Staying Power:

An Anti-Eviction Toolkit

By

Sarah Zamler & Nelson De Jesus Ubri





Evictions Are Detrimental to Public Health


Paris

On September 2, 2020, CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield signed a declaration determining that the eviction of tenants could be detrimental to public health control measures to slow the spread of SARS-Cov-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

Since the start of the pandemic, Local, State, and Federal Governments have put temporary moratoriums on evictions. Presently, lawmakers and activists are trying to extend these temporary protections.


Our project aims to understand and build on this work to help Repair Exploitative Systems of Eviction


Research

To better understand the conditions of eviction in America we conducted two tracks of research. The first identifies locations of overlapping vulnerability, factoring in the Social Vulnerability Index, COVID rate, and Eviction Filing Rate of counties across the US. The second track looks into eviction processes and the disparities from state to state.


Locating Vulnerability
Identifying sites of overlapping risks
Understanding the Eviction Process
Examining the process and how is varies across America

Leverage Points for Change

Building on our research, we've developed a set of interconnecting proposals to address the eviction system at multiple leverage points.

Existing Network & Community Health Workers
Activating existing networks with Community Health Workers to prevent evictions before they start. Workers could provide at-home assistance, accessing people in need where they need it.
Community Health Worker Hub
Leveraging vacant spaces within the communities most in need to create new spaces for restorative resolution.
Campaign Strategy
Increasing access to information to assist tenants that are confronted with evictions.
Eviction Memory
Raise awareness of the risks of eviction by collecting the memories of families that have been affected and removed from their homes.

Additional Resources

Below are links that lead to a speadsheet with resources from different governmental agencies and social services organizations, the bibliography/references used for research and design development as well as a youtube video that describes the eviction process.


If you know of additional resources available to tenants and the public, please feel free to email us to add to database by clicking the envelope icon below.