The Morning Eye reports that Craigslist is being sued by a housing advocacy group for its use of discriminatory language in some of its ads, a violation of the Fair Housing Act of 1968. That's right, if you can't stand kids and want to post that in your ad, you are a discriminator.
Among the ads that the Chicago Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law cites are ones with phrases such as "no kids allowed," "single occupancy only," "no minorities," and "African-Americans and Arabians tend to clash with me." Craigslist defends its policies, saying it shouldn't be held to the standards that apply to newspapers' classified ads. Its small staff shouldn't be asked to screen the content of what users post, Craigslist says.
The 19-person Craigslist staff says it would be overwhelmed if it was forced to filter out ads with some form of discriminatory language. If Craigslist loses in court, it's seen as a potential boon to the paid classifieds that we all know and despise.
· Suit charges discrimination on Craigslist [Morning Eye]