The ANSWER Coalition is endorsing and urging everyone to join and share this action….
All out to demand Cancel the Rents! Housing for all!
SAN FRANCISCO:
1875 Marin St., on the street, 10:30 AM for a press conference.
EAST BAY:
West Oakland, 900 Market parking lot, 9:30 AM
Join us in your car to demand the cancellation of rents and mortgages statewide, immediate housing for all, and full aid and rights for the undocumented! Let’s make some noise, plaster “Cancel the Rents” and “CancelTheRents.org” on our cars and windows, and make our voices heard! It’s time to send the signal that the working class is fighting back!
Our Demands:
– Cancel all rents and mortgages for homeowners, small landlords, and small businesses, for the duration of the pandemic – no debt accumulation!
– No shutoffs of any utilities.
– Eminent domain over vacant buildings, homes, hotels, to house the homeless or people in precarious housing, such as victims of domestic violence.
– Give full access to housing, income-assistance to all undocumented and informal workers.
– Housing must be a human right, regardless of employment or citizenship status.
Every working-class person has been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. Millions of people have lost their jobs or seen their paychecks cut. In April, a third of tenants did not pay rent. Many will also make the same decision on May 1st between paying rent or saving that money for food, medical needs, and other necessities. What sounds like an impossible demand – rent and mortgage cancellation – must become a reality because the COVID-19 crisis shows no sign of abating.
The government measures taken so far do not protect tenants for the long term. There is a “moratorium on evictions,” but what will happen when the COVID-19 crisis starts to fade out and we are months late on our rents? There is nothing protecting us from being evicted then. The one time $1200 emergency relief for working class and poor Americans is not enough – and millions of undocumented workers won’t receive any aid at all.
As the capitalist crisis worsens, millions are in danger of being displaced out of their homes. Even after the pandemic eases, workers will be forced to pay thousands of dollars in debt to their landlords making their already unstable housing situation even more precarious. Rents and mortgages must be canceled until the end of the crises with no debt accumulation!
The homeless population in San Francisco has risen by 30% in the past two years, and across the Bay in Oakland, the homeless population has nearly doubled. How can individuals shelter in place without adequate shelter provided by the state? Thousands of hotels, empty buildings, and overpriced units sit vacant while people sleep on the streets without protection. We demand that cities in the Bay Area use the power of eminent domain to immediately house all our neighbors, guided by their input and priorities.
Fill out this form to let us know you’re joining or to sign on with your organization!
CAR RALLY SCHEDULE AND ROUTE:
11 AM:
Cruise through the city’s neighborhoods!
This is a COVID19-safe, car-only rally. We will stay inside our vehicles to protect ourselves and the public. We will ride through the Bayview, Mission, Tenderloin, Chinatown, and more with signs to make our demands heard.
If you can’t make it in person, join our National Day of Action by participating in digital actions.
Sign the California Cancel the Rents petition at CancelTheRents.org
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Join Fossil Free California for a webinar with Dr. Ashley McClure of Climate Health Now. She’ll talk about how we can emerge from the current global pandemic with policies that address climate justice. Dr. McClure is a practicing MD who can provide a perspective from the frontlines of the COVID-19 crisis.
We’re looking forward to connecting with you on Zoom — we hope you’ll join us for our next regular Sunday meeting. We’ll share updates on key campaigns — yes, they are still going forward — and open the space for discussion. We want to hear from you!