This press release from Movement for Justice in El Barrio lays out, amongst other things, their intention to travel across the Atlantic, from East Harlem to London, to bring the fight to the steps of their neighborhood's new, would-be gentrifiers...RJ
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Movement for Justice in El Barrio

For Immediate Release
Contact Juan Haro,  (212) 561-0555

Immigrant Tenants Fight Back Against the Displacement Plan of their New Multi-Billionaire Landlord

July 30th—In March of this year, the London-based investment group and multi-national company, Dawnay, Day Group, paid $250 million and exposed its plans to raise rents tenfold by displacing long-time low-income tenants. Since then, they have implemented their displacement plan by doing the following:

1. Bribing tenants with money to get them to abandon their apartments.
2. Failing to make repairs as entire ceilings fall on tenants resulting in emergency medical care.
3. Attempting to collect more money from tenants by making false charges for repairs and legal fees.
4. Sending threatening letters falsely accusing tenants of overcrowding.

The tenants and members of Movement for Justice in El Barrio representing 20 buildings in East Harlem have a plan to counter the attempt by Dawnay, Day Group to force tenants out of their homes. After having organized two demonstrations to address the problem, Movement for Justice in El Barrio will do the following:

1. Tenants and members of Movement for Justice in El Barrio will file a lawsuit against Dawnay, Day Group because of their illegal attempts to collect false charges.
2. Movement for Justice in El Barrio is organizing a neighborhood-wide “March to Save Our Homes and Our Barrio”
3. Movement for Justice in El Barrio and the Data Center are conducting a research study on the history of Dawnay, Day Group and will release a report to expose the multi-national company.
4. Movement for Justice in El Barrio will travel to London to organize with anti-gentrification groups on the ground to challenge Dawnay, Day Group at their central headquarters.

Driven by profit-seeking landlords and multi-national corporations, and facilitated by the city, gentrification has swept New York City and with it has come the grand-scale illegal eviction of low-income immigrant families. The Dawnay, Day Group has made it explicit that they plan to bring gentrification to El Barrio. In an interview with The London Times Phil Blakely, director of Dawnay, Day Group, exposed a plan to take advantage of lax tenant protection laws in NYC to raise rents tenfold.

“East Harlem is the last area of the whole of Manhattan being gentrified.” He said. “A typical two-bedroom flat taking $150 per month in rent can see the rents rise 3 per cent to 4 per cent each year without doing anything. As soon as you take vacant possession, the rents will typically rise 17 per cent when re-let without doing anything. But with renovation, a flat could well take $1,700 a month once re-let on the open market.”

The multi-billion dollar Dawnay, Day Group, formed an American Subsidiary, Dawnay, Day U.S. Real Estate Management LLC, to take their global financial ambitions to the streets of El Barrio. Let them be warned, Movement for Justice in El Barrio is dedicated to fighting the ambitions of greedy slumlords and profiteering global investors and will not standby and let landlords neglect or destroy this community of low-income immigrants in El Barrio.  

Dawnay, Day bought these buildings from one of NYC’s worst landlords, Steve Kessner. Tenants and members of Movement for Justice in El Barrio began their struggle against this landlord through protests, street marches, and court actions, tenants forced Steve Kessner to make hundreds of repairs and, finally, forced him out of El Barrio.  With their fight with the abusive slumlord Steve Kessner behind them, tenants and members of Movement for Justice in El Barrio are ready and willing to fight back against the worst. But with $250 million mega-purchase made by Dawnay, Day Group, Movement for Justice in El Barrio knows that the threat of gentrification is not gone. You can be sure, tenants stand strong and united, ready to defend themselves against the next multi-billionaire landlords, and if need be, are ready to send them packing as well.