Civil and Human Rights Coalition Responds to Obama Administration Foreclosure Program

WASHINGTON – Wade Henderson, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement after the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced a loan modification program that will allow underwater borrowers to qualify for principal reduction to avert foreclosure, a longtime priority of the civil and human rights coalition:

“For years, we have urged FHFA to allow Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to take stronger steps to reduce foreclosures and Director Mel Watt has shown true leadership in taking these steps for America’s families.

This announcement is an important precedent and meaningful recognition that keeping families in their homes is better than more needless foreclosures. It’s better for homeowners, for communities, and for Fannie and Freddie’s bottom lines.

After bailing out the banks and insurers that recklessly ran our economy into the ground, it’s about time we cut a little more slack to borrowers who simply got in over their heads.

We applaud today’s actions and urge the Obama administration to do even more to help everyday people who are still underwater on their mortgages.”

Wade Henderson is 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.