Office of Civil Rights
The Office of Civil Rights consists of the Fair Housing & Reasonable Accommodation unit. This unit works to promote diversity and ensure equal access to all Boston Housing Authority (BHA) programs for applicants, residents and staff.
The Fair Housing & Reasonable Accommodation unit assists public housing and leased housing, applicants, and employees to identify, review, and resolve alleged civil rights and fair housing violations. Any instance of discrimination is investigated and addressed through recommendations issued by the Fair Housing Unit. The Fair Housing and Reasonable Accommodation unit also processes all requests for reasonable accommodations – submitted by persons with disabilities.
The Office of Civil Rights also runs a Mediation Program designed to help residents work out mutually agreeable solutions to their civil rights conflicts.
Phone: (617) 988-4383
24-hour Civil Rights Hotline: (617) 695-3531
TTY: (800) 545-1833 ext. 420
Email the Civil Rights Department
BHA will accommodate any communication preferences you may have when you contact OCR@bostonhousing.org. If you have a hearing or speech disability and need resources to contact any of the listed agencies, you can visit https://www.fcc.gov/consumer-governmental-affairs/video-relay-service-vrs-providers for Video Relay Service (VRS) providers.
If you believe that you have experienced a violation of fair housing law or that you have experienced discrimination in housing based upon your race or color, ethnicity, ancestry, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, family status or composition, gender identity, religion, disability, genetic information, age, status as a veteran of the armed services, or status as a housing voucher holder, you may contact the following agencies:
Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination
One Ashburton Place
Sixth Floor, Room 601
Boston, MA 02108
617-994-6000
Email: mcad@mass.gov
T: Government Center (Blue & Green Lines), Bowdoin (Blue Line), Park Street (Red & Green Lines), Downtown Crossing (Orange & Red Lines), Buses 4, 15, 39, 43, 57
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Thomas P. O'Neill, Jr. Federal Building
10 Causeway Street, 3rd Floor
Boston, MA 02222-1092
617-994-8200
Email: ma_webmanager@hud.gov
T: North Station (Orange & Green Lines), Science Park (Green Line), Bowdoin (Blue Line)
If you are in the City of Boston and need assistance filing a housing discrimination complaint you may also contact
Boston Fair Housing Commission
1 City Hall Square, Room 966
Boston, MA 02201
617-635-2500
Email: fairhousing@boston.gov
If you are an applicant or tenant of the Boston Housing Authority (BHA), or hold a voucher administered by the BHA, you may contact:
Boston Housing Authority’s Office of Civil Rights
52 Chauncy Street
Boston, MA 02111, 9th Floor
617-988-4383, 24-hour Civil Rights Hotline: 617-695-3531, TTY: 800-545-1833 ext. 420
Email: ocr@bostonhousing.org
T: Downtown Crossing (Orange & Red Lines), Park Street (Red & Green Lines), and State (Blue Line)
If you would like to request legal assistance in a fair housing matter, you may contact one of the following agencies:
Greater Boston Legal Services
197 Friend Street
Boston, MA 02114
617-371-1234
T: Haymarket (Orange & Green Lines), North Station (Orange & Green), Bowdoin (Blue Line)
Eastern Regional Legal Intake
7 Winthrop Square, 2nd Floor
Boston, MA 02110
617-603-1700
Downtown Crossing (Orange & Red Lines), Park Street (Red & Green Lines), and State (Blue Line)
Harvard Tenant Advocacy Project (note: this program does not operate from the middle of December to the middle of January, and then again from the middle of May to the middle of August)
6 Everett Street
Cambridge, MA 02138
617-495-4394
Email: tap@law.harvard.edu
T: Harvard Square (Red Line), Buses 1, 66, 69, 74, 75, 77, 78, 86, 96
Harvard Legal Aid Bureau
23 Everett Street
Cambridge, MA 02138
617-495-4408
T: Harvard Square (Red Line), Buses 1, 66, 69, 74, 75, 77, 78, 86, 96
Suffolk University Housing Discrimination Program
120 Tremont Street
Boston, MA 02108
617-884-7568, 617-305-1649
T: Park Street (Red & Green Lines), Downtown Crossing (Orange & Red Lines), and Government Center (Blue & Green Lines)
If you need help with general housing issues contact one of the following agencies:
City of Boston Inspectional Services Department
1010 Massachusetts Avenue, 5th Floor
Boston, MA 02118
617-635-5300
Email: isd@boston.gov
T: Andrew (Red Line), Buses 1, 8, 9, 10, 15, 16, 17, 41, 45, 47, 171,CT3
Action for Boston Community Development Housing & Homelessness Prevention
178 Tremont Street
Boston, MA 02111
781-321-3431
Email: housing@bostonabcd.org
T: Boylston (Green Line), Chinatown (Orange Line), Government Center (Blue & Green Lines), Buses 7, 9, 11, 15, 39, 43, 55, 57, 501, 504, 505, SL5
Metro Housing Boston
1411 Tremont Street
Boston, MA 02120
617-859-0400
Email: info@metrohousingboston.org (note: If you use this email you will receive a reply email with links to different departments—click on the department you want and it will open a PDF with emails you can use)
T: Longwood Medical Area (Green Line), Roxbury Crossing (Orange Line), Buses 14, 15, 19, 22, 23, 28, 35, 39, 41, 44, 66, CT2
Boston Public Health Commission – Emergency Shelter
1 City Hall Square,
Boston, MA 02201
617-534-4440
Email: info@bphc.org
T: Government Center (Blue & Green Lines), Haymarket (Orange & Green Lines), Buses 4, 15, 39,57, 89, 92, 93, 111, 354
HomeStart, Inc.
105 Chauncy Street
Boston, MA 02111
617-542-0338
T: Downtown Crossing (Red & Orange Lines), Boylston (Green Line), Buses 4, 7, 11, 15, 39, 43, 55, 57, 501, 504, 505, SL4, SL5