For more than a year, we’ve been working on a documentary series about housing in America. The work took us all over the country to tell the stories of communities that are leading the way — exemplars of how to enact housing policy and encourage development effectively through public-private partnerships. 

As you may know, housing is one of the defining issues of our time; the unavailability and cost of housing elevates economic inequality, suppresses mobility, and exacerbates political instability (The Atlantic, free gift article). Our film series was set to inspire and educate, to show concrete and actionable steps communities could take to improve housing access and affordability. The small- to medium-sized towns we profiled represented a broad cross section of American places, identities, and political persuasions.

The shoots were going great. Then I got a phone call. 

I’ll never forget the scene: A windy and raw February day. We were filming in a lumber yard in a small southern town. The owner was passionate about serving his community and providing materials for affordable housing to developers. Just as we were filming the last few interview questions, I was directed to shut down the project. Effective immediately, the grant that funded our work was terminated. The only reason or rationale given: The work was radical and wasteful.

As of this writing, I do not know if the significant work put into this project will ever be completed and if these inspiring and educational stories will ever be aired. It’s painful to know what could have been, and the impact we could have had. Scuttling a project of this size, with this much potential strikes us as wasteful. 

The damage extends far beyond our project; the overall termination of what’s known as Section 4 HUD grants will have deep, long-lasting, and wide ranging impacts nationwide (LinkedIn article). 

In my humble opinion, there’s nothing radical or “DEI” about having a roof over your head. What’s more, federal investment in housing is a net growth engine: For every federal dollar spent, $20 or more is returned in private investment in housing and revitalization. When you do the simple math, this DOGE decision simply doesn’t cost out.  

This project and several others have brought us in touch with incredible people who are passionate about improving the housing crisis in our country. I can only hope that their work will continue, and that these dedicated folks — all with a passion to make the American Dream accessible to more Americans — can get back to work.