Opinion: Evictions Could Leave Thousands Homeless
If you got kicked out of your home today, where would you go? How would you keep your family safe?
In the past few months alone, we’ve seen record numbers of people struggling just to get by. Individuals and families were already in survival mode facing the most difficult time of their lives. Once the COVID-19 pandemic hit, it got worse. Lives unraveled, jobs were lost and the stack of unpaid bills grew larger.
While the eviction moratorium has been extended and Michigan Eviction Diversion Program will offer temporary relief for renters and landlords. But once those have run out, thousands will still be left with no hope. Should the eviction process begin, people who once had a roof and a warm bed will have nothing.
Ask yourself what’s important: Do I put food on the table for my family or keep the roof over our heads? Many individuals must make this choice and prioritize one basic need over another.
Evictions have been piling up for months, along with the debts owed by renters who have no way to pay. With such a severe increase in need, the global pandemic could turn into a full-blown homelessness crisis. And while the eviction moratorium, stimulus checks and unemployment payments helped delay the inevitable, time has run out for thousands of our neighbors.
That’s why The Salvation Army of Metro Detroit launched its Summer in the City Campaign Presented by Toyota. We’re raising funds to Give Hope and Give Light to those who are faced with this impossible choice. We’ll provide support to individuals threatened with eviction. But we cannot do it alone.
This pandemic has reminded us that we’re all in this together. We are all here to help one another, whenever we are able. If we stand by and do nothing to help the vulnerable and beaten down, we’d be saying it’s okay for individuals and families in our community to be left homeless. We’d be turning our back on them.
Since mid-March, The Salvation Army of Metro Detroit has helped nearly 3,700 families with utility and rent assistance, provided more than 1.1 million meals and served more than 304,000 beverages throughout the pandemic. Though this is an incredible feat, it is simply not enough.
No one should have to worry about losing their home.
If you are fortunate enough to know where you’ll be sleeping tonight, I urge you to choose. Choose to lend a helping hand to those less fortunate. As you settle in for the night, consider what it’s like to not know where you’ll be sleeping the next day. Your choice will impact the thousands in southeast Michigan worrying about what’s to come.
Lt. Colonel John Turner is divisional commander and regional CEO of The Salvation Army's Eastern Michigan Division.