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Subscribe to RSSRachel Maddow reports on an offshoot of the Occupy movement dedicated to defending struggling Americans for foreclosure and eviction.
‘Occupy’ protesters and housing rights activists are planning to help families resist eviction from foreclosed homes and take control of vacant properties in some 25 U.S. cities on Tuesday, an effort aimed at focusing attention on the ongoing housing crisis and giving the movement a new focus after the dismantling of many of its encampments.
The protesters have been crafting proposals – often quietly to prevent police from learning about their intentions beforehand -- to defend families facing eviction or return others home. In Minneapolis, for example, they plan to help a Vietnam War veteran stay in his home, in New York, protesters will try to help a family get back into their house, and in Chicago, two sisters and their seven children will be moved into an abandoned single-family home, activists said.
"It’s part of a national day of action that we hope will kick off a wave of defenses and home re-occupations,” Max Berger, 26, told the Occupy Wall Street General Assembly late Thursday while requesting $6,400 in funding to buy tools for the project. "This is not just about one event; this is a huge frontier for us. We can do these kinds of actions all the time, and we should. And it doesn’t have to be just us. We got to do this one right so we can inspire people to do it theirselves.”
‘Occupy’ protesters already have been squatting in vacant houses in cities like New York, Seattle, Portland, Oakland and London, where protesters have taken over an abandoned office block bought by UBS several years ago and dubbed it the "Bank of Ideas." They also have made scattered efforts – some of them successful -- to help families facing eviction defend their homes, including in California and Minneapolis.
One of those efforts is “Occupy 477,” where protesters joined families facing eviction from a West Harlem building and restored heat and water to the building, activists said.
Housing rights groups and ‘Occupy’ encampments have long been in talks about a national day of action, with regular conference calls involving dozens of activists, said Rob Robinson of Take Back the Land, a national network of organizations focused on housing rights and securing community control over land.
"As part of the 99 percent, we feel like corporations, big banks, are what's holding us back, what’s keeping us impoverished. This is folks' way of fighting back against those institutions," Robinson said.
Banks are expected to repossess some 800,000 homes this year, down from more than 1 million last year, said RealtyTrac CEO James Saccacio. But the number of U.S. homes that received a first-time default notice during the July to September quarter increased 14 percent compared to the second quarter of the year, according to the firm.
Massachusetts AG sues five banks over foreclosures
The increase is a sign that banks are now moving more aggressively against borrowers who have fallen behind on their mortgage payments following industrywide foreclosure processing problems that emerged last fall. Those problems resulted in a sharp drop in foreclosure activity early this year.
The "ultimate message" of the anti-foreclosure protests is "bank reform," said Anthony Newby, a community organizer with Neighborhoods Organizing for Change in Minneapolis.
The focus on the housing crisis could also give some new direction to the Occupy movement, which has faced evictions from their camps across the country.
"In some ways, it's a natural progression for lots of reasons for this whole Occupy movement to get away from the plaza and actually start doing things on Main Street ... that are affecting individual people's lives in a very direct way," Newby said.
There also are some practical reasons for more scattered occupations.
Adam Carolla calls OWS protesters 'self-entitled monsters'
A group of "Occupy" protesters in Minneapolis is looking for an empty building that they can take over for their winter encampment after authorities attemped to evict them from their current headquarters three times in the last 36 hours, said Nick Espinosa, a 25-year-old unemployed social worker and protester.
“We’re really looking right now to take a vacant space that … we could use for an occupation," he said, noting they would be scouting properties later Friday. "Ideally it would be a space where we could do both (help a family keep their home and occupy) to keep the message really sharp about why we're doing this and about homelessness and people who don't have homes as a result of the foreclosure crisis.
"But, you know, at the end of the day, we do need some sort of a space here where we can meet and continue to organize and ... grow and build our community here through the winter."
At Occupy Wall Street, Berger noted that protesters had been frequently asked when they would begin engaging in politics, to which he said: "We are."
"The great thing about housing is it’s macro and it’s micro," he said. "People don’t understand a thing about proprietary trading … but they know they have a mortgage that they're behind on."
“This movement is about taking back this country for regular people and that’s exactly what we’re doing with these actions," he later added. "We’re not going to let the power of the banks keep people from having what they need."
