On July 3, a Massachusetts federal court issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) protecting 2,000 Hurricane Maria evacuees from eviction. The TRO provides just enough time for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to provide longer-term housing solutions to families displaced following the hurricanes that hit Puerto Rico last fall. This momentary reprieve would not have happened without your advocacy, prayers and help.
Prior to the court decision (which occurred just hours before evacuees were to be forced out of their hotels) the only options for many children and families were to sleep on the streets or receive a one-way ticket back to Puerto Rico, where many areas are still uninhabitable. Many Hurricane Maria survivors are battling serious health and financial challenges, which have complicated their ability to find permanent housing.
Without Faith in Action’s organizing work, LatinoJustice PRLDEF’s legal work, and Pioneer Valley Project in Western Massachusetts, Faith in Florida and Vamos4PuertoRico’s efforts keeping this issue front and center, thousands of young children, teenagers, mothers, fathers, grandmothers and grandfathers would have been forced out onto the streets, or worse, sent back to an island ill-equipped to receive them.
We know our work is not over, but thanks to you, we’re on the path to victory. We will continue to urge Congress to lean on FEMA to activate #DHAPnow. To learn more, see ThinkProgress, The Hill, and Florida NPR-affiliate WMFE. To view our press release, click here. Be sure to share these articles on social media using the #DHAPnow hashtag to help raise awareness about the struggles facing children and families.
