Sunday August 4, 2013; morning
426 Capitol Avenue, San Francisco, CA
Three politically active people were arrested this morning at a squatted home in the Ocean View district of San Francisco at 426 Capitol Avenue. The house had been squatted for three months as a home for activists and people in need of housing.
This raid and arrest happens during the so called Eviction Free Summer, a campaign of actions to keep people in their homes in response to the foreclosure crisis. The foreclosure crisis is being perpetuated by some of the biggest banks in the United States, who have been accused of predatory lending practices and other illegal actions against homeowners. Since 2007, the foreclosure crisis has displaced at least 10 million people from more than four million homes across the country.
Last week, 250 people rallied outside of Sergio Ceballos’ home in Southern Minneapolis which happens to be in a newly proclaimed “Eviction Free Zone.” The “Eviction Free Zone” was declared by community members who have pledges to stand up for their neighbors against unjust evictions.
The rally and concert that happened in the Ceballos’ family’s front yard celebrated the successful defense of the home the Wednesday before, where community supporters fended off 30 sheriff’s deputies sent by JPMorgan Chase to evict the family from their home. The action are being organized in part by a group calling itself Occupy Homes MN.
This Saturday, the third action of the Eviction Free Summer Campaign in San Francisco is set to defend Jeremy, a disabled senior living with AIDS. Jeremy has lived in the Castro neighborhood of San Francisco for over 4 decades. The new property owners of his residence, a company of three real estate speculators based out of Union City, have served him with an eviction notice using the Ellis Act.
The Ellis Act is a California law that allows landlords to evade municipal rent control provisions. On August 10th, people will be meeting at the San Francisco Tenants Union at 558 Capp Street in San Francisco and driving to the homes of the real estate speculators and new property owners. More on Jeremy’s story can be found at here.
[Published on Indybay.org, Monday Aug. 5th, 2013.]
