Eviction Circus: If you take away someone’s home, give them the money to rent a new place
It doesn’t matter whether it is a city or a predatory developer, folks are getting evicted all around us, all around the country. This week in Hot Springs, folks are being forced to move from their homes (the Polo Run Apartments) because the city closed part of their complex due to code violations on the part of the owner. 11 people are effected, surely not so many in the Grand Scheme of Things? Yet multiply that by thousands, and you can get some idea of the situation, largely unseen and rarely reported on.
According to the city, the apartment complex has been written up for having leaky roofs, plumbing problems and bedbugs, among other problems.
These 11 individuals, evidently living in what can best be described as a hovel, didn’t do so out of choice – chances are, they simply couldn’t afford to move anywhere else.
Well, that never really seems to play much of a part in the decision to force folks out of their homes, as awful as they may be. Now, these folks who couldn’t afford to move anywhere else will be forced out into the cold – or rather the heat of summer – while they struggle to find a place to live.
Where will they end up? Do the folks involved in this decision even care?
Living with relatives or friends, sleeping on couches, or will they be forced to enter the hellish world of those who pay rent by the week, in ratty trailers or dilapidated former motels?
These folks, who live in the grip of poverty, rarely show up at campaign rallies for politicians, and indeed, when their situation is discussed at all, politicians can usually be counted on to brag about how unsightly trailer parks or apartments have been razed, and something far more beautiful – with far more beautiful people living there – has replaced it.
Surely there should be something in place, perhaps that the owner and city be required to grant such folks the equivalent of the first month’s rent and security deposit on a new place to live? These are residents of your city, after all, and voters, to boot. A sense of humanity needs to work alongside our sense of aesthetic values. Hell, it should be far more important, in the long run.
In the Grand Scheme of Things.
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Today’s Soundtrack
Listening to “The Best of the Village People” today.
Oh, yeah . . .
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Now on YouTube – Jed Clampit
“Jed Clampit: The Power of Song.” featuring music from Fayetteville singer/songwriter Jed Clampit. Enjoy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBgB7PiiVw8
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Quote of the Day
For me, writing time has always been precious, something I wait for and am eager for and make the best use of. That’s probably why I get up so early and have writing time in the quiet dawn hours, when no one needs me. – Barbara Kingsolver
rsdrake@cox.net
