New York City, NY – On the evening of April 22, the North East chapter of the International League of People’s Struggle held a webinar titled “Rent Strike: What it is and how to do it.”

While for many, May 1 marks International Workers Day, it will also mark the beginning of the second month where a majority of Americans will have been out of work and unable to pay rent. In New York over 40 days have passed since all non-essential businesses have been closed, which have put thousands of New Yorkers out of work. On April 1, over a one-third of renters weren’t able to pay their rent, and those numbers are bound to be much higher on May 1.

The webinar was comprised of several speakers who did not just advocate for rent strikes for the sake of striking, but explained how to organize one successfully.

The presentation began with Justin La Mort, a supervising attorney for Mobilizing for Justice. He went into great detail regarding tenant laws in New York state, what rights tenants have, and what tools one needs to begin striking – legally.

La Mort was followed up by Michael Tan, a co-coordinator of ILPS-NE, who gave a presentation of Neoliberalism in the U.S. and how neoliberal policies directly affect the current crisis.

The end of the webinar included two case studies from organizers who successfully waged rent strikes: Alicia Boyd, a political organizer and founder of Movement to Protect the People, and Drae, a tenant leader in the Grand Putnam Tenants Association.

Towards the end, the webinar was infiltrated by over 15 landlords and housing brokers who attempted to disrupt and derail the presentation. Fortunately, the organizers were able to kick them out and the presenters were able to finish answering questions that aided the people of New York.

You can find the full presentation and webinar here: https://www.facebook.com/ILPSUnitedStates/videos/525614264982230/

#NewYorkNY #Healthcare #HousingStruggles #NationalLawyersGuild #InternationalLeagueOfPeoplesStruggle #RentStrike