Julián Castro, former secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), will keynote AHF Live: The Affordable Housing Developers Summit, Nov. 14-16, in Chicago.
Now an MSNBC and NBC political analyst, Castro is also teaching a course called “From Crisis to Opportunity: Leadership in Post-Pandemic Urban America” at Harvard Law School.
AHF recently caught up with Castro to find out more.
AHF: When you were at HUD, what was the biggest lesson you learned about yourself or working in government?
Castro: One of the things that struck me about my experience at HUD when it comes to government was the importance of making something a priority if you want to make it happen. The federal government is so big sometimes it lives up to its reputation as a huge bureaucracy. President Obama, a few years before I got there, had made ending homelessness one of his biggest priorities when it came to housing. Everybody was working on the same page with states and local communities to reduce and ultimately end homelessness. For that reason, we saw veteran homelessness fall by 47% during the Obama administration, and overall homelessness fell by 10%. A lot of that was due to the fact that the president made it a priority.
For me, the neatest part of the job was getting to hear the stories of people who had been helped by the policies that HUD and the administration had put in place and the dollars that Congress had invested. That was sort of the reward for all the travel and also sometimes the frustrations of feeling that things moved too slowly and everything that comes with service and government.
AHF: What policy or program change needs to happen to produce more affordable housing?
Castro: I would like to see tremendously more investment in housing opportunity, both in creating more units and making sure the middle class and lower-income families are able to access safe, decent housing. I was excited initially by what was in Build Back Better. At one point, there was more than $100 billion or so of investment in affordable housing opportunity. Unfortunately, we didn’t get there this time.
The biggest thing that needs to change when it comes to housing opportunity is we have to take it more seriously for all Americans. Even though it’s such an urgent need, it’s not met with the same urgency in Congress generally.
AHF: What is the biggest challenge for cities today when so many exist?
Castro: One of the biggest challenges is picking up the pieces when it comes to furthering equity in a community. The pandemic laid bare so many of our inequities in this country from public health to job opportunities to housing opportunities. Cities were already struggling to create communities where everybody could thrive. The pandemic made that even harder. In many ways, cities are playing catch-up in trying to create a more equitable community. My hope is the pandemic has offered the opportunity for a re-imagination and a reset for communities to try new policies, to make new investments, to take the many investments Washington is now making in local communities to do things better and do things differently than before.
AHF: What’s one lesson that you hope to pass on to your students at Harvard?
Castro: I’ve told them already that I hope they find a way to contribute to the forward progress of the communities that they belong to or will belong to during their professional lives. Whether they do so as a lawyer who does pro bono work or a volunteer or perhaps some of them as public officials, these are smart, talented, driven people. America needs their talent and the talent of so many others like them to do good for as many people as possible in the years to come.
AHF: Give us your thoughts on the November election.
Castro: The election picture looks better for Democrats now than it did two months ago. Midterms are notoriously difficult for the party whose president is in power. Under normal circumstances, Democrats would probably lose control of the House and the Senate in 2022. We’ll have to see what happens on Nov. 8. My belief is that Democrats may be able to hold the Senate. It’s going to be quite a challenge to hold both houses of Congress. As much as things change, you never know.
AHF: Do you foresee running for office in the future?
Castro: I may. I love the opportunity to serve and the work you do in government service, but I don’t miss it that much when I’m out of it. I don’t wake up and have this feeling that I just have to be in it tomorrow again. At some point, I’ll likely jump back in. But, these days I’m happy doing what I’m doing.
Learn more about the upcoming conference at AHF Live. Save $200 with the code AHFMAG.
