LYNN — Activists from Lynn United for Change protested the impending eviction of a Lynn couple in front of their Washington Street home Tuesday morning.
Damaris Llanos and her partner had been struggling to pay their rent since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Lynn United for Change organizer Isaac Simon Hodes, who explained that Llanos’ partner, a barber, had been unable to work for several months due to barbershops being shut down.
Llanos had been under the impression that the state’s Residential Assistance for Families in Transition (RAFT) program was covering the rent she had missed and that she would begin making monthly payments again on April 1, according to Hodes.
However, she received a 48-hour notice last Friday after a Lynn District Court judge granted the landlord permission to evict. A constable and moving truck were scheduled to evict the tenants at approximately 10 a.m. Tuesday, but did not show up at the couple’s 172 Washington St. home due to a last-minute court date scheduled to revisit this matter, according to Hodes.
Despite that outcome, the protest against the eviction proceeded as planned.
“Evictions like this are immoral and threaten public health,” said Drenusha Jusufi, a member of Lynn United for Change, in a statement. “We can’t let this happen. This situation shows why we need our state government to do more to protect against unnecessary evictions during the pandemic. The ‘COVID-19 Housing Equity Bill’ … would prevent cases like this.”
Llanos had previously applied for assistance from the government, and the state’s RAFT program gave her landlord $10,000 earlier this month. RAFT offers financial assistance to stabilize housing situations when tenants are facing eviction, foreclosure, loss of utilities, and other housing emergencies caused by loss of income, increase in expenses, or both.
According to Lynn United for Change, Llanos received a written letter stating that the RAFT program made a payment to her landlord on her behalf, which, Hodes said, means that her landlord is required to commit to preserving the tenancy.
Hodes said Lynn United assisted Llanos over the weekend with signing an affidavit that is required by the federal eviction ban through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The advocacy group presented copies of that document to the couple’s landlord, Steven Lasoff, who is the owner of Paramount Properties and owns a number of buildings in the city.
Lasoff did not respond to a request for comment.
Hodes said that a legal aide filed a motion this past Monday night, which claimed that there were a number of legal issues with the case. Following that motion, the couple’s eviction case was scheduled to be revisited in court on Tuesday morning, but a positive virus case in the clerk’s office in Lynn District Court postponed the hearing to Wednesday.
Approximately 20 protesters gathered in front of Llanos’ building on Washington Street, holding signs and chanting phrases that included “the people united will never be defeated” and “housing is a human right.”
The protesters said they were prepared to block the constable and moving truck, if needed. Some of the activists said that they wanted to show their support and fight for Llanos’ “human right” to have a home.
Goldean Graham, a member of Lynn United, said she was upset with “the injustice evictions” that have been occurring throughout the pandemic. She noted local officials haven’t offered much help to prevent the evictions.
“Why now, during a pandemic?” she said. “People have lost so much, and are being evicted from their homes — the only homes they know.”
Graham said people have struggled and lost their homes due to the pandemic, noting that their fellow Lynn residents will show up and fight for those people until the evictions stop or more help is given to them.
Llanos’ attorney Jolie Main said that “while there are protections in place for tenants during the pandemic, they’re only helpful when tenants know they exist and can utilize and enforce those rights.”
“That’s the importance of tenants having access to a lawyer so they know their rights and ensure they are able to assert them,” she said. “A case like Ms. Llanos is a perfect example of why it matters. Evictions are confusing as it is but here the landlord proceeded with two concurrent cases, one in District Court and one in Housing Court. Tenants often have trouble navigating a complicated process. It is so important that they get connected with a lawyer to help them out.”
Cindy Rodriguez and Dawn Duncan, two longtime members of Lynn United, said that they showed up to the protest to “pay it forward,” explaining that they had gone through a similar situation.
“About 90 percent of us here have been through the exact same thing,” Rodriguez said. ”But as you start to learn and know your rights, you get less and less afraid.”
They both noted that it is very hard and scary to go through an eviction situation, which can feel very lonely. Duncan said Lynn United helped her with her housing issues, which included assisting her with her legal issues and the confusion she felt throughout the process. In turn, she wants to do the same for Llanos.
Llanos thanked everyone who showed up to support her on Tuesday morning and said that she doesn’t feel alone anymore. Participants praised her for having the courage to stay and fight, given the circumstances of going through the hardship during a pandemic.
The court is scheduled to revisit Llanos’ case on Wednesday morning and Tuesday’s protesters said that they planned to show up at her home again to show their support and fight for her home, depending on the outcome of the eviction hearing.
