Anti-Eviction Solidarity. For Alcina and her Family.

This is not crowdfunding. It is an act of solidarity and resistance. It is a campaign to end all evictions without alternative housing and dignified solutions for those who have been evicted.

(Complete text here )

Alcina's family story culminated in yet another eviction. After After years of fighting and waiting , Carlos, Alcina and José, their 89-year-old father, in a wheelchair, were evicted, along with their two dogs. They have no alternative housing. Eviction is a violent, inhumane and traumatic act . Anyone who sees an eviction happening never forgets it. It is a merciless destitution of what we call " the right to housing ". And the eviction doesn't end the day it happens. It is on that day that the long exile of the evicted person begins. People are not trash to be dumped!

This crowdfunding is motivated by Maria and her spontaneous act of solidarity . When he saw that his neighbors were going to be left on the street or would be forced to accept a pension room without conditions, and without any other adequate response from the institutions, he advanced money, from his salary, to temporarily pay an AL, where the family could stay that night and the following nights.

This house, temporarily rescued by Maria from AL, was put to fulfill its social function: to live . In this T2 we found the conditions that the State denies: 1) wheelchair accessibility, 2) space for the household and for Alcina to continue caring for her father, 3) not being forced to abandon her animals; 4) kitchen, 5) proximity to the places where Alcina works and the health services that Carlos, a cancer patient, and José need.

The financial objective of this crowdfunding is not charity to continue paying for an airbnb for this family. We just want to raise and return the money that Maria advanced (and which she needs), by doing what she found dignified, believing in the power of solidarity and in this collective struggle to resist eviction. And thank you: “Thank you, Maria!”

But on 11/4 we are back to square one, and we will have to face the issue: Alcina's family was evicted and has nowhere to go.

We want:

1. #pararosdespejosja Collectively resisting an eviction is an act of solidarity and recognition of dignity, but it does not solve the problem. We do it because we think no human being should be evicted. We need to put pressure on them to stop all evictions with no alternative . During the pandemic, a moratorium on evictions was placed and may be resumed. And as long as evictions continue, we have the right to resist, in any way we can.
2. #solucoesdignashabitacao : We want dignified solutions that are agreed with the evicted people . We cannot continue to call pension rooms and civil protection shelters a solution. It cannot be accepted that the personal and family integrity of evicted people is disrespected, unilaterally imposing "solutions" that separate households, that remove people from their places of work and school, proximity networks and health care.
3. #solucoesverdadeirashabitacao : We demand that all available houses fulfill their social function and are available to be lived in by those who live and work in Portugal, regardless of their income. In Lisbon, there are 48,000 empty houses, 2000 from CML and there are 20,000 ALs, houses that are used for tourism and not for housing.

The houses are for living, the guesthouses for tourists and the civil protection shelters for disasters!

Join us in this campaign:

- Show your solidarity on social media and share this campaign . Use #hashtags and all the materials we have here and on our networks.

- Write to entities asking for an end to evictions and dignified solutions . Use the available templates here .

- In addition to your contribution, leave us a message of support on this platform and tell us if you want to join us.

- Follow the updates of this campaign throughout the week and support this collective fight for the right to housing !

Join this wave of solidarity. Not only with Alcina and her family, but also with many other evicted people : women from Talude , Maria,Ivânia , Dayse, and Ananilze and their babies, or with the Nazaré , who continue to wait (for months and years) for a housing solution.

As coisas deles no hall da casa, no dia do despejo definitivo

About the author

Stop Despejos : Stop Despejos is a collective fighting for the end of evictions, for the defense of the right to housing and for the collective, inclusive and fairer construction of our cities.

Assemblies open every Monday at 7:30 pm at Sirigaita (Rua dos Anjos 12F, Lisbon)

Habita : Habita is an association that belongs to all people and communities. Those who are exploited by the law of the strongest and who see their right to live in a decent home and environment compromised. We are activists and we develop our strategies based on daily practice with all people directly affected who are willing to fight for their rights. This struggle is a daily activity that leads us to live a more honest and dignified life: getting a house, resisting eviction or saving a square from privatization or other important equipment for the life of the community.

Resistance assemblies on the first Saturday of each month in Sirigaita. Write to: habita.colectivo@gmail.com

Promotores do projeto

Budget and due dates

In the next 7 days we need to raise:

1. the value of the accommodation paid in advance by Maria = €1128
2. spending on rewards + spending on this platform’s commission = €177

Total= €1305

If we do not reach €1305, we will only receive contributions marked as unconditional , please choose this option.

If we greatly exceed this value, we will use this surplus to start a:

that among all supporters we will decide how to use it. Stay tuned for other actions in our campaign, and what you can do throughout this week.

Images