1973 DOJ Housing Discrimination: Trump and Father Sued for Refusing to Rent to Black Applicants
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.
Record summary
Grade
Grade 4 of 5: Critical Rights and Rule-of-Law Concern
Systematic actions that undermine fundamental constitutional or international legal protections at the structural level. Scale and definitions
- Status
- Concluded
- Incident date
- Record updated
- Location
- New York, NY / New Jersey
- Category
- Civil Rights
- Legal posture
- Judicial finding
- War-crime classification
- Enabling conduct
- Verification
- Independently verified
- ICC relevance
- No
- Sources
- 4 cited
- Stable ID
trump-pre-presidency-housing-discrimination-1927-case- Victims
- Black rental applicants denied housing or discouraged from applying at 39 Trump Management properties; individuals and families who sought housing and were told units were unavailable based on their race
- Alleged responsible parties
- Donald Trump, President of Trump Management Corporation; jointly operated the properties with his father; managed day-to-day operations; hired Roy Cohn to fight the suit aggressively rather than settle— Trump Management Corporation
- Fred Trump, Founder of Trump Management Corporation; co-defendant in the DOJ suit; the discriminatory practices had developed across his property empire; Donald took on management responsibilities for these properties— Trump Management Corporation
Key points
- The DOJ investigation used paired testing — sending white and Black testers to the same buildings as prospective renters; white testers were shown available units and offered applications; Black testers were told no units were available or were given discouraging treatment; the pattern was documented across multiple Trump Management properties in Queens, Brooklyn, and Staten Island
- DOJ investigators alleged that Trump Management rental applications were marked with a 'C' code to indicate the race of applicants; superintendents and rental agents at Trump properties were alleged to have been directed to steer non-white applicants away; Trump denied the codes were racial markers
- Trump hired Roy Cohn — the aggressive attorney who had served as chief counsel to Senator Joseph McCarthy — who filed a $100 million countersuit against the Justice Department alleging government overreach; the countersuit was dismissed; Trump later said he had been proud to fight the government rather than settle, framing capitulation as weakness
- The 1975 consent decree required Trump Management to advertise vacancies in minority-targeted media, to maintain a list of vacant units and make it available to community organizations, and to follow anti-discriminatory practices; it did not require admission of wrongdoing; Trump claimed the decree was a victory
- In 1978, the DOJ found that Trump Management had violated the consent decree — specifically by failing to maintain the required vacancy lists and by providing misleading information to the Urban League of Greater New York, which had been appointed as a monitor; further action was taken to enforce compliance
- The 1973 case was the first major federal civil rights housing enforcement action against a real estate company operated by a person who would later seek and win the presidency; it documented the discriminatory practices at the beginning of Donald Trump's independent business career, establishing the pattern that subsequent accounts — in employment, in casino operations — would reinforce
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.
International law engaged
| Instrument | Provision | What it protects or prohibits |
|---|---|---|
| Fair Housing Act of 1968 | Section 3604 | Prohibition on refusing to rent or imposing different terms on account of race; the DOJ suit documented systematic violations across 39 properties |
Update log
-
Based on contemporaneous reporting and DOJ enforcement records.
Sequence of events
-
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.
-
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.
-
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.
-
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.
-
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