What About Joe (or Jo) Defaulting Homeowner?
[Note: The title of this post was edited to include Jo after a fellow change.org blogger pointed out that women - especially minority women - were given subprime loans at higher rates than men. You can read all about this in a 2006 study by the Consumer Federation of America.]
We are in the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression.
Just last week, the federal government committed hundreds of billions of dollars to bail out our investment banks.
States across the country - from New York to California - are forced to slash state budgets in response to the national meltdown in credit markets, shrinking stock and real estate values, and the likely recession.
And, at the most local level, people are scared. Families are worried about keeping their jobs, filling the oil tank, putting food on the table, and staying in their homes.
This is not just a bleak picture. This is our reality.
As a result of our sick economy, people are losing their homes in record numbers. Tent cities have sprung up across much of California. States are putting up entire families in hotels and motels. Schools are seeing an unprecedented increase in students without a home address.
And still - there has been no moratorium on foreclosures. Banks are not renegotiating the terms of defaulting mortgages. Little is being done to turn foreclosed properties into housing, and properties are boarded up and vacant.
All this turmoil is happening right now on Main Street, America. It's affecting Joe Six Pack, Joe Plumber, and Joe Momma. Given the scope and severity of these issues, I was amazed at how limited the discussion was during last night's third presidential debate about the day-to-day struggles facing low-income families.
How can families focus on healthcare, education, and energy conservation if they don't have a place to sleep at night? How will they watch campaign ads - positive or negative - without a place to call home?
Shelters and safety net social services are being stretched by the increase in calls for help and assistance. Many anticipate the demand to become even greater as the weather becomes colder. So why wasn't the word "homeless" mentioned once during last night's debate when so many people are grappling with the ultimate hardship? Where is the outrage?
Seriously, where is the outrage?
Shannon Moriarty
has worked in various homeless shelters and service organizations around the country. She is a graduate student studying housing and urban policy at Tufts University.
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