週五7月17日早上11點，族裔媒體服務社(Ethnic Media Services) 舉行網上會議，主題以圍繞著COVID-19流行病毒所產生的連鎖反應為主。會議的主講人針對這個議題發言。主講人有Emily A. Benfer, Dr. Margot Kushel，Legislator Kumar Barve, Nisha Vyas, Akash Kalia, 他們討論了在下來幾個月，因驅逐暫停令的政策即將停止，而許多人仍然在失業的狀態之中，沒有足夠的收入付房租的，因此大約有2,800萬個家庭，會付不出房租可能面臨被驅逐的困境。主講人同時討論地方及州級政府可能提出的解決方案。

Millions of workers laid off during the COVID pandemic have not been able to pay their rents. State and local politicians have enacted eviction moratoriums. But many of those protections are set to expire in August, setting off a tidal wave of evictions. Speakers explored who is most at risk, measured to extend the moratoriums, and litigation and advocacy aimed at protecting tenants.

主講人Speakers

Emily A. Benfer, visiting professor of law and the director of the Health Justice Clinic at Wake Forest School of Law, and co-creator of the COVID19 Housing Policy Scorecard with the Eviction Lab at Princeton University will share nationwide data on evictions, with a focus on current racial demographics of the issue and the populations hardest hit. 

Dr. Margot Kushel, Professor of Medicine in the Division of General Internal Medicine at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center and the Director of the UCSF Center for Vulnerable Populations, will focus on housing vulnerability prior to 2020; how the pandemic has exacerbated the crisis of affordable housing in California; and possible longer-term solutions. 

Legislator Kumar Barve, of the Maryland state House of Delegates, will discuss the impact of evictions in his state. Barve and several legislators have written to Maryland Governor Larry Hogan to extend the state's eviction moratorium, which is currently set to expire in August. 

Nisha Vyas, senior housing attorney at the Western Center on Law and Poverty, will discuss litigation and advocacy work on behalf of tenants, and some "know your rights" for tenants facing evictions. 

Akash Kalia, of the Palms Hotel in Santa Rosa, California, will discuss how motel and hotel owners have stepped in to house the state's unsheltered population during the pandemic, and his vision for longer-term solutions.