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1A Across America: Will Canceling Rents Prevent A Housing Crisis?

WAMU 88.5 | By James Morrison

Published May 1, 2020 at 11:13 AM MDT

Graffiti painted on a wall at Ocean Beach in San Francisco calls tenants to go on a rent strike as millions of people find themselves in dire financial situations because of the pandemic and the lockdown.

Nearly a third of Americans didn’t pay rent on time in April. With 30 million Americans filing for unemployment benefits in the past six weeks, the problem is expected to get worse. State leaders have paused evictions but many tenants say that’s not enough.

A call to #CancelRent is gaining traction as many tenants commit to rent strikes for May.

In this 1A Across America conversation, we explore if canceling rent is the best way to keep people in their homes. If not, what are other solutions?

1A Across America is funded through a grant from The Corporation for Public Broadcasting. CPB is a private, nonprofit corporation created by Congress in 1967 that is the steward of the federal government’s investment in public broadcasting.

1A Across America: Will Canceling Rents Prevent A Housing Crisis?

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