Keep people safely housed now and for the long-term
It's hard to overstate how big the looming tidal wave of evictions and foreclosures could be. It could dwarf the 2008 financial crisis and it will hit renters far harder, especially in Black, brown, and immigrant communities.
What can you do?
1. Join our LA Forward general meeting tomorrow, Sunday, August 16 at 3 pm where we'll go over all the different efforts happening now and what we can do in the long-term to make good, affordable housing something every person has access to, no exceptions.
RSVP: https://www.losangelesforward.org/calendar/2020/8/9/august-monthly-meeting
2. To prevent the approaching tidal wave of evictions, call your State Senator, your Assemblymember, and the Governor every day till you get a firm yes for AB1436 which would ban evictions for unpaid rent due to covid emergency.
Here is a script and instructions prepared by the statewide Housing Now coalition that we're proud to be part of.
And send a message to your rep in Congress urging them to include rent and mortgage forgiveness for all impacted Americans in the next relief bill.
3. Direct Action / Protest - Friday
The State Judicial Council's Rule is currently preventing evictions by preventing courts from hearing cases BUT they're ending it September 2nd and we still don't have any protections for renters that haven't been able to pay rent due to the COVID-19 crisis. Courts will start eviction processes and it'll be a disaster on an unfathomable scale.
The community, tenant groups, and labor unions are ready to tell the courts and our legislators that we will not let that happen.
We are stopping business as usual and protesting this Friday, Aug 21st to send a clear message that we will not tolerate mass evictions that will lead to homelessness and major health consequences for millions of people.
UPCOMING EVENTS
* Saturday, August 22 at 3 PM: Climate and the 2020 Election, a panel discussion - RSVP
This panel discussion is for anyone who cares deeply about climate change and climate justice and wants to know how they can best make a difference in the upcoming election. Featuring Loraine Lundquist and Aura Vasquez who ran for office as climate champions; a representative from an environmental justice advocacy group; and Sarah Jakle, the Outreach Director for Field Team 6.
* Thursday, August 27 at 8 PM - Book Discussion: How to Be An Anti-Racist - RSVP
Earlier this summer, we read Ibram X. Kendi's history of white supremacism's embeddedness in U.S. society, Stamped From the Beginning. Now we're doing a follow up discussion of Kendi's How to Be An Antiracist. This one really builds on the history laid out in the first book, so it's nice to have the historical background, but it can also be read completely on its own. It's more personal and less academic than Stamped.
Stay tuned for many more events over the next weeks and months.
Our members are planning teach-ins and action workshops on key ballot propositions like Reimagine LA (County Measure J), Schools and Communities First (Prop 15), increased state tenant protections (Prop 21), and many more of the crucial racial justice initiatives on the November ballot.
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