It’s Action Time:House Keys Not Handcuffs

San Francisco California,

On January 19th 2010 organizations based across the western region converged on San Francisco by bus, plane, and van. The trek for most was treacherous because of the storm that walloped the West Coast on its way east. WRAP member “Sisters of the Road” found themselves stuck for hours near the California/Oregon border as the snow storm forced road closures. All in all everyone arrived safely and in great spirits, change was definitely in the air.

The size of the rally and march demanded one final logistics meeting. It was decided that we would host a press conference, final logistics meeting, and pre-rally party to ensure that all of our bases were covered. Over 100 hundred volunteers and supporters met at El Balazo ["The Bullet" in English]to prepare for the rally and march.

The venue created the perfect environment for the evening that was plan to kick off this historic event. The walls were adorned with images and art illustrating heroes of revolutionary transformation.

The crowd mulled anxiously waiting for the press conference to begin.

boona cheema from Berkley Oakland Support Services, BOSS for short, kicked off the press conference.

boona was followed by Paul Boden, WRAP Director, who layed out the rally/march purpose and demands in a way that only Paul can.

Other press conference speakers included representatives from Sisters of the Road, [Portland, Oregon] BOSS, [Berkley & Oakland, CA] Los Angeles Community Action Network, [LA CAN] and many others.

The crowd was captivated by passionate messages of struggle, liberation, and the willingness to confront those responsible for abandoning “Main Street” while simultaneously bailing out “Wall Street.”

After the conclusion of the press conference the work of finalizing logistics and last minute planning began. WRAP coordinating committee members facilitated small work group meetings that covered everything from public-safety and outreach, to legal considerations and feeding lunch to more than a thousand people.

And after ALL the planning was done people danced to the sounds of live Cuban music–the perfect ending to a very long day.

Photos taken by N. Dahmann

Getting Ready for Action in San Francisco

Lets get ready to rumble! Join LA CAN and our West Coast allies as we converge on the Federal Building in San Francisco, CA. Our demand, making housing and not the criminalization of poverty the national priority.

To get involved contact LA CAN at (213) 228-0024 and ask for Pete White, or simply go to wraphome.org to get the latest action updates.

Agonize or organize in 2010 that is the question.

Homes Not Handcuffs: Heading to San Francisco to Fight for HOUSING

LA CAN members tell viewers why they are going to San Francisco on January 19, 2010 to demand housing for all. They will be joined by other west coast organizations who together form the Western Regional Advocacy Project. Stay tuned because there will be weekly updates as the action approaches.

International Human Rights Day

–December 10, 2009

Organizations from across Los Angeles descended upon City Hall demanding that policy makers respect their human right to adequate housing.

In a gathering that was truly reflective of multi-cultural L.A. residents took to the streets on the International Day of Human Rights. Members from KIWA, SAN, LA CAN, Union de Vecinos, Comunidad Presente, CES, Esperanza Housing, SAJE, Coalition LA, and Homeless Healthcare took to the street to highlight domestic human rights violations.

The action comes on the heels of a recent United Nations mission investigating housing conditions in the United States. While in Los Angeles Raquel Rolnik, United Nations Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing, stated that she indeed saw human rights violations in our city. The United Nations will release findings in March 2010 in their official report. Stay tuned because there will be many more activities in the months before the release.

Hot Off the Press: Community Connection #34

Hot off the press with a new look and format. If you are looking for real news, told from a grassroots vantage, you have found just what you have been searching for. Our readership continues to grow and we hope that you join the family.

Happy Holidays.

community connect 34 final layout

Give to LA CAN’s Year-End Appeal!

Please view the attached letter and form for more information about donating to LA CAN as we end 2009. There is also a unique opportunity for donors of color to DOUBLE their donation – whatever you give us, the 21st Century Foundation will match!! 2009 Holiday Appeal Letter

UN Special Rapporteur Visit: A Story in Pictures

Davin Corona, Comunidad Presente, addresses the attendees.

Overflow crowd at the California Endowment.

Union de Vecinos perform a skit demand human rights and housing

Susie Shannon, Los Angeles Coalition to End Hunger and Homeless, presents a film that captures homeless realities.

Raquel Rolnik, UN Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing, addresses crowd at the California Endowment

Monic Uriate, Esperanza Housing, addresses the UN Rapporteur.

Joe Thomas, LA CAN, plays LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa in a skit that unveils the truth about downtown gentrification.

KIWA performers tell the story the Korea Town gentrification using slides, drums, and narrative.

CES performs a skit that details their work to ensure adequate housing for all.

Beatriz Solis, Ph.D., Director, Healthy Communities (South Region) addresses overflow crowd at the United Nations event.

UN Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing Visits Los Angeles

Amid a global economic recession precipitated by the U.S. sub-prime lending crisis, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Adequate Housing recently conducted the office’s first official mission in the U.S. to investigate the foreclosure crisis, growing homelessness, and concerns around low-income housing with respect to public housing and rental assistance.

