Transition Phase
The past year has been filled with lots of changes for Don’t Evict PDX and we’ve recently done some collective reflection on what we want this volunteer tenant collective to look like going forward and where we want to put our energy. Here is a statement about our current plans, we will share more soon!
Rose City Radical Issue 2
We were featured in the latest issue of Rose City Radical - a bimonthly, locally-based, cooperatively operated newspaper by and for working class Portlanders.
Eviction Representation for All
DEPDX had been working with other Portland-based community groups to create a ‘right to council’ initiative for Multnomah County that we hope to pass as a ballot measure in 2022. The measure would guarantee free legal representation for all tenants in eviction court.
#EvictorReportPDX
Who is filing evictions (FEDs) in Multnomah county? Who is representing evictors in court? Who are the worst repeat offenders? These are all questions we had and info we wish was consolidated, so we are starting a weekly #EvictorReportPDX. …
Press Release: Anti-Eviction Picket
On Tuesday, June 15th tenants will gather at the county court in downtown Portland to impede business as usual at the Landlord/Tenant court.
Join us for an Anti-Eviction Picket
Tenants will gather on the steps of the Multnomah County Courthouse to picket the ongoing evictions and violence we face. Since the beginning of the moratorium, over 2000 eviction cases have been filed at this courthouse alone, and tenants are being forced out of their homes daily.
Study Group Recap - April
Our discussion focused on 1) how passing RTC measures benefit tenants, and 2) how to organize for RTC in our local area. One participant noted that eviction cases often start because tenants are facing other traumatic experiences in their lives that are compounded by a landlord threatening to take away their home. . .
What We Lost: 1287 Rescinded
On January 14th Multnomah County Commissioners rescinded the county-wide Eviction Moratorium (SO 1287).
SO 1287 was specifically created because the statewide moratorium of 2020 (HB 4213) did not provide enough protections for Portland’s high density of low income renters.
Eviction Court Disruption Recap
On Jan 13, 2021, activists with Don’t Evict PDX disrupted the Landlord/Tenant court proceedings in Multnomah County. Our primary tactic was to overwhelm the court’s dial-in system with our calls for justice.
HOW TO SURVIVE THE MORATORIUM: PT 1
Can I Get Evicted During The “Eviction Moratorium”? Yes. But not for non-payment. However, landlords are now looking for other violations, many of which would not have merited any of their attention before the “moratorium”. Here are some examples of lease violations we have seen used as justification for eviction by landlords and property managers in court since the “moratorium” began.
LC 18 Doesn’t Do Enough to Protect Tenants
LC0018 allocates $150 million dollars for a Landlord Compensation Fund. It will pay out 80% of unpaid rent from April 1, 2020 to date of the application. Landlords are required to forgive the other 20%. The bill DOES NOT extend the moratorium that is now in place. It has significant changes that reduce protections.
The “moratoriums”: a recap
With the eviction defense at Red House going strong we thought it a good time to just recap what the “eviction moratoriums” do and how they work.