I Am Fighting For The Future My Daughter Deserves

Four years ago, I moved here from Mexico with my family and 4 friends. When we arrived, everything was new and foreign. We didn’t know where to go or how to start our lives over. But we found this apartment. I liked it because the neighbors speak Spanish, there are Mexican stores nearby, and it made us feel a little less lonely. So we made it our home. It hasn’t been easy. My husband works long hours to scrape money together so I can support my son who is studying to be a chef in Mexico. I stay home with my daughter Regina, but she is only one year old and I get lonely. It’s not what I pictured when I moved here, but I have gotten to know the women who stay home and my other neighbors. I look after my neighbors kids while they work, and we are a community now. My home and my community are what keep me going; I don’t know what I would be without them. In June, my landlord sent a letter saying I would be evicted at the end of September because he lost his rental licenses and wanted to renovate. He plans on selling the building. I knew the letter might be coming, but it still surprised me. Now we me and my neighbors still face eviction by the end of February. The threat of eviction broke my heart, and it still does. There have been many moments when I have wanted to give up and move away from my community. It would be so much easier to give up and move. But what kind of example would I be setting for my daughter? We deserve our home. Our daughter deserves to grow up in her community with her friends. I want my daughter to know a good life, the life she deserves. So I chose to stay and fight. I fight for myself. I fight for my neighbors. I fight for everyone in Minneapolis who has had to live in unacceptable living conditions or who has been unjustly evicted. If the worst thing happens, and I am evicted, I will still not give up. That would only give me more reason to fight. In many ways, this struggle is bigger than me. If I am evicted I will be joining many other women and families in fighting for a future where this won’t happen again. And if I am lucky enough to stay, I will still keep fighting for that future, because no one should have to face eviction in the middle of a Minnesotan winter. I am fighting for more than to stay in my home. I am also working with my neighbors toward a solution that we believe in: a tenant-run housing cooperative. We want to be free in own homes. We want to take care of our homes ourselves. We want to own our buildings — to share the ownership and work — and make sure none of us can be displaced from our neighborhood ever again.I really do think we can achieve this together, and I know it would be the best solution for everyone. Our landlord, Steve Frenz, doesn’t make the repairs we need and doesn’t know our homes like we do. So we have taught ourselves how to take care of our homes as we need. The other day my neighbor came and fixed my door when the lock broke. My other neighbor taught herself how to fix a backed up sink. We love our homes, and we are ready to take care of them and the land they are built on. Join us in planting the seeds for the future of Minneapolis housing. Donate now: https://www.crowdrise.com/o/en/campaign/united-renters-housing-cooperative--Vanessa Del Campo Chacon