Cuts, Shutdowns & Civil Rights Attacks: Federal Workers Fight Back [Episode Cut]

Synopsis- HUD in crisis- The Department of Housing and Urban Development has seen its staff slashed by 70% since Donald Trump took office, with civil rights cases being abandoned and political appointees allegedly overriding legal findings to allow discrimination.

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Description: About 750,000 people are on unpaid leave as the U.S. government shutdown continues —  but some of the most caring parts of the government's work have been shut down for months. Take the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for example. This is one of the only free resources available to Americans facing housing discrimination, but in a shocking complaint letter submitted to Senator Elizabeth Warren on September 22, 2025, civil rights attorneys Palmer Heenan, Paul Osadebe and two other whistleblowers describe an agency in crisis. Staff has been slashed by 70% since Donald Trump took office, civil rights cases have been abandoned, and political appointees are allegedly overriding legal findings to allow discrimination. Every layoff and budget cut by the Trump administration, both within HUD and across federal agencies, is part of a larger plan to create chaos, end civil rights protections, legalize segregation and exert unitary executive power. Heenan and Osadebe, members of the Federal Unionists Network (FUN), are calling on federal employees to uphold their oath to constitution and protect Americans. And they’ve paid the price: *both Heenan and Osadebe were fired by HUD in what has been called a "stunning act of illegal retaliation.” In this conversation, the two share their story, what it means for civil rights and how unions can fight for government accountability.

“No one is asking for a leg up or an extra hand or whatever the case might be. We're just asking to get rid of discrimination. And so I hope the future will tell the story of people doing just that, coming together, going to Congress and saying, ‘These are our rights. You passed them into law decades ago. Fight for the rights that we have now.’” - Palmer Heenan

“The thing that will actually get us through this is solidarity, recognizing what potential power we have as federal workers . . . [The administration wants] to create fear, which leads to silence, which lets things be dismantled without anyone standing up and fighting and saying, ‘This is illegal, this is wrong and this is harming people.’ It's up to federal workers, the ones in the building, to actually do that.” - Paul Osadebe

Guests:

• Palmer Heenan: Attorney, HUD Whistleblower; Member, AFGE 476

• Paul Osadebe: Attorney, HUD Whistleblower; Steward, AFGE 476

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Music Credit:  "Steppin" by Podington Bear, “Place Delight” by Stephen Emmer featuring Mary Griffin, from the album Home Ground, released on Electric Fairytale Recordings, and original sound design by Jeannie Hopper

RESOURCES:

Related Episodes:

•  Housing is a Human Right Watch / Listen

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•  Domestic Violence Survivor & Homeless Too?  A CA Cohort Shows What Can Be Done. Watch/Listen /  Full, Uncut Conversation

•  Deciding the Fate of Democracy in North Carolina: Watch/Listen

Related Articles and Resources:

• U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren announces receipt of official complaint from HUD whistleblowers, ‘If you buy a home or rent a home or want to…’  YouTube

• US whistleblowers say they were fired for raising fair housing concerns, by Chris Stein, September 29, 2025, The Guardian

•  Rent Debtors Strike Against Abusive Corporate Landlord.  The Debt Collective is leading the charge against the real estate behemoth Equity Residential, by Michael Friedrich, October 6, 2025, The American Prospect

•. Trump appointees roll back rollback enforcement of fair housing laws, by Debra Kamin, September 22, 2025, New York Times

•  Federal Workers Are Organizing for Democracy- from the Inside Out, by Chris Does and Alissa Tafti, June 25, 2025, NP Quarterly

•  Save Public Services

•  Exclusive:  Federal Whistleblowers Expose How Trump’s HUD is Abandoning Vulnerable Americans, by Maximillian Alvarez, September 22, 2025, The Real News Network

•  Trump’s housing department rolls back work to combat residential segregation, whistleblowers allege, by Shcris Stein, September 24, 2025, The Guardian

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