Posted on

To save and improve NYCHA, please come to our Town Hall on Wed. night at PS 33 at 6 pm

Town Hall to Fully-Fund NYCHA

The Problem : NYCHA Needs $$$

The Solution : The People’s Budget

Date : Wed., 18 Sept 2019
Time : 6 – 8:30 pm
Place : PS 33, 281 9th Ave., Manhattan (btwn 26th. and 27th Streets)
RSVP : Town Hall to Fully-Fund NYCHA [Facebook]

Please review the draft People’s Budget, because we will be reviewing this at the Town Hall.

Join us for a conversation on the problem and solution facing NYCHA.

Please don’t forget to R.S.V.P.

Date : Wed., 18 Sept 2019
Time : 6 – 8:30 pm
Place : PS 33, 281 9th Ave., Manhattan (btwn 26th. and 27th Streets)
RSVP : Town Hall to Fully-Fund NYCHA [Facebook]

Posted on

Fulton Houses tenants elect independent officers, announce next meeting, plan next action

Fight For NYCHA co-hosts an important meeting to offer autonomy and structure to Fulton Houses residents.

At an action-planning meeting held on Saturday, 11 May, tenants of Fulton Houses made several agreements that would serve as a foundation for advocacy work to save public housing in Chelsea from being demolished and from being put into the hands of private landlords.

  • Since NYCHA is comprised of 90% Black and Latinx families, this means that the politicians, who are supporting each of the demolition of buildings at Fulton Houses and the putting of public housing into the hands of private developers, are making a political calculation that they can exploit the very visible minorities, who are public housing tenants.
  • Politicians supporting the plans announced by Mayor Bill de Blasio (D-New York City) to demolish public housing apartment buildings and to put public housing into the hands of private landlords, are keeping quiet about the racial implications of their actions or support.
  • We must stand united in saying that what Mayor de Blasio and his supporters are doing is wrong.
  • Unless elected officials join us in this fight, we must be prepared to challenge those elected officials.
  • The processes we undertake together must have integrity, and this means that Fulton Houses tenants must agree. This also means that we cannot allow anybody to disrupt or distract or bring outside politics into the fight to save Fulton Houses or NYCHA. Fulton Houses tenants agreed that if anybody tried to derail our agenda, they would support asking that person to leave.
  • It was important to make clear that for any new, independent tenants’ associations elections that may take place for the Fulton Houses, only Fulton Houses tenants may vote.
  • Any groups wishing to show up to our events must :
    • oppose each of the demolition of apartment buildings and the RAD conversion of Fulton Houses ;
    • call-out Mayor de Blasio and his supporters ; and
    • oppose the racism of RAD and the divestment of public housing.

Civil rights attorney Norman Siegel spoke to Fulton Houses tenants about the importance of “keeping public housing public.”

Mary, left, and Jackie were elected as president and vice-president of an independent tenants association.

Amelia was elected as secretary of an independent tenants association of Fulton Houses.

Next steps

Fight For NYCHA will hold a follow-up meeting on Saturday, 18 May, at 3 pm at the same location. Tenants and activists have agreed on the first action, the plans for which will be finalised on the date of our next meeting.

Posted on

Fulton Houses tenants hold protest to stop demolition, RAD conversion

We Must Save NYCHA !

Fulton Houses Tenant President Miguel Acevedo couldn’t keep his 37 shift stories straight about the demolition and RAD conversion of Fulton Houses

Fulton Housing tenants are receiving scary letters from elected officials at the same time NYCHA is offering them buy-outs to leave their apartments.

A group of corporate Democrats, ranging from U.S. Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY 10), Borough President Gale Brewer (D-Manhattan), New York City Council Speaker Corey Johnson (D-Chelsea), New York State Sen. Brad Hoylman (D-Chelsea), and New York Assemblymember Richard Gottfried (D-Chelsea), co-signed a letter to New York City Housing Authority Interim Chair and CEO Kathryn Garcia, asking that NYCHA consult with Fulton Houses tenants about plans announced by Mayor Bill de Blasio (D-New York City) to demolish two apartment buildings and to put up majority market-rate luxury apartment buildings on the site of Fulton Houses.

Activists have warned Fulton Houses tenants that the consultation is a trap, since none of the public officials have neither publicly opposed the demolition of public housing buildings, nor publicly opposed the RAD conversion of public housing. Under RAD, public housing is put into the hands of private landlords, thereby turning public housing into a for-profit business. A consultation without opposition to the Mayor de Blasio’s plan would count toward the approval of Mayor de Blasio’s plan.

Following the protest, Fulton Houses Tenant President Miguel Acevedo was confronted about his refusal to forcefully oppose the demolition and RAD conversion of Fulton Houses. He changed his story at least 37 different times, according to a video of one part of the exchange.

Posted on

Fulton Houses rally to stop demolition and RAD conversion

NYCHA Residents Fight Eviction Plan

Norman Siegel, famous civil rights attorney, counseled public housing tenants on their rights

Public housing tenants received valuable legal advice about strategy from Norman Siegel, a civil rights attorney and the former Executive Director of the New York Civil Liberties Union.

Video is courtesy of Mike McCabe of OccupyRadio.net on YouTube.

Posted on

Press Conference to stop RAD conversion of Fulton Houses

#A28 Fight For NYCHA Press Conference

Join us for a press conference to speak out against the private landlord take-over of the Fulton Houses.

DATE : Sunday, April 28, 2019

TIME : 1:30 pm

PLACE : Fulton Houses, 119 9th Ave, Manhattan

RSVP : Press Conference against RAD Conversion of NYCHA [Facebook]

If you received a call from us, here is the WNYC report we promised to make available to you. Please listen carefully :

NYCHA Hires Private ‘Slumlord’ to Run Public Housing

RAD is a bad deal for NYCHA tenants

City-wide, Mayor Bill de Blasio (D-New York City) has announced plans to convert 62,000 NYCHA apartments, allowing private landlords to control public housing. But the RAD program he wants to use can increase the rent, lead to tenant harassment and exploitation, the possibility of rescreeing, and, possibly, evictions.

In particular, we question how Mayor de Blasio can be disposing real property in the Fulton Houses when Borough President Gale Brewer (D-Manhattan) has sued to stop the lease/sale/development at the Holmes Towers in the Upper East Side. How can Mayor de Blasio be doing this in Chelsea when there is a pending Court case about the lease/sale/development of NYCHA ?

If NYCHA tenants are evicted, or lose their lease due to rescreenings, they will have no place to go. Housing Court evictions effectively bar tenants from renting from private sector landlords. Since New York City severely lacks low-cost housing, it is conceivable that NYCHA tenants may face homelessness due to the RAD conversion of public housing.

RSVP : Press Conference against RAD Conversion of NYCHA [Facebook]

Fight For NYCHA, Community Control of Land Use New York, and Not One More Block are co-sponsoring this press conference.