28 Million Americans are at risk of eviction this summer. We’ve got to help now.
28 Million Americans are at risk of eviction this summer. We’ve got to help now.
November is too far away
Welcome to the big Sunday edition of Progressives Everywhere! This week, we’re going deep on:
The coming eviction wave and what you can do to help
Positive trends in Texas and Georgia
Terrible trends in Florida
An intense North Carolina stand-off
As new cases of COVID-19 cases continue to skyrocket across the countries, many cities and states are beginning to roll back re-opening plans and re-issue stay-at-home orders. As the surge of the virus wasn’t enough of a calamity, tens of millions of Americans (up to 28 million!) will soon be at risk of being evicted from their homes and not having anywhere to go in the middle of a deadly pandemic. Combined with a federal government unwilling to provide any further relief, we’re on the verge of a historic catastrophe.
Here’s where things stand right now:
While most cities and states issued eviction moratoriums at the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak, those orders have begun to expire and many more will be over by the end of July. While a federal government pause on kicking people out of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac-backed buildings doesn’t run out until August 31st, it only covers about 30 to 40% of renters; as The Washington Post reported last week, it’s been largely up to residents to figure out if they’re qualified; only 15 states require landlords to verify it.
Elsewhere, landlords have been caught pursuing evictions despite their residents being technically protected, and because they’re generally the ones with attorneys at these hearings, it often works.
For those who owe back rent, things are only going to get worse. The enhanced unemployment benefits provided by the CARES Act expire at the end of the month, and as of now, neither Donald Trump nor Mitch McConnell seems willing to continue them in any significant way. Economists suggest that would be disastrous, especially with states starting to close up again and the economy at risk of a further major collapse (but as we know, they don’t care).
With only a few states and cities having extended their eviction moratoriums, we’re barrelling toward a head-on collision. Already, 32% of Americans haven’t made their July housing payments. And as with everything else in the US, the looming crises will disproportionately impact people of color.
This week at Progressives Everywhere, instead of asking you to donate to an (amazing) candidate or policy ballot initiative, I’m raising money for an even more urgent situation. We can’t wait until new lawmakers are sworn in next year to deal with the imminent eviction crisis, especially in the middle of this resurgent pandemic. Below are a number of non-profits working to keep people in their homes through legal aid, grants, and other tactics. Any help you can offer will make a huge difference.
Coalition for the Homeless (NYC)
Eviction filings began in New York City in June, with an estimated 50,000 or more already primed for submission and execution once the moratorium lifts. To assist in eviction protection, The Coalition for the Homeless provides one-time $1000 cash grants to people who are behind on rent and facing eviction, but with some help, would be able to recover and pay rent in the future. The organization also assists those in need by helping them access funds from other non-profits and government programs.
Eviction Defense Network (LA)
The LA-based organization is a community non-profit made up of lawyers and advocates who provide advice and legal representation to anyone facing eviction in the downtown LA courthouse and counseling to anyone in LA County.
HomeStart (Boston)
Through expertise, mediation, legal services, and financial grants, HomeStart helps families who are at risk of losing their homes avoid eviction and being forced into shelters.
Star-C (Atlanta)
This program works with landlords and tenants alike to provide matching-fund grants that help residents in less affluent communities catch up on rent and stay in their homes. The fund offers two payments of up to $750 each.
Community Advocates (Milwaukee)
Community Advocates provides over 30 different programs and services for the neediest members of the community. This includes eviction prevention and rental assistance. Evictions have already started in Wisconsin, making this one of the most essential organizations to help right now.
Legal Services of Greater Miami (Miami, FL)
A non-profit collection of pro bono lawyers who offer free legal counsel and representation to low-income community members in Miami-Dade and Monroe Counties. Before 2020, they helped 20,000 clients a year; this year, demand for their work should rise exponentially.
Scroll down below for the weekend’s big news stories!
Important News Roundup
Here are some of the big headlines you may have missed over the long weekend and late last week.
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Trending Blue in Texas
I don’t want to put too much stock in any individual poll, especially not with more than three months until the election. Still, it doesn’t suck to not only see Joe Biden leading Donald Trump by five points in Texas, but also see Democrats leading by the same margin when asked which party voters in Texas would support in their state legislative election.
The poll, from the Dallas Morning News and the University of Texas at Tyler, surveyed more Republicans than Democrats. Remarkably (or not), a full 75% of Republicans respondents said that they either approved or strongly approved of Donald Trump’s performance in handling the coronavirus. That is, in a word, depressing.
