Civil and Human Rights Coalition: Mortgage Settlement is “One Significant Step on a Long Path” for Homeowners

WASHINGTON, DC –Wade Henderson, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement in response to the mortgage settlement with five of the nation’s banks over their flawed and fraudulent foreclosure practices, marking the largest government-industry settlement in more than a decade:

“The Obama Administration and state attorneys general involved in this settlement deserve praise for negotiating a much improved settlement over what had been considered 16 months ago. The civil and human rights coalition recognizes this hard work on behalf of the communities that have been ravaged by these lenders and the fallout from their misdeeds.

Today, these homeowners got some promise of principal reduction for their underwater homes and banks must now act with integrity by not obstructing borrowers with the run around of multiple points of contact and cannot foreclose on families that are in the midst of modifying their loans. 

To be clear, $26 billion doesn’t even come close to matching the monetary value of the damage perpetrated against our communities, but it is a significant step on a long path for advancing justice for these homeowners.  We view the outcomes of the President’s interagency working group announced last month as the next vital step on this path.

You cannot put a dollar value on the suffering of these families but we can seek progress. And today’s settlement is a step in the right direction.”

Wade Henderson is the president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 200 national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the United States. The Leadership Conference works toward an America as good as its ideals. For more information on The Leadership Conference and its 200-plus member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.