NHI/Shelterforce Mourns the Passing of Senator Edward Kennedy

Posted under NHI News on August 27, 2009

NHI/Shelterforce remembers Senator Edward Kennedy as a true progressive voice in the United States Senate and a champion for everyone struggling for a better life. He was a friend of working people and the poor, and a tireless fighter for civil rights, health care reform, affordable and fair housing, and worker rights.

Senator Kennedy’s hands were on scores of legislative initiatives, even if his name wasn’t. His successes included his strong support of the Fair Housing Act of 1968, the creation of the National Housing Trust Fund in 2008, his support for the Americans with Disabilities Act that prohibits discrimination towards tenants and homeowners with disabilities, and leading the effort to pass the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act that strengthens the right of workers to fight pay discrimination.

“While a master of political persuasion, his long list of friends on both sides of the aisle is a testament to the human qualities that made him admired, respected and effective,” said NHI Executive Director Harold Simon. “During his long life of public service, Ted Kennedy worked hard to support his brothers in the 1960s and provided early and important support for candidate Barack Obama. In that nearly 50-year slice of American history, he accomplished what few others in Congress have. Senator Kennedy will be sorely missed by all of us who believe that a better world is possible.”