Another Texas poll released on Sunday has a much closer race, this one from YouGov, has Trump leading by one point. But whichever poll you believe, Biden has undeniable momentum — he gained three points on Trump in both the Dallas Morning News/UTT and YouGov polls.
Much of this has to do with Trump’s utter failure, of course, but there are other factors playing into the political transformation of the long-time red stalwart. Included in that list is a rapidly diversifying population, including one of the fastest expanding South Asian-American communities in the country. Texas has at least five South Asian-Americans running for office this year, including Sri Kulkarni, who nearly pulled off an upset win in the state’s 22nd congressional district and is looking to finish the job now that the incumbent, Republican Pete Olsen, will be retiring.
As the Texas Tribune noted, there are plenty of South Asian-Americans who identify as Republicans, especially as Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a far-right racist leader himself, buddies up to Donald Trump. But the anti-immigrant backlash that has become the core driving principle of the GOP also has many South Asian-Americans redoubling their efforts on behalf of progressives, especially after the Trump administration suspended the H-1B visa program. With sizable communities in a number of swing districts, they could make a real difference this fall.
Georgia’s Blue Trend
Despite a litany of voting machine malfunctions and polling place disasters, Georgia officially blew past its record for primary election turnout last month. Even better, more Democrats cast ballots than Republicans by a 52-45% margin.
Of the 2.3 million ballots cast, 1.15 million of them were mailed in, thanks in large part to Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger’s decision to send every voter an absentee ballot application. Though Democrats and Republicans cast their mailed-in ballots at about the same rate, Raffensperger announced late last month that he will not be sending out absentee ballot applications for the November election; instead, people will have to pick one up in person or print one out from the Secretary of State’s website.
Florida Sets COVID-19 Record
The State of Florida this morning announced that on 15,300 new cases of COVID-19 were diagnosed in the state on Saturday, setting a new national record. Florida’s new record blasted past the previous high water mark, set by New York in early April, by nearly 3000 cases.
New cases began to slowly drop after that terrible day in New York, in large part because residents across the state ordered to wear masks and stay at home, requests with which they largely complied. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, on the other hand, refuses to issue any state-wide mandate, continues to insist that schools open next month, and resists rolling back the egregiously irresponsible reopening he still insists was the right call.
Meanwhile, New York reported zero deaths from the coronavirus for the first time on Sunday, proving definitely that masks, social distancing, and sheltering-in-place work to squash the virus and saves an untold number of lives.
North Carolina Showdown
A mayor in North Carolina’s plan to suppress Black Lives Matters protests and protect a Confederate monument in his city backfired on Saturday, as hundreds of marchers took to the sleepy streets of Graham to make speeches, dance, and demand the removal of the KKK-era statue.
On June 25, Graham Mayor Jerry Peterman issued an emergency ordinance that functionally banned all protests in the city. He did it to protect a Confederate monument at the Alamance County Courthouse, which had drawn a smattering of protestors from the local Black Lives Matter movement; the statue stood in the same place the city’s first Black lawmaker was lynched by the KKK in 1870. The ordinance brought widespread attention to Peterman’s protest policy, and while he pulled back the ban on July 1st, the ACLU filed a lawsuit in hopes of striking down an older ordinance that required protestors to get permits from the sheriff’s office for public activity at least 24 hours in advance. A judge issued a restraining order against the restrictive permit process, suspending the mandate until a court hearing on July 20th.
Peterman didn’t fight the restraining order, but instead, decided on Friday to just ignore it entirely. Peterman issued a new State of Emergency declaration that restricts access to the courthouse area, and on Saturday, marchers walked more than a mile down the streets of the city to surround the newly restricted public land. They were greeted by a small group of remarkably racist counter-protestors waving Confederate flags.
I was going to show you video of those bigots screaming at some protestors, but I’d much rather highlight the impressive gathering of activists and performers:
Quibis
Workers for Target’s delivery service, Shipt, plan to walk off the job on Wednesday to protest the national roll-out of a new algorithm that has reduced their pay by an average of 30%. Keep that in mind when you’re ordering groceries and other goods this week.
Wisconsin Republicans had their state convention on Saturday. Few masks were seen being worn and a lot of this happened:
In Michigan, masks will be mandated in stores and restaurants as well as outdoor spaces where people cannot maintain at least six feet of distance. The order, issued on Friday by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, goes into effect on Monday.
Thanks to a favorable court ruling that allows digital signatures, Reclaim Idaho will resume collecting support for its education funding and wealth tax ballot initiative.
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