By Elizabeth Hurley, Legal Director at The Waterfront Project
On Monday, February 10, 2025, two homeless children froze to death in Detroit, sleeping in a van with their family, despite their mother’s repeated efforts to get assistance. This, in America. As a housing attorney with The Waterfront Project defending low-income tenants from eviction, I have met with so many mothers on the brink of homelessness, the terror in their eyes begging the question: What about my children? Our clients come from all walks of life; veterans, senior citizens, working parents, people with disabilities, college students, union workers, LGBTQ+ community members. Their experiences are varied but their fears are the same. Where am I going to go? What am I going to do? We need elected officials on local, state, and federal levels to prioritize the housing and homelessness crises plaguing this country, in urban, rural, suburban areas alike, acknowledging that poverty is a policy choice we continue to make. Through efforts like the Comprehensive Eviction Defense and Diversion (CEDD) program, which gives low-income New Jersey households access to legal and case management services to avoid eviction, New Jersey is at the forefront of these efforts. In partnership with the Department of Community Affairs, The Waterfront Project works tirelessly to keep our community members housed –because housing is health. Housing is stability. Housing is a human right.
Our Housing and Homelessness crisis is only going to get worse if the lack of support and resources continues. The Waterfront Project is absolutely devastated by the lack of support and resources this family received, and we know that this was preventable if only we invested in keeping our families housed.
Join us in our continued efforts to keep families safe in homes and fight for housing justice.