Last night the new director of Miami Dade Housing Agency, Kris Warren, threatened to crush a community effort to locate over 600 families the county admitted to loosing from their housing rolls. In an email sent to the Miami Workers Center on Wednesday February 7, Warren stated "You must remove your signs and personal items today. We will be erecting a fence around the property."
Former residents of Scott Homes, LIFFT, and the Miami Workers Center erected the "Find Our People" Name Wall in January. Since then hundreds of former residents have gathered at the site, signing their names on the wall. The Justice for Scotts campaign headquarters attracted over 350 families in less than a month and provided the names of over 200 "lost" Scott families to the housing agency.
"We have been highly effective at finding displaced and lost families with some plywood, paint, and volunteers. This is MDHA's job. They displaced this community, lost track of the people, and now are shutting us down when we do their job for them. They are trying to hide the problem all over again," said Tony Romano, organizing director of the Miami Workers Center.
The attack is seen by many as politically motivated. During Super Bowl week, local groups capitalized on the national and international media frenzy of the Super Bowl to highlight Miami's housing crisis and poverty. Articles highlighting the dire circumstances in Miami appeared in the Los Angeles Times, the UK Guardian, national radio and many local news outlets.
The community will respond to this threat today at 11 AM at the last remaining Scott Home, the corner of 72nd St and 22nd Ave NW. There will also be an update session at the site this evening at 5:30 PM.
To read the UK Guardian article go here.
To read the LA Times article go here.
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