I started working at the The Legal Aid Society of Cleveland as a housing attorney a little over two years ago. During this time, I have learned a remarkable number of things from my clients and coworkers. Their resiliency and passion inspired me every day to advocate on their behalf, in court and in my workplace. I handled over 200 cases, going to trial over a hundred times, and helped around 90-95% of my clients avoid an eviction judgment on their records. The summary nature of evictions is a brutal gauntlet for tenants. I was in court two to three times a week and watched poor people (overwhelmingly Black in Cleveland) be evicted from their homes (by overwhelmingly white landlords). Tenants are scheduled in a cattle-call manner, sometimes 15-20 per hour, and barely even provided the time or dignity to tell their story. I highly recommend observing an eviction docket at your local municipal court if you have not done so before. I have a lot of thoughts and observations that I am going to share over the next couple weeks/months about my experience. The two central questions I kept asking myself and invite you to consider when you read these stories is: What was my role in this system? Does it have to be this way? Pictured is one of those days when I was in court accompanied by Kiki, my personal assistant. #legalaid #lawyers #socialjustice #housingjustice #evictions #capitalism #unionstrong #solidarity #community #cleveland
Cant wait to read these stories. My guess is that it absolutely doesn’t have to be that way!
Brendan Woodburn
7mo
I would say that being present and advocating means you are " a part of the system that works". You were a person that saw how individuals were being treated unjustly and listened. You used the law as written to prevent homelessness. I am unsure if there is guilt for not being able to prevent some evictions. Yes, housing court is crazy in Cleveland. There are the white property managers and landlords in a majority minority city. But I wonder if the white tenants are given more chances by landlords to pay rent a little later, to clear up the yard and abide by lease, or in cleaning up and working on interior damage, or even overlook lease violations. This seems like a Fair Housing Problem But the resources for that are few and far between and proving fair housing violations is so difficult. You are one of the great people! Keep up the great work!
Anthony Severyn
7mo
Looking forward to hearing about your experiences, Tanmay, and seeing them provoke additional thoughts and questions here.
I am really looking forward to having the opportunity to read your stories and observations. I completely agree that the form of the eviction docket in Cleveland (and in many other municipalities) is dehumanizing.
Love the effort you are putting into this space. ✊ And your choice of assistant 👍💪😊
Niren Shah
7mo
Wish you Best and Blessings Love...
Attorney
7moDid you succeed because you were able to get your clients' individual stories heard in court or did you focus on something else? Curious to hear more details.