
Roy Cohn
Trump's response to a civil rights lawsuit alleging discrimination against Black tenants was to hire the former chief counsel to Senator Joseph McCarthy and sue the Department of Justice for $100 million. This approach — aggressive counterattack, no acknowledgment, claim a victory regardless of outcome — defined Trump's litigation posture throughout his career.
The countersuit was dismissed. The consent decree was signed. Three years later, Trump violated it.
The Beginning of a Pattern
The 1973 case was not isolated. It was the beginning. Employment discrimination in Atlantic City casino operations. Casino floor removal of Black employees for VIP guests. Discrimination accounts documented by a former senior executive who Trump later confirmed were "probably true."
The 1973 DOJ case documented the pattern at its origin — in the first years of Donald Trump's independent business career.
Timeline
Sequence of events
January 1, 1972
DOJ opens investigation — undercover testers deployed
The DOJ's Fair Housing Division opens an investigation of Trump Management Corporation based on complaints. Investigators deploy undercover testers — white and Black prospective renters — at Trump properties in Queens, Brooklyn, and Staten Island to document discriminatory practices.
October 15, 1973
DOJ files civil rights suit — 39 properties named
The DOJ files a civil rights lawsuit alleging systematic racial discrimination in rental practices at 39 Trump Management apartment buildings. The suit documents that Black applicants were told units were unavailable at properties where white applicants were shown units on the same day.
January 1, 1974
Trump hires Roy Cohn — $100M countersuit filed and dismissed
Trump retains Roy Cohn, who files a $100 million countersuit against the DOJ alleging government overreach. The countersuit is dismissed. Trump continues fighting the original suit.
June 10, 1975
Consent decree — no admission, monitoring required
Trump Management and the DOJ reach a consent decree requiring anti-discriminatory practices, advertising in minority media, and creation of vacancy lists. Trump does not admit wrongdoing. An Urban League monitor is appointed.
January 1, 1978
DOJ finds consent decree violations
The DOJ finds that Trump Management has violated the 1975 consent decree — failing to maintain required vacancy lists and providing misleading information to the Urban League monitor. Additional enforcement action follows.
Sources
- ↑ Major Landlord Accused of Antiblack Bias in City — The New York Times
- ↑ Inside the Government's Case Against Young Donald Trump — The Washington Post
- ↑ Trump's history with housing discrimination — The Associated Press
- ↑ DOJ Housing Discrimination Enforcement — U.S. Department of Justice
Verification