Current Cases & Projects

Philadelphia Firefighter Files Civil Rights Complaint Over Discriminatory Hair Policy and Racial Harassment

The Public Interest Law Center has filed an employment discrimination complaint with the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission (PHRC) on behalf of Bariq Fluellen, a 12-year veteran Philadelphia firefighter who has been the target of racial harassment and threats due to his hairstyle.

Philadelphia Civil Rights Groups Push Back on Department of Justice Attempt to Terminate Redlining Case in Philadelphia

PHILADELPHIA – In response to a troubling nationwide effort to weaken fair housing enforcement, civil rights groups are taking action to attempt to block the U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ) premature termination of a federal consent order that holds ESSA Bank & Trust accountable for alleged discriminatory redlining in majority-Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in and […]

Taking Action as EEOC Moves to Drop Civil Rights Lawsuit Against Sheetz

A Black man who was denied employment by convenience store chain Sheetz has moved to intervene in a federal criminal history discrimination lawsuit after the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) notified plaintiffs that it plans to drop the case—not based on the evidence, but due to a directive from President Trump.

Holding the Department of Justice accountable to remedy alleged redlining in Newark, NJ

Fair housing organizations took action to oppose the U.S. Department of Justice’s motion to prematurely terminate a federal Consent Order that holds Lakeland Bank (now part of Provident Bank) accountable for years of alleged discriminatory lending practices in Black and Latino neighborhoods across the Newark metro region.

Enforcing lead-safety in Philadelphia rentals

In attempt to end the epidemic of the lead poisoning of Philadelphia children, city law requires all landlords to certify to tenants and to the Philadelphia Department of Public Health that a rental is either lead-safe or lead-free. The same law requires the Health Department to publicly publish the certification status of each property in […]

Philadelphia Tenants Take on One of Philadelphia’s Largest Landlords, Odin Properties LLC, in Class Action Lawsuit

Yesterday, three Philadelphia residents of Bentley Manor, a large apartment complex in West Oak Lane, filed a class action lawsuit against Odin Properties LLC, one of Philadelphia’s largest landlords that is believed to own or manage over 1,500 apartments in the city, and the related companies that own and operate the building. Four months ago, […]

Fighting for Transparency in Cyber Charter Spending

In 2022, Education Voters of PA filed a Right to Know request to examine how Commonwealth Charter Academy (CCA), Pennsylvania’s largest cyber charter school, spends public money to reimburse families for activities and classes outside of the school day. After CCA refused to provide the requested records, the Public Interest Law Center represented Education Voters […]

Protecting The Rights of Older Students with Disabilities

Providing services to help students with disabilities prepare for adult life is critically important. The federal Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA) is clear about public schools’ responsibility to support this transition: students with disabilities can receive a free and appropriate public education until they turn 22. But for years, Pennsylvania has been aging […]

Protecting Our Right to Vote in 2024 [timeline]
Standing up for safe senior housing at Brith Sholom House

Seniors living in the Brith Sholom House apartment building in Wynnefield Heights–one of Philadelphia’s few affordable senior housing complexes–experience unacceptable conditions every day: broken plumbing systems, exposed wires, leaking pipes, pest infestations, fire code violations that threaten their safety, and much more. The Department of Licenses and Inspections has found more than 100 serious code […]