COVID-19 has exposed and exacerbated inequalities. How can community land trust models support our communities?
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Dear SBCLT Community,
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed and exacerbated the inequalities that have affected our communities for generations. Injustices drawn along socio-economic and racial lines, including access to basic needs such as food and healthcare all contribute to COVID 19’s disproportionate impact on the unhoused, low-income communities and people of color.
Many workers currently face the anxiety and uncertainty of lay-offs, while others are made to choose between risking exposure or risking their wages – a choice that is especially dangerous for those at risk and/or without access to proper healthcare. School shutdowns have highlighted the socioeconomic divide in educational attainment, and our neighborhoods, many of which are food deserts with low access to fresh foods, are facing even more scarcity than before.
COVID-19 has accentuated housing inequality and widened the housing gap. As our community faces the compound effects of poverty, systemic racism, and the effects of the pandemic, the cost of both renting and owning has increased. Many low-income renters and homeowners work in industries that make them more vulnerable to COVID-19, and struggle with the possibility of losing the financial ability to pay rent, become owners, or sustain ownership.
Our communities should not be worrying about keeping up with exorbitant rent prices and having enough to feed their families, especially in the midst of a global crisis. The mission of SBCLT is to ensure that in crises like these, our community is protected and stability is ensured. By holding land in perpetuity, community land trust models ensure affordable housing for generations to come.
As our communities begin opening up and getting accustomed to a new “normal”, let us not forget the inequality and history of structural and institutional racism that COVID has exposed. Our hearts go out to everyone who has been affected by the pandemic. You are not alone.
In solidarity,
SBCLT