Housing Is A Human Right’s Advocacy Highlights of 2020
2 min readDec 31, 2020
In 2020, Housing Is A Human Right fought tenaciously on the behalf of Californians, carrying out our mission of the “3 Ps”: protect tenants, preserve communities, and produce housing. In 2021, we’ll continue to fight for what’s right. Here are our advocacy highlights of the past year.
- Stopped pro-gentrification legislation: In January 2020, Housing Is A Human Right stopped SB 50, a dangerous state bill introduced by State Sen. Scott Wiener that would have fueled a tidal wave of gentrification in California. We protected vulnerable residents, insisting that legislation must help, not devastate, middle- and working-class neighborhoods.
- Secured protections during COVID-19 pandemic: In March, when the COVID-10 outbreak caused millions of Californians to lose their jobs, Housing Is A Human Right quickly helped secure stronger safeguards for renters in Los Angeles and through statewide legislation. We’re continuing that advocacy in 2021, demanding that Gov. Gavin Newsom and state legislators use the budget surplus to provide billions in relief for renters, which will also benefit small landlords.
- Fought for rent control: Throughout 2020, Housing Is A Human Right fought to expand local rent control policies through Proposition 21. While the statewide initiative lost in November, our campaign exposed corporate landlord greed, brought more attention to housing issues, and created a movement that will keep working to urgently address the housing affordability and homelessness crises in California.
- Stood up to predatory developers: Luxury-housing developers often steamroll over tenants in buildings they want to redevelop. In Los Angeles, Housing Is A Human Right helped tenants stand up to developers and win much-needed protections.
- Preserved community and affordable housing: In order to preserve history and a sense of community, Housing Is A Human Right won historic landmark status for the King Edward Hotel in Downtown L.A., which houses low-income individuals. The designation not only preserves community, but also protects the building from demolition and therefore preserves affordable housing.
- Produced housing: Healthy Housing Foundation, HHR’s sister organization, continued to provide housing to hundreds of low-income and unhoused individuals in the Los Angeles area. HHF uses a cutting-edge model of refurbishing old motels and hotels to quickly and efficiently produce housing for the vulnerable.
During Housing Is A Human Right’s advocacy efforts, we often asked the public for help by contacting state and local legislators and spreading the word on social media. Thank you for answering our calls to action. It made a difference!
