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PRRAC Update: CRA & Title VI comment letters; fundraiser in Boston (October 15, 2026)

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Joint PRRAC & Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law Comment Letter Opposing Community Reinvestment Act Proposed Rule: On October 13, 2026, PRRAC and the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Lawsubmitted a joint comment letter opposing a proposed rule from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency that would severely undermine the effectiveness of the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). It is noteworthy and perhaps a signal of the extreme nature of the proposed rule that the Federal Reserve did not join with its fellow regulators in promulgating it. The aspects of the proposed rule that received the most attention in the comment letter pertain to the threshold sizes for being considered a small, intermediate, or large bank, respectively, and the implications of proposed changes to those criteria on access to capital for affordable housing development financed through the Low Income Housing Tax Credit program. The letter also grounds the CRA in its history as a response to redlining and intentional racial discrimination that was won through grassroots mobilization.

Other news and resources

PRRAC Joins NAACP LDF Comment Letter Regarding HUD Title VI Proposed Rule: On October 9, 2026, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc.submitted a comment letter to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) regarding its proposed rule that, if finalized, would repeal the department’s disparate impact regulations under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Title VI provides different and important coverage and leverage to HUD, supplementing the Fair Housing Act, in efforts to ensure its grantees administer their programs and activities in an equitable manner.

ICYMI – Poverty & Race: Last Update unveiled the latest issue of Poverty & Race to the world. In case you missed it, please check it out here, with pieces on historian Arnold Hirsch’s legacy of working with PRRAC from Tom Sugrue and Florence Roisman, on race and Social Security Administration programs from Jon Dubin, and on environmental justice, smart growth, and green design from Stephen Pinkney.

Join PRRAC and NCSD for a Fundraiser in Boston – November 4: Join PRRAC and the National Coalition on School Diversity in Boston for a fundraiser hosted by our Board member Justin Steil at La Sala in Roxbury at 6:30 PM local time on Wednesday, November 4. Grab your ticket here!

A Break from the Parade of Horribles – Black Panther Party Legacy: On this day 60 years ago, Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale founded the Black Panther for Self Defense in West Oakland. Accordingly, the Update is lifting up a few disparate aspects of the Panthers’ legacy:

  • Survival Programs: The Black Panthers’ survival programs – including free breakfast programs for children and community health clinics – both inspired other community groups in the design of their own mutual aid programs and, at times, shamed the government into action to provide what the Panthers had started to offer as basic, public goods.
  • Alumni and the Next Generation in Public Life: Many alumni of the Black Panther Party have gone on to have notable careers in public life, including Rep. Bobby Rush and former King County, Washington Councilmember Larry Gossett. Other Panther alumni, such as Elaine Brown and Huey P. Newton himself, have run for public office as third-party candidates. Children and younger family members have made an impact, as well. Famously, Tupac Shakur was the son of Afeni Shakur, a member of the Black Panther Party.
  • In Popular Culture: The Black Panthers have been memorialized in feature films on numerous occasions, both as part of a broader assemblage of New Left groups (as in The Trial of the Chicago 7) or in a more focused way (as in Judas and the Black Messiah). References in song abound, with Common’s A Song for Assata a notable example. And what is still probably the most radical strip to hit the funny pages – The Boondocks – and its protagonist Huey Freeman gained national syndication starting in 1999.