Providence rally against evictions

PROVIDENCE, R.I.--Over 80 people rallied in the rain outside a apartment building here December 10 in a show of solidarity with three families facing eviction.

Bank of America has foreclosed on the building and sent notices to all residents to vacate the premises. But the animated crowd sent a different message--they chanted, "We shall not move," and "Bail out the people, not the banks."

Pedro Rodriguez, who lives in the building with his mother and four children, said it would be very hard on the family to move. And why should they move? They have paid their rent on time and have been excellent tenants. The rally was our way of saying, enough is enough.

Over the past two decades, Providence has seen major areas of the city go through gentrification, creating a shortage of housing for low-income and working-class families. On the one hand, there are many boarded-up and foreclosed homes, and on the other, there are more than 6,000 homeless people, 1,600 of which are children.

The collapse of the housing market, with its resulting explosion of foreclosures (Rhode Island has the sixth highest rate of foreclosures in the nation), has turned that shortage into a crisis--with empty homes dominating the landscape in some Providence neighborhoods.

Organizations that participated included the Industrial Workers of the World, Direct Action for Rights and Equality, the Olneyville Neighborhood Association (ONA), Jobs with Justice and the International Socialist Organization. We all vowed to come back and block evictions, again and again if necessary.