Does Facebook's exclusion targeting violate the Fair Housing Act?

A new report from the nonprofit investigative journalism outfit ProPublica suggests that Facebook’s option to target ads at users based on what the social media website calls "ethnic affinities" violates the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Fair Housing Act of 1968 because it lets companies target — or avoid targeting — advertisements at individuals based on race. Facebook’s ad-targeting capabilities, including the exclusion feature, are generally a boon to companies, who use it to reach niche audiences to yield a greater return than simply sending an advertisement to a general audience where the impact may not be as significant. The social media site does not ask users to identify their race but instead determines "ethnic affinities" based on data collected on how they use the site, such as pages liked or shared. Users can see how Facebook identifies their “ethnic affinity,” but instead of changing it, they can only opt-out of tracking, Fusion reported.