Community discussion: Housing justice in unjust cities

Inspired by the research of ‘Housing Justice in Unequal Cities,’ https://unequalcities.org/about/ detailing the housing crisis and tenant organising across multiple global cities, FERN Collective + Brisbane Free University and Cr Jonathan Sri of the Gabba Ward, are excited to co-host a public discussion on the tensions, barriers, strategies and possibilities for housing justice here in Meanjin, and across so-called Australia.

Tenant rights here in Queensland are some of the worst in the world. With increasingly punitive measures against tenants, and landlords and property agents facing no accountability for evictions, people are too easily being forced into homelessness or precarious and unsafe housing situations. Folks already facing the exhausting toll of having to pay rent to non-responsive landlords, may also have to face racist, transphobic, ableist and discriminatory barriers or exclusion due to their ex-incarcerated or migratory status. We are living in an unjust system which continuously benefits and maximises profit for those who own private property and upholds fictional colonial housing laws.

Police, landlords, real estate agents and government departments coordinate to gentrify neighbourhoods and create an environment of easy eviction. We must then also create solidarity and organising capacity for tenants to resist such forces. We hope this event will also be such a space where we can discuss and listen to stories of resistance and organising.

When we discuss and advocate for housing justice, we have to consider who is included in this framework of justice and how we frame advocacy for housing on stolen land: where First Nations folks have been subject to eviction and dispossession since the beginning of the invasion, and a disproportionately high rate of First Nations people experience homelessness. Through a combination of online interviews and live panelists from disability justice network, tenant union and anti-eviction organisers, First Nations activists and ex-incarcerated folk, we hope to dive in deep into the intersections of housing justice and discuss these connections between housing justice, ongoing colonial dispossession, racial and carceral barriers, community fragmentation, gentrification, private development and commodification of land.

Speakers will be announced closer to the date!

The event will (hopefully) be hosted live at a venue, however depending on covid restrictions it may be transferred online. This event will be placed on unceded Yuggera land, and we pay respect to all elders past and present, whose legacies of resistance and protest against the settler-colonial government remain today.

We will have a live-stream of the event with AI transcriptions provided after the event. AUSLAN interpretation will also be provided.

A table with light snacks and drinks will also be provided, along with a small onsite set up for child minding!

We are also hoping to have a 10 minute section open to poets and spoken-word artists speaking on housing justice issues. If you’re interested in sharing a poem, please send us a message on fernbymadi@gmail.com

AHEPA Hall accessibility:

From the front footpath there is a straight and flat path to the front door. The entrance has a double door - accessible to wheelchairs and other mobility devices. The hall has a large open space, so wide distances will be provided between chairs and rows. There are no stairs. The toilets are left to the entrance of the hall. There is a separate disabled toilet. The venue can be accessed by bus routes 199, 60 and 192. Limited street parking is available. There are no car parks onsite.

If you need any further information regarding the venue feel free to send a message or call 0434728442.