Prejudiced comment by ll

[queenswoman]

If a landlord is stupid enough to make a prejudiced comment in reference to a tenant's religion/nationality what legal rights/recourse does the tenant have?

[eastsidah]

Can you prove it?

[TenantNet]

There are Federal Fair Housing Laws to protect protected class tenants in finding housing. They're difficult to enforce and the Feds are cutting back on funding. Protected classes are usually ethnicities, religion, sexual preference, etc. But once you have the apartment, it might not hold. If a LL (or anyone) makes a comment that is prejudiced, that does not in itself mean one's right are violated. But that question is best addressed to a civil rights expert. If it's ongoing and provable, there might be a claim of harassment though. But even that is difficult to enforce.

[MikeW]

Did he just make a comment, or did the comment come in the context of some other action. For example, did he say something like "I'm not going to let some f@#$%^g <insert your favorite ethnic slur> into my building", in response to a applicant of a particular ethnic group. In that case the applicant could probably sue.

Also, if there was some sort of civil rights type case pending against the LL, or one got filed later for some sort of concrete transgression (refusing to rent an apartment to someone, harrassing someone in the building), the fact he made the slur could probably be used in that context.
But just spouting an ethnic slur in and of itself is probably not actionable.

[queenswoman]

Prejudiced comment was made in a pattern of hostile and harrassing behavior by ll over the course of about a year. (I mean hostile and harrassing behavior over such petty things such as ll yelling and insulting tenant over going in and out of the apartment too many times during the day, ll complaining that the tenant's rabbit was making too much noise - those types of ridiculous things)

[MikeW]

As TN mentioned, you could probably file a harassment complaint. However, you'd have to have everything documented, have witnesses, etc.. It may be more trouble than it's worth though.