Mutual Morris

A photo of a group of people sitting in a park with a hand-drawn sign in the foreground that reads "Housing Council. Is your rent too high?" and graphics of red and pink hearts photoshopped over to cover individuals' faces for privacy.

Housing Council – February 2023

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When we come together and talk, we learn how widespread our shared struggles are, and that we are not alone. Then, we can brainstorm and act upon ideas for collective solutions. Here is a public meeting from the summer of 2022 in Morristown.

With mutual aid, we can change how we look at our shared struggles and how we build solutions, led by the people most impacted, from the ground up. We have the solutions to our problems. We know what we need; we need safe and affordable housing.

Thousands of families across Morris County are struggling to afford the cost of housing. Many cannot even find any housing at all. There are not enough resources out there to address this problem, but we can work together to make our own. Learn from other mutual aid and community groups about possibilities, share your stories with us as we gather data about this problem, and volunteer to be part of the solution.

For the past two years, we have been organizing in our communities, collecting stories, and meeting with other organizations to address this problem together. If you would like to share your story, please fill out this survey: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScQv3-29zZZGnTIrkui7clHCQXDgmNcQg87j76yfpOklOzGRA/viewform

To continue these discussions, the Housing Council will be meeting on:

All are welcome!

We have also helped many families to stay housed, to transition into new housing, to fight landlords, and to obtain legal representation or guidance. We have presented Know Your Rights trainings for tenants.

Recently, we raised funds to help an unhoused man, disabled and with SSI pending, to stay in a motel and out of the cold weather as he has been sleeping outdoors in parks while he waits for permanent housing. Tonight is the last night at the motel and we are still seeking donations to help fund more nights. Pitch in at https://www.gofundme.com/f/morris-county-housing.