Petrelis Files

SF Castro Tenants Convention Takes Place Jan. 11

This announcement gives me hope, as a renter in District 8, that resistance to the displacement happening to our neighbors could be entering a new phase and one that builds a force to be reckoned with at City Hall. I see the convention as one piece of a larger effort fighting the Tech Inc takeover of San Francisco that is making this City unaffordable for low and moderate income folks.

Make plans to attend this important meeting on Saturday, January 11 from noon to 2 pm. It takes place at the LGBT Community Center on Market Street near Octavia. I'll be attending and hope to see you there.

From the San Francisco Anti Displacement Coalition web site:

Join us as we meet with tenants from the Castro area to come up with strategies for fighting the evictions in our neighborhood and defend those who are being evicted, for stopping the gentrification of our gayborhood and the displacement of so many people, and for educating tenants about their rights and how they can fight when threatened with an eviction. 

Participants in the convention will also come up with suggestions for a ballot initiative next November, suggestions that will be presented to a citywide tenants convention in February. Other neighborhoods, including the Mission, Haight/Richmond, and Tenderloin/SOMA, are also holding — or have held — conventions and will be making recommendations to the citywide convention. The convention is free and open to all tenants.

Please spread the word and mark the date in your calendar now. If you’d like to get involved in the planning, email sfadcoalition@gmail.com. Organizers of the convention include Housing Rights Committee of SF, AIDS Housing Alliance, Harvey Milk LGBT Democratic Club and District 8 Democrats.