Public-Housing Residents
Protest ‘Involuntary Servitude’
by Dave Powell

Upwards of 100 public-housing residents and their allies braved the cold on Martin Luther King Day, Jan. 15, to protest a "community service" requirement that will soon be implemented at all public-housing developments in the city.

The implications of forcing unpaid work upon a largely black and Latino tenant population are not lost on public-housing residents, who chose the "African Burial Ground" site in lower Manhattan for their protest. Many speakers referred to the requirement--eight hours of unpaid work per month for all able-bodied, unemployed tenants, and possible eviction if any member of a household refuses to comply--as "forced servitude" and "modern-day slavery." The protest was called by the New York City Public Housing Resident Alliance.

To get involved in the struggle against forced labor in public housing, contact: the NYC Public Housing Residents Alliance: Victor Bach, (212)614-5492 or Adriene Holder, (212)577-3334.