Raquel Rolnik, The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing, was recently given a very thorough tour of Los Angeles and outlying areas. The two-day affair included 1) a housing briefing at the newly opened Legal Aid Foundation Office on South Broadway Blvd which covered issues facing public housing residents, foreclosures, slum housing, homelessness and criminalization; 2) a bus tour that made it possible for the rapporteur to fully witness and absorb the realities faced by marginally housed and homeless residents of Los Angeles; and, 3) a town hall meeting designed to utilize creative story-telling methods alongside personal testimony to further breathe life into the millions of untold stories of housing hardships.

Special Rapporteur Raquel Rolnik will present the findings of her mission to the UN General Assembly in a public report on the human right to housing in the U.S.  She also released a press statement [please read earlier post] that in part had this to say about the United States housing crisis:

“The number of homeless continues to rise with increasing numbers of working families and individuals finding themselves on the streets,” highlighted the UN expert after visiting Washington DC , New York , Chicago , New Orleans , Los Angeles , Pacoima and the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. “The economic crisis has exacerbated this situation.”

While LA CAN was selected nationally to serve as the City Chair to host this historic visit nothing could have been accomplished without the work of the following organizations:

•     Beyond Shelter, Inc.

•     Coalition for Economic Survival

•     Coalition LA

•     Comunidad Presente

•     Esperanza Community Housing

•     Housing Long Beach

•     Indigenous Support Black Mesa AZ communities

•     Korean Immigrant Worker Alliance (KIWA)

•     LA Neighborhood Housing Services

•     Lamp Community

•     Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA)

•     Los Angeles Coalition to End Hunger & Homelessness

•     Los Angeles Community Action Network (LA CAN)

Los Angeles Neighborhood Housing Services

•     Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County

•     People Organized for Westside Renewal (POWER)

•     Skid Row Housing Trust

•     South Asian Network

•     St. John’s Well Child and Family Center

•     Union de Vecinos

http://bit.ly/12sNxX Check out photos of the briefing held at Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles

Also, financial support for the LA planning committee and visit was provided by The California Endowment and Liberty Hill Foundation. Without this support it would have been impossible to bring great work and great organizations together.

UN Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing Leaves the US, but not without criticism.

UNITED NATIONS Press Release

“Millions lack access to affordable and adequate housing in the U.S.”

WASHINGTON D.C. (8 November 2009) – The UN Special Rapporteur on adequate housing, Raquel Rolnik, warned at the end of her official visit to the United States of America that, “Millions of people in the U.S. are spending high percentages of their income to make their monthly rent and mortgage payment, face foreclosure or eviction, and live in overcrowded and substandard conditions.”

“The number of homeless continues to rise with increasing numbers of working families and individuals finding themselves on the streets,” highlighted the UN expert after visiting Washington DC , New York , Chicago , New Orleans , Los Angeles , Pacoima and the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. “The economic crisis has exacerbated this situation.”

The U.S. has a longstanding and established history of commitment to decent, safe, and affordable housing, dating back to the National Housing Act of 1934, though certain groups such as minorities and Native Americans have not benefitted on an equal basis. Federal funding for low income housing has been cut over the past decades leading to decreased stock and quality of subsidized housing.

During this time, significant efforts have been taken to reshape the face of subsidized rental and public housing in the U.S., often demolishing public housing and promoting mixed income communities. “Though a good goal, implementation of mixed income developments in many cases leads to displacement, discriminatory practices and a reduction of the stock of affordable and adequate housing for low-income households,” stressed Ms. Rolnik.

Ms. Rolnik is pleased to note that the new Administration is thinking critically and broadly to confront and solve the affordable housing crisis in the country, reversing decades of budget cuts and proposing large additional budgetary resources to housing. A wider range of permanent options for affordable housing, particularly for the most vulnerable, is required. In designing and implementing these options, affected residents and community members should be partners in the planning and decision making process, as required by international human rights norms.

During her 18 day fact-finding mission, the UN expert met with senior Government officials at the local, state, and federal level, at the Department of State and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), among others. She held public town hall meetings in each city visited, and engaged in extensive discussions with many representatives from a strong network of non governmental organizations, hundreds of residents, and people experiencing homelessness. ‘Housing is a human right,’ was the rallying cry heard throughout these public meetings.

The Special Rapporteur is grateful to the government of the United States for inviting her to undertake this visit and appreciates the Administration’s openness and support, and welcomes its commitment to reform policies.

Raquel Rolnik (Brazil) was appointed as Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living, and on the right to non-discrimination in this context by the United Nations Human Rights Council, in May 2008. As Special Rapporteur, she is independent from any government or organization and serves in her individual capacity. An architect and urban planner, Rolnik has extensive experience in the area of the right to housing and urban policies.

Join Us in January in our Demand for Homes, Not Jails!

On January 19 and 20, 2010, LA CAN members and friends will be traveling to San Francisco to join with allies throughout the West Coast in calling for housing justice!!

Check out the flyer below and watch the blog for more updates.  We hope you will join us!  We will be asking for a small donation per person, but no one will be excluded due to lack of funds.

Jan 20 Flyer WRAP-HUD Action