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If you're not one of the parties trying to evict a person being assisted by protestors, then why whine? Unless you simply enjoy whinning. ( which, by the way, i do as much as the rest of you!)
Want to Protest something Corrupt , Try Protesting those Indian Casinos that Discriminate against anyone not Native Amerikan while there not Bashfully about taking any ones money they can shuffle in there doors ..I personally know several Amerikans Fired because someone claiming to be Indian wanted there Job and the Tribe or whatever they call there excuse to discriminate against someone they don't like , Being born in this country and having family ties going back generations Doesn't seem to Count as a Native Amerikan while these so called Tribes which are made up of Other ethnic groups inner married and racially entwined seem to consider themselves above the racial discrimination laws of this country , And get away with it somehow , Claiming there on Indian land ..What a Joke and disgrace to alow them this discrimination ..Want to Protest something use-full protest that .......Frank Blackstone .....out
I believe we should be like Egypt and burn cars etc. Enough of this patsy stuff. Go full on into battle against the establishment and all these people sitting in their castles better be shakin in their shoes. There are not enough cops to stop them..
Wow Ted did you see all of those incredibly stupid occupiers chained together blocking the right of way to public access who should of been gassed with CS instead of pepper spray. Those poor lazy souls blaming business and not the real culprit federal government thieves who buddy up with their rich and well financed "friends" that they admonish in public and play golf at the country club behind the scenes. Would you have rather seen your protest buddies being beaten by clubs rather then peppered sprayed for breaking the laws and resisting arrest. And really not resisting arrest since they were asked politely to move their mightier than thou attitude. Tell me why people who have worked hard their entire lives to reach a goal, the pinnacle of their success and hand it down to your fantasy-land friends? Don't they provide the most jobs and pay the most in taxes already? Uh yeah they do Ted. In the 70's during the Carter administration I worked two jobs six days a week and a third job on the weekends as well. I did whatever it took so I could pay my rent and bills because I was a responsible young man at the time, joining the Marines in 1981 and stayed as a career Marine. You see I made choices that I felt was my responsibility. I have never collected a dime from welfare ever! I have used unemployment benefits twice in my entire life and didn't wait until a week before my benefits ran out before looking for a job. All of these things that I did not take advantage of, the occupiers want more of. Why should the government pay money for an able body and healthy citizen? You don't think you have to work two jobs because you think you're entitled? I despise the I want it now generation. My 23 year old son finally got that through his head after I kicked his ass out of the house and he got a real good taste of society when you don't fend for yourself. All of that energy these occupiers waste on sitting in a circle playing bongos and smoking weed want instant goals. It doesn't work that way Ted. Get a Job Ted. Do what your twenty something ass needs to do so you can value what you earn and maybe you can feel good about yourself when you get on your feet and start becoming a positive citizen in this society. You want social this and social that. Guess what Ted it doesn't work that way and wasn't intended to work that way and by god hopefully I can do whatever I possibly can to make sure it doesn't work that way. Do yourself a favor Ted, read the United Stated Constitution and maybe you can learn how to be a real American.
i really admire these organizers and wish I could join them but I have children.
I have two views on this. I think there needs to be bank reform but we missed our chance because the govt didn't require this before they loaned the money to bail those banks out and what really really ticks me off is those people who are foreclosed on and work will be paying that huge bill the US put on us to bail out the very people that put them out of their house. It's sickening.
My other thought on this is yes, if you don't pay your loan, you shouldn't be allowed to live for free but if these hard working people are willing to pay their mortgage, then what this country should do is push for a change where the banks are forced to work their mortgage to whatever payment they can afford for a mortgage whether it be 200.00 dollars or a thousand a month. After all, there are so many homes sitting vacant yet from 2008 and with the 800,000 they plan on forcing out of their home coming up will be sitting for a very long time because banks refuse to loan money so they can be sold. What good is that? At least with bank reform, these people can stay in their homes and the bank won't be without money on them for possibly years to come all the while dragging down down our home values along with the foreclosures.
