The paper analyzes the Fair Housing Act policy failure. Looking at the policy within its first twenty years (1968-1988), I show how the social construction of a very restrictive target group during the stages of policy analysis and policy formulation affected the rationale for the policy instruments choice and the implementation approaches, significantly contributing to the policy failure. 

I examine how residential segregation reflects forms of social and racial inequalities. Retracing the history of suburban development in the United States from 1940s, I will analyze the social consequences of discriminatory federal housing programs that still affect today’s urban and suburban development. 

The affordable housing shortage, which has reached a crisis point, emerges as most critical issue that New York City is facing at the moment. The analysis allows to obtain a more precise picture of the housing accessibility diversity in order to address the inequalities with specific actions tailored on the needs and the priorities of each area.

The paper aims to explore a more precise definition of equity within the urban context and defines a methodological framework of analysis that can support strategic urban planning and policy making.