[Peace-discuss] Tackling homelessness and why you can't trust the duopoly

[J.B. Nicholson]

Lee Camp (host of "Redacted Tonight") spoke about the coming eviction crisis in 
https://invidio.us/watch?v=nsf_o0LqcvU -- as rent and eviction moratoriums end (with 
no federal rent forgiveness in sight) and people lose their jobs thus making it less 
likely to be able to pay back rent since March, there is a general expectation that 
lots of people won't be able to pay their rent at the end of this month. Therefore 
there will be lots of evictions and the homeless population will increase:

"Looming evictions may soon make 28 million homeless in U.S., expert says"
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/07/10/looming-evictions-may-soon-make-28-million-homeless-expert-says.html

> CNBC: How does the eviction crisis brought on by the pandemic compare with the
> 2008 housing crisis?
> 
> Emily Benfer: We have never seen this extent of eviction in such a truncated
> amount of time in our history. We can expect this to increase dramatically in the
> coming weeks and months, especially as the limited support and intervention
> measures that are in place start to expire. About 10 million people, over a period
> of years, were displaced from their homes following the foreclosure crisis in
> 2008. We're looking at 20 million to 28 million people in this moment, between now
> and September, facing eviction.


"Ghost towns: 30 zip codes with the highest vacancy rates in the US"
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2018/11/07/ghost-towns-america-zip-codes-highest-vacancy-rates/38371381/

> There are nearly 1.5 million vacant homes in the United States, or 1.5 percent of
> all homes, according to a new report from real estate data company ATTOM Data
> Solutions.


"The State of Homelessness in America"
https://endhomelessness.org/homelessness-in-america/homelessness-statistics/state-of-homelessness-report-legacy/

> There are an estimated 553,742 people in the United States experiencing 
> homelessness on a given night, according to the most recent national
> point-in-time estimate (January 2017[1]). This represents a rate of approximately
> 17 people experiencing homelessness per every 10,000 people in the general
> population.
[1] 
https://www.hudexchange.info/resource/5639/2017-ahar-part-1-pit-estimates-of-homelessness-in-the-us/



I think we ought to add to the criteria here because there are probably good reasons 
to not live in Gary, Indiana or Flint, Michigan. But still it looks like we have a 
lot of unused homes which could be someone's home.

It's worth noting that we got to where we are with a bipartisan effort; both major 
parties (including so-called 'progressives') exploit the poor. Neither major party 
has announced any plans to help those in need now. There is vague talk of another 
stimulus but the details are unclear.

Finally, a related story:

"The Eviction Ban Worked, but It’s Almost Over. Some Landlords Are Getting Ready."
https://www.propublica.org/article/the-eviction-ban-worked-but-its-almost-over-some-landlords-are-getting-ready

> As tenants across Florida lost their jobs and incomes during the coronavirus
> pandemic, executives at Axiom Realty Partners LLC, whose portfolio includes at
> least nine apartment buildings throughout the Southeast, applied pressure on some
> tenants to either pay rent or move out.
> 
> One Axiom tenant, who asked that her name not be used for fear of retribution from
> her landlord, told ProPublica that she fell behind on rent in early April when her
> 4-year-old’s day care closed because of the pandemic.
> 
> She was forced to leave her job at a staffing firm to take care of the child, who
> has severe autism. She relied on $275 per week in state unemployment benefits to
> support herself and her two young children, but money was still tight. She hasn’t
> met the eligibility requirements for an additional $600 per week in federal
> assistance.
> 
> “People think you can just go to work, but I have a special needs child, so I
> can’t just put her in any open day care,” she said. “It’s not like we don’t want
> to go back to work. We don’t want to live like this.”
> 
> In May, she received a three-day notice to pay what she owed or leave her home.
> 
> After doing some research, she discovered that her apartment complex was covered
> under the federal eviction moratorium as well as Florida’s statewide eviction ban.
> She decided to stay, but her landlord continued to post notices threatening
> eviction if she didn’t pay her rent.
> 
> “They act like they don’t know what I’m talking about when I tell them that the
> property is covered,” she said. “I’ve told them that they’re not supposed to be
> giving notices, but they don’t care.”
> 
> Starting July 25, a key component of the federal eviction moratorium is set to
> expire, allowing landlords that operate federally backed rental properties to give
> their tenants 30 days’ notice to vacate. After that period, landlords can file for
> eviction. Axiom has made it clear that it intends to take swift legal action once
> the protections run out.
> 
> “COVID-19 is not an excuse to not pay rent,” the company wrote in a letter sent to
> the tenant this month. “Please be aware that when the eviction moratorium is
> lifted, we will not only file an eviction, but we will seek a judgment against you
> for the full amount of all unpaid rents in a court of law.”