On the Entrance Traces: Combating Evictions – San Francisco Bay Occasions
From Dr. Marcy Adelman-
Although the San Francisco eviction moratorium has been extended to November 30th and additional laws are pending to extend it through December 31st, evictions and threats of evictions have continued. The moratorium does not apply to non-payment cases, Ellis Act cases, or cases of violence or public safety.
Legal Assistance to the Elderly (LAE) has quietly and effectively provided free legal assistance to low-income seniors and adults with disabilities in San Francisco for over 40 years. I asked Laura Slade Chiera, Executive Director, about LAE’s services during the pandemic. She told me for the San Francisco Bay Times, “We have received requests for help with protection against physical abuse, help with unemployment, and assess early retirement, rent payments, and access to health care issues. But by far the largest percentage of calls revolve around evictions or fear of eviction. “
“Many of the calls come from those who are most at risk,” she added. “For example, a disabled trans woman who speaks monolingual Spanish in her late fifties received an eviction notice. She had been in her apartment for 11 years and had paid her rent during the pandemic. She spent the whole winter in her apartment without heating, despite repeatedly asking the landlord to repair it. In addition, she was harassed by the property management team, who made transphobic and racist remarks to her and her friends and harassed her about her immigration status. During this stressful time, a roommate left to help pay the rent. And an operation that kept her from work resulted in her unable to pay the rent. She felt hopeless and was afraid for her future. ”
“She asked us for help,” Chiera continued. “Faced with a defense based on retaliation for demanding repairs, the landlord canceled the owner’s eviction. LAE was able to secure the client’s rental support during this time, and with the eviction threat gone, the client was able to find a new roommate to help pay the ongoing rent. The landlord has carried out the necessary repairs at reasonable times of the day and our customers’ lives have returned to normal. “
LAE’s customers are as diverse as the city itself: blacks, indigenous people, Latinx, API, LGBT, seniors and people with HIV. LAE is a frontline nonprofit that is saving people from homelessness by helping people stay in their homes.
Chiera said: “A large number of calls have come from people living in SRO or single occupancy hotels. SROs are small, rented, furnished rooms in multi-tenant buildings in which the tenants share the kitchen, toilet and bathroom. Tenants are afraid of what could happen to them if they are evicted in the middle of a pandemic. “
She continued: “At the beginning of the pandemic it was particularly tough for the people in the SROs. People were encouraged to stay in their room. These rooms are 8 x 8 in size. Getting food or home care was a challenge. You can understand what a stressful environment this was and how it affected a person’s physical and mental health. “
“It was also a challenging time for the staff,” she added. “Despite the health risk for our older clients, we still had to appear in person in court and at hearings. The staff worried about their customers and themselves. It was very stressful. But we did it together. “
Chiera has been the Executive Director of LAE since 2016. Under her leadership, LAE has increased its budget, tripled its staff and, consequently, increased its impact on senior citizens at risk in San Francisco. Although the majority of cases focus on home preservation, LAE has several other areas of practice, including helping seniors and disabled adults struggling with debt collection; Problem with fraud; physical or financial abuse; and assistance with problems related to Medi-Cal, Medicare and In-Home Supportive Services. In addition, LAE, in partnership with the AIDS Legal Referral Panel, provides life planning for older LGBTQ adults and adults with disabilities who require a basic will and health care instructions.
In the past year, LAE opened about 1,550 new cases. With so many of their customers lacking access to technology services like Zoom, they expanded their mobile services, met customers at home, and exchanged documents through the mail. They also worked closely with the Latino Task Force’s COVID-19 Response Centers in the Excelsior and Bay View neighborhoods, which provide housing law services.
Chiera concluded, “It’s too easy to get cynical about the city’s problems. It is important to remember that the people we serve built this city and now it is our turn to help them. You may have worked all your life but still cannot keep up with rising rents. The city needs to expand housing subsidies and provide more affordable and accessible services and health care at home. San Francisco can do this. “
Legal assistance for the elderly: https://laesf.org/
AIDS Legal Referral Panel: https://tinyurl.com/575xs89h
Dr. Marcy Adelman, psychologist and LGBTQ + longevity advocate and political advisor, is responsible for the Aging in Community column. She is a member of the California Commission on Aging, the board of directors of the Alzheimer’s Association of Northern California, the California Master Plan on Aging Equity Advisory Committee, and the San Francisco Dignity Fund Oversight and Advisory Committee. She is the co-founder of Openhouse, the only nonprofit in San Francisco that focuses solely on the health and wellbeing of LGBTQ + older adults.
Published on October 21, 2021
