Ok first off, I need to share that Tracy wrote an incredible, inspiring, ANGERING piece in The New Republic on the removal of the homeless encampment in Echo Park right after the pandemic (since they were allowed to set up there during the pandemic, but not after when the city wanted a 'nice' park). Please read here: https://newrepublic.com/article/166383/los-angeles-echo-park-homeless-industrial-complex
Secondarily, this piece has me thinking a lot about Altadena, where traditionally marginalized communities were able to build wealth through their homes that are now burned down, and how those same people will now have to move elsewhere (with hiked rents), and may never be able to have that same wealth again. Meanwhile, that area will certainly become 'gentrified' with the people who can afford to rebuild, much like the Pacific Palisades. All to say that owning property in this country is an extreme privilege, storied with racism and access to capital, and many of us do not have that luxury.
Maybe this is a tangent but Tracy’s mention of the GI bill and Black restoration got me thinking. I am a person whose college tuition was in part funded by my dad’s GI bill. Ironically since a it’s inception post WWII the program has been gutted and has a number of new stipulations, mostly why I can’t say it paid for my full tuition because it certainly did not. But circling back; by design, the GI bill program is created to have people keep coming back to the military. 57% of people who join the military are the children of veterans. It’s not about creating financial freedom, but rather reliance on the machine that created poverty to begin with. From my own experience I can see that my parents had no other options for providing education for their children based on income and financial growth alone. Meanwhile my dad served for 24 years, and his retirement checks don’t even pay my parents mortgage. The systems of “wealth” we’ve created only benefit those who already have wealth, and keep the middle class in an endless cycle to achieve it.
I think that you and Tracy could've gone on for hours more and I would've kept reading the transcript. I think one thing I'd love to hear her perspective on is how disasters that spiral out of control via climate change will make renters out of way more home owners and that it makes more sense of home owners to empower renters now before they're stuck on the chopping block with no ledge rather than after.
"And so sure, like, the abolition of rent names a horizon that neither of us will probably live to see. But I think it inspires us to think really clearly about what we have to work with right now and also it inspires us to think about how fucking pathetic and different our world is from the world that we want."
--'Abolish Rent' has been recommended to me now by multiple people I trust (I need to get on reading it).
I agree that having a place to live is a human right. I agree that the housing market in the US is an absolute disaster of capitalist exploitation, misplaced societal values and priorities, and just complete lack of empathy by the country as a whole.
Public, tax-funded housing should be available to all who need it, but it should only be one option of several. Having lived in a public high rise under a totalitarian regime, and having seen them in the US, it's not an ideal solution. These places are crowded, uncomfortable, unsafe, and usually in disrepair. Someone needs to build the buildings and maintain them and the government will not do the best job of all possible alternatives. Again, it should be there as a safety net, but not as the only way.
Also, completely lost me at "Zionist entity". Half of Jewish population was exterminated in the holocaust and much of the other half was displaced - from Europe and from Middle Eastern countries. A country for Jews was an absolute necessity. You can criticize Israeli government and policies and the crimes they've committed and I'll agree a lot of the time, but you can't say it has no right to exist at all, then you're just picking which people it's OK to displace.
Ok first off, I need to share that Tracy wrote an incredible, inspiring, ANGERING piece in The New Republic on the removal of the homeless encampment in Echo Park right after the pandemic (since they were allowed to set up there during the pandemic, but not after when the city wanted a 'nice' park). Please read here: https://newrepublic.com/article/166383/los-angeles-echo-park-homeless-industrial-complex
Secondarily, this piece has me thinking a lot about Altadena, where traditionally marginalized communities were able to build wealth through their homes that are now burned down, and how those same people will now have to move elsewhere (with hiked rents), and may never be able to have that same wealth again. Meanwhile, that area will certainly become 'gentrified' with the people who can afford to rebuild, much like the Pacific Palisades. All to say that owning property in this country is an extreme privilege, storied with racism and access to capital, and many of us do not have that luxury.
Maybe this is a tangent but Tracy’s mention of the GI bill and Black restoration got me thinking. I am a person whose college tuition was in part funded by my dad’s GI bill. Ironically since a it’s inception post WWII the program has been gutted and has a number of new stipulations, mostly why I can’t say it paid for my full tuition because it certainly did not. But circling back; by design, the GI bill program is created to have people keep coming back to the military. 57% of people who join the military are the children of veterans. It’s not about creating financial freedom, but rather reliance on the machine that created poverty to begin with. From my own experience I can see that my parents had no other options for providing education for their children based on income and financial growth alone. Meanwhile my dad served for 24 years, and his retirement checks don’t even pay my parents mortgage. The systems of “wealth” we’ve created only benefit those who already have wealth, and keep the middle class in an endless cycle to achieve it.
Lolo, as always great work.
I think that you and Tracy could've gone on for hours more and I would've kept reading the transcript. I think one thing I'd love to hear her perspective on is how disasters that spiral out of control via climate change will make renters out of way more home owners and that it makes more sense of home owners to empower renters now before they're stuck on the chopping block with no ledge rather than after.
"And so sure, like, the abolition of rent names a horizon that neither of us will probably live to see. But I think it inspires us to think really clearly about what we have to work with right now and also it inspires us to think about how fucking pathetic and different our world is from the world that we want."
--'Abolish Rent' has been recommended to me now by multiple people I trust (I need to get on reading it).
Thanks so much for this interview, great stuff.
I agree that having a place to live is a human right. I agree that the housing market in the US is an absolute disaster of capitalist exploitation, misplaced societal values and priorities, and just complete lack of empathy by the country as a whole.
Public, tax-funded housing should be available to all who need it, but it should only be one option of several. Having lived in a public high rise under a totalitarian regime, and having seen them in the US, it's not an ideal solution. These places are crowded, uncomfortable, unsafe, and usually in disrepair. Someone needs to build the buildings and maintain them and the government will not do the best job of all possible alternatives. Again, it should be there as a safety net, but not as the only way.
Also, completely lost me at "Zionist entity". Half of Jewish population was exterminated in the holocaust and much of the other half was displaced - from Europe and from Middle Eastern countries. A country for Jews was an absolute necessity. You can criticize Israeli government and policies and the crimes they've committed and I'll agree a lot of the time, but you can't say it has no right to exist at all, then you're just picking which people it's OK to displace.