The following letter was submitted to the DC Council on behalf of 69 organizations and experts. Don’t forget to send an email and sign up for a call-in day echoing these asks to your elected leaders! DC Council members, We, the undersigned organizations, join together to ask you to stop Mayor Bowser from terminating DC residents from the rapid re-housing program for hitting an arbitrary time limit. This year, as many as 913 families are...

The Legal Clinic, along with the Fair Budget Coalition, is advocating for money to keep families facing termination from rapid re-housing housed, an increase in permanent affordable housing subsidies, and legislative reform to make sure that this problem gets fixed systemically.

Despite living in a well-resourced District of Columbia, DC residents are facing homelessness, housing instability, and crisis-level lack of affordable housing every day, so there is much work to be done to address these issues in DC in order to further housing justice. The budget process is an opportunity to do just that.

This victory was made possible by a group of residents who refused to be marginalized and pushed out. Not only did they stay and fight, but they won. The Legal Clinic is honored to represent the Coalition and proud of our staff’s passionate and committed lawyering.

Councilmember Brianne Nadeau has announced emergency legislation that would prohibit encampment evictions and the creation of “no tent” zones while also addressing some of the health and safety concerns raised by unhoused and housed residents. The Council will vote on the bill next Tuesday, December 7, and nine votes are needed for the bill to pass.

When people receive truly safe and permanent housing, there will be no need for our unhoused neighbors to seek safety and stability through encampments. Access to safe permanent housing should be the priority, not forced displacement.