My last thought on this is after seeing 60 Minutes last week and saw three families interviewed who have children and are living in cars, there should some kind of immediate legislation where families with children cannot be evicted and should be allowed to live in their home and pay what they can on their mortgage until they can get help. It is not right that 2/3 of children in this country are homeless and 1/3 of them are homeless just in Florida alone. Something's not right. That really ate at my heart when I saw those interviews. Imagine what kind of scar will be left on children who are living homeless in cars with their family. It's not right and we need that to change.
Banks are the absolute worst absentee slum lords you can have as neighbors. Foreclosing on homeowners, even if it means breaking the law, is priority #1. Once the house is in their hands it falls into a state of disrepair very quickly. I have had issues with two houses they've owned. I spent a day tracking down the bank that owned a house that was broken into with glass strewn around the yard. It took over 3 weeks for them to do anything. The next bank owned home became a nice hideout for meth addicted squatters that cased the neighborhood from the comfort of a foreclosed home and victimized the neighbors. When it's the banks wanting the police to help them remove a homeowner they're right there. If you're victimized by criminals because of the negligence of a bank it's a "civil matter." Banks are bribing our government and gouging taxpayers thanks to the incompetents in Washington and the Federal Reserve. Screwing voters for the sake of your financial backers is now considered capitalism. I guess in the USA capitalism and corruption have become interchangeable.
Just one question. Where's MY house? Despite temptations to buy a house while I was a student, I decided to wait until I graduated and had a steady job. Even now, I am extra cautious and saving for 20% down rather than opting for the FHA. My mother's house was reposessed when I was just 14, so I am extremely cautious with my finances.
These protesters are demonizing banks that are simply doing what they are entitled to. The borrowers got into a mortgage whose terms they could not follow. Banks need to recover their lost funds. End of story? Nope. Borrowers have the perception that they are somehow free from the consequences of not paying off debt. Rather than protest the repossession of my mother's house and the high revolving balance on my credit cards (student expenses), I take responsibility for my financial hardships. I am working extra hard to pay it off and to save for small condo I can afford so I can build some equity for a change.
I say to everybody facing debt: YOU made the decision to get into an agreement without reading the terms, accessing the affordability, choosing a fixed APR, associating with a risky HOA, or whatever your case. What makes you think you being absolved is fair to me? I am paying off my $50K+ student debt. Why should YOUR loans be forgiven? I have nothing to speak for the 15 years my family paid a mortgage. Why should YOU receive a house for whining? I pay $100+ in interest per month saying to myself, 'I chose to charge it.' Why do you say, 'Banks are evil for charging so much interest' when YOU agreed to their terms by applying? There are consequences for any big decision such as these. Think before you sign or charge. But in case you do get rewarded for acting less than responsibly, please tell me. Where's MY house?
If they spent half the time working as they do stirring up trouble, they could afford to stay in their houses. I paid for MY house by working 30 years for it. Now I am supposed to help pay and feel sorry for my neighbor that moved in the same year as me, but refinanced it 10 times to pay for all his toys and his second lake place home, and is now losing it? I had 2 kids because that was all I could afford. But now I am supposed to pay for Ms. Welfare and her home for her 7 kids? I don't think so Mr. Obama. It is called responsibility - THAT is the change I will believe in.
lancemonotone- y0u are absolutely right -thank you for your post!!!
The OWS'ers vow to prevent the banking industry from preventing people from having what they need........through civil disobedience, riots, tresspassing, burglary. Why? Life's problems are the bank's fault.
These losers support the cause(s) of being irresponsible, not taking ownership for one's life decisions, entitlementmindedness, and laziness. Enough with the shenanigans! Channel this same energy productively and things will get better!
Occupy or stand out in front But target and protest and campaign against those places that Discriminate and steal from people that work and people that are un employed or lost there homes and are homeless Or young people with no hope ...The ones that Profit from others grief and loss..Politicians,Real Estate Agents,War Profiteers,And those Indian Casinos everyone thinks are so Fun to loose there money in ....Those are just a few ...there are many That Profit from other peoples looses and Hardships ..There usually easy to spot there looking out there office windows or writing there comments degrading anyone speaking against there greed and Corrupt way of doing there business
These ocuppiers to me are no better than the crooks we have in our JAILS.
I cant believe I spent /// wasted my time reading this crap from both sides