Violent brawls broke out when dozens of angry tenants stormed a cocktail party hosted by landlords to celebrate the end of a local eviction moratorium.
About 100 angry tenants showed up to the event with picket signs and cakes that read, “Hey landlord, get a real job,” to protest outside the party — until things got heated.
Disruption quickly turned into anger when protesters entered the Freehouse bar and both sides began shoving and punching each other, Berkeley Property Owners Association (BPOA) President Krista Gulbransen told Berkeleyside.
Tenants carried picket signs that read: “They evict us, we evict them” and “no peace for evictions” when they descended on Tuesday’s party.
“This is what tenant power looks like!” the Tenant and Neighborhood Councils (TANC) wrote on Twitter.
A landlord allegedly slapped a female protester in the face, while an elderly man was also hit in the melee as other protesters chanted: “Look at our strength, look at our power, landlords don’t get a happy hour.”
About 100 angry tenants turned up at the landlord’s party with picket signs and cakes that read: “Hey landlord, get a real job” to fight back at their celebrations, sparking violent brawls at the end of the eviction moratorium. Twitter/@TANC_Bay
Despite being called “parasites” as they entered the bar, the landlords of the Berkeley Property Owners Association still enjoyed their party. According to Berkeleyside, the party was full of appetizers and drinks as the landlords swapped horror stories.
Eventually, protesters entered the bar, reportedly standing on chairs and throwing food, according to the BPOA.
The police were called, but they did not remove the protesters, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
The BPOA is celebrating the end of a three-and-a-half-year COVID-19-era eviction moratorium that saw thousands of tenants lost as many failed to pay rent.
The moratorium prohibits landlords from evicting tenants who fail to pay rent, but landlords accuse tenants of using the ban to save themselves.
They brought a cake that read: “Hey landlord, get a real job!” Protesters allegedly threw food at landlords and called them “parasites.” Twitter/@TANC_Bay
With Berkeley’s unemployment rate at 3.8% — and in line with the national average — the moratorium ends on August 31, allowing landlords to begin evicting rent-avoiding tenants from their units and freeing up space in affluent areas for higher-paying tenants.
The average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Berkeley is now $2,295 – down from $2,400 at the same time last year, according to Zillow.
Despite years of relaxation, TANC called the response “very cruel” and “out of touch with the reality of the housing crisis in the Bay Area.”
The union accuses landlords who favor evictions of helping to increase the homeless population.
The BPOA is celebrating the end of a three-and-a-half-year COVID-19-era eviction moratorium that saw thousands of tenants lost as many failed to pay rent. Twitter/@TANC_Bay
“The boom in homelessness in our community is a direct result of the actions of real estate capitalists, including BPOA landlord members, who prioritize rent profit over people,” he wrote.
“TANC, as a tenants’ union, emphasizes that landlords are largely responsible for gentrification, displacement and homelessness. Far from celebrating, they should take responsibility for their actions.”
However, Gulbransen told local residents that landlords have no qualms about celebrating the end of the eviction moratorium.
“We’re celebrating the end of tenants who could pay rent, and chose not to.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
