Lackawanna Magistrate Paul Ware needs to end eviction proceedings, now! During the Covid-19 pandemic, evictions lead to infection and death due to cramped housing and homeless shelters.
With infection rates and deaths at their highest in the county, it is especially urgent the Magistrate uphold President Joe Biden's eviction moratorium until March 31rst.
The conditions that lead to eviction during this national health crises are at no fault of the people. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 1 in 5 households were behind in rent in December, 2020. That is a lot of people to punish for something that is completely out of their control.
Racial inequity with access to housing, nationally, even previous to the pandemic, is undeniable. And there is not even a Human Relations Commission in Scranton to enforce the Anti-Discrimination Ordinance of 2003, that enables people to report acts of discrimination regarding to housing, healthcare, and employment.
On top of that, black, brown, and indigenous communities are being infected and dying at disgusting rates in comparison to the non-hispanic/latinx white population. For example, black persons rate of death from Covid-19 is 2.1 times greater than non-hispanic/latinx white people.
By continuing evictions, Magistrate Paul Ware is signing a death sentence for vulnerable communities (people of color, disabled folks, LGBTQIA+, etc.) and the citizens of the county at large.
Good shelter is a human right. Evictions, especially during a pandemic, are a death sentence.
