A long time advocate for housing rights, John Fox might not be an obvious leader for social change and economic justice.

It was inspiration, not hardship, which led Fox to spend the last 30 years of his life challenging the structures of inequality in Seattle as the founder and coordinator of the Seattle Displacement Coalition.

The housing advocacy organization is an advocate for tenants' rights and helps residents fight unwanted development, while seeking to preserve and create more affordable homes in the city.

Fox, 57, grew up in the predominately white, middle-to-upper class cities of Bainbridge Island and Edmonds with both parents who taught at local schools. In 1968, he graduated from Meadowdale High before attending the University of Washington.

He went with dreams of playing professional football but ended up with a one-season career. Fox joined a fraternity and thought about becoming a lawyer. But none of that really stimulated him.

It was the height of the Vietnam War and he became enthralled with the amount of opposition and activism among his peers.

"I came to respect these people that were doing all these incredible things that it seemed what I was thinking and planning for my life didn't really make sense," said Fox. "It gave me purpose. I was sort of just floundering around. Seeing all those people make a difference in the world really inspired me."

He credits that time in his life for changing his direction and sparking a realization that he could play a role in shaping the world around him, instead of having it shape him.

After earning a bachelor's degree in political science, Fox got a job through the Comprehensive Employment Training Act, a federal law enacted in 1973 to train workers and provide them with jobs in public service through grant monies. He went to work for the Central Seattle Community Council Federation, but it disbanded six months later.

Fox took his job to the Fremont Public Association, now called Solid Ground. With that group, he shaped a program based on land use information services and development control.

The Seattle Displacement Coalition grew out of that work when Fox formed a task force aimed at fighting the "ongoing gentrification" of central Seattle. The area was experiencing a surge of apartment-to-condominium conversions and demolition of older, more affordable units.

The coalition's efforts to curb conversions soon spread citywide as development escalated. The group, a private non-profit, runs primarily from individual donors. Its budget is just $25,000 to $35,000 annually.

Fox works tirelessly with just a few others on some of the biggest issues in the city, such as changing state laws regarding condo conversions and opposing Mayor Greg Nickels plan to expand the multi-family tax exemption program.

Fox wants the City Council to kill the mayor's plan, which would provide a 12-year tax exemption for developers who set aside a portion of new units affordable to those making about 80 percent of median income.

Fox said it just "awards developers who build high-end housing," and doesn't address the real housing shortage in the city, which is low-income.

The coalition is also trying to push a measure through the council that would set aside $400,000 in the city's 2008 budget to match the $500 tenant relocation assistance provided to residents displaced by conversion. Some could end up getting as much as $2,800 to help them move.

Fox is working with tenants of the Lock Vista Apartments to stop what could be the largest conversion in the city, 192 units or moderate-income rentals. He's helped the tenants organize meetings with elected officials and the community.

Now the Seattle Housing Authority is looking into purchasing some or all of the units.

Resident Katherine Trigg worked with Fox on community issues back in the 1970s when they both lived in the Eastlake neighborhood.

"He's relentless and that's what it takes on something like this," said Trigg. "He's been a huge pillar of strength for me. I think John has made a difference in a lot of people's lives."

Fox has criticized elected officials for not doing enough locally to help people affected by conversions, so the coalition has proposed a "Right of First Notice" ordinance. It would require property owners to give tenant groups and non-profits notice of a pending sale and 120 days to make an offer on the building before it could be sold to converters.

Fox and the coalition have a history of tackling some of the most controversial subjects and speaking out against city lawmakers they don't agree with.

Fox formed the Sidran Truth Squad with other housing advocates, which vowed to end the campaign of Mark Sidran, former Seattle City Attorney who ran for mayor against Greg Nickels in 2001.

Details of Sidran's past were published and distributed by dozens of Truth Squad members who were a regular fixture at his campaign appearances. In what was called the closest election in 90 years, Nickels ended up winning by a fraction of the vote.

The group focused on Sidran's "anti-neighborhood" and "anti-homeless" laws that he pushed through City Council in the early 1990s, such as the "no sitting" law that prohibits anyone from sitting or lying on a public sidewalk between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m.

To counter that ordinance, Fox and other activists built 75 benches and placed them on sidewalks in Ballard, downtown Seattle and Capitol Hill in the late 1990s. Some are still around today, including several along Market Street.

The coalition did file legal challenges to many of the Sidran laws, but most were upheld in state court. Fox said it's possible he'll challenge the laws in the federal court system.

Fox has led marches, organized sit-ins and been arrested twice for his work with Operation Homestead, a volunteer-led effort to save abandoned buildings from the wrecking ball and house homeless people.

But that kind of activism is becoming more rare in Seattle, mostly because the city is less diverse as much of the working class have been priced out, said Fox. Political values have changed, too, he said.

The City Council operates with "trickle down" ideals when it comes to economic issues and the mayor is "pro-development with little concern on the social consequences."

Though the coalition has celebrated several major victories, saving more than 1,000 units of housing and playing an integral role in efforts like the Seattle Housing Levy and shelter network, it has a long way to go toward creating a more equitable city.

"We haven't done that and I think that's a disappointment to be sure," said Fox. "But again, we are putting our fingers in dikes that are breaking."

Fox is willing to admit that his work may never be done. But he is proud to think that he's played a part in shaping a more progressive mentality, and in the process, maybe even spread a little more compassion into the community.

"Making a tangible difference in people's lives - it's integral to my life," he said. "It's me. I wouldn't be whole."

Rebekah Schilperoort can be reached at 783.1244 or rebekahs@robinsonnews.com