Protest Chaplains to Join Occupy Wall Street and Other Community Groups in Foreclosure Auction Blockades

In support of homeowners facing foreclosure and eviction in NYC, Protest Chaplains NYC will join with members of Occupy Wall Street (OWS) and other community groups to conduct vibrant singing protests and raise the people’s voices at foreclosure auctions in Queens, Brooklyn and the Bronx next week, with the aim to: disrupt the sale of people’s homes and the eviction of their occupants; call for a moratorium on all foreclosures; demand justice for all New Yorkers struggling for affordable housing; confront Wall Street’s unchecked power to put profits over people’s right to housing. Watch the October 13th rendition of “Listen Auctioneer” at the Brooklyn foreclosure auction blockade http://bit.ly/IBucZA.

MONDAY, April 16th, 2pm, Contact: Blair Ellis, 908-334-3825 

Bronx Supreme Court, Rm 600. 851 Grand Concourse, Bronx
Who: Organizing for Occupation (O4O), OWS

THURSDAY, April 19th, 3pm, Contact: Nathaniel Mahlberg, 608-469-1406
Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams St, Brooklyn
Who: Occupy Faith, Catholic Worker, Jews for Racial & Economic Justice (JFREJ)

FRIDAY, April 20th, 11am, Contact: Andra Horgan, 646-925-7891
Queens Supreme Court, 8811 Sutphin Boulevard, Queens
Who: Occupy Queens, Columbia Univ students, Occupy the New School

Everyone has the right to live freely, securely, peacefully and with dignity in his or her
home. In the US there are over three times as many “people-less” homes as home-less people. Financial institutions have stripped individuals and communities of their savings and property while receiving $7.7 Trillion in taxpayer bail-outs.

“At the same time that banks are getting bailed out, rental assistance programs are being reduced--even completely eliminated,” says housing rights activist and organizer Blair Ellis. “Empty buildings fill New York City boroughs, while those in need of housing are forgotten by our economic and political system. Those lucky enough to remain in their homes are increasingly burdened with the escalating cost of rent and mortgage loans. This American Dream is becoming a nightmare for millions of the middle class and poor people.”

There are over 100,000 homes in foreclosure in New York State due to subprime and predatory loans; now New Yorkers with “fair” (or “prime”) loans are also missing payments and falling into foreclosure because of unemployment, under-employment and mounting healthcare costs among other issues.

“We can create meaningful, community based solutions to keep people in their homes and return land in our communities back to the people who live in them,” says Heath Madom, a local housing rights advocate. “We look forward to the day when all bank-owned property—occupied and vacant—is returned to community control and made permanently affordable.”

Queens Foreclosure Auction Can’t Face the Music, Cancels

By Nathanial Mahlberg (Protest Chaplain - NYC)

Today I had the honor of working with other members of Occupy Faith and the Protest Chaplains (many from Judson Memorial Church, Union Theological Seminary, and St. Mary in the Upper West Side) along with members of  Organizing4Occupation (O4O), Occupy Wall Street (OWS), and the Raging Grannies to prepare to peacefully stop the seizure of homes by singing during a foreclosure auction in Queens.  Communities have successfully used this beautiful and powerful tactic to defend the human right to housing against the greed of banks in auctions throughout New York and other cities. This time the auction officials could not face the music and cancelled the auction just before it was to begin.  We had all filed into the courtroom prepared to sing the now-famous song, “Listen Auctioneer,” despite the relatively heavy police presence.  Our success was easier than we had expected.  Now we can turn to continuing to build this movement of non-violent defense of those suffering under the ongoing housing crisis.  Unchecked greed and usury precipitated this crisis, and tepid legislative measures have offered little remedy. It is up to communities to step up and boldly help each other. As a Community Minister at Judson Church and a seminarian at Union Theological Seminary, I was pleased to have organized with faith groups for this particular action.  As we conducted our preparations I could be honest that my motivations were rooted in the compassion taught by my religion.  “We are a Jubilee people,” I said. “We live on

behalf of the true purpose of God’s creation, which is to provide for the nourishment, well-being, and shelter of all of God’s creatures. The time to return to this purpose, the time of Jubilee, is long overdue.”