BY KIRSTYN BRENDLEN
Tenants and housing activists
marched through Brooklyn
and Manhattan on Saturday,
calling for an extension to
the eviction moratorium and
a blanket end to cold-weather
evictions in New York City.
The moratorium was put in
place in March 2020, as New
Yorkers across the state had
their working hours slashed,
or lost their jobs altogether, as
the fi rst wave of the pandemic
took hold. Even so, tenants —
including more than 2 million
who rent in New York City —
have held their breath as the
moratorium, which was fi rst
set to expire last June, has
been extended a few months at
a time — often just days before
its expiration.
In September, Gov. Kathy
Hochul extended the moratorium
For the Treatment of Varicose Vein,
Leg Swelling and Leg Wounds
COURIER L 18 IFE, JANUARY 14-20, 2022
one more time, from Oct.
1, 2021, to Jan. 15. 2022. Days
away from the expiration date,
Hochul seemed inclined to let
the moratorium end, even as
city COVID rates skyrocket
and wintry winds blow in.
“I think that this is a concerted
effort by the rich and
powerful, more than anything
else,” said Joel Feingold, a cofounder
of the Crown Heights
Tenants Union, on why
Hochul seems likely to fi nally
let the halt on evictions lapse.
“It’s really part of a concerted
push not just to force people
With the state eviction moratorium set to expire on Jan. 15, tenants and activists marched across Brooklyn and
Manhattan on Saturday, calling for Gov. Kathy Hochul to extend the deadline. Photo by Adrian Childress
back to work for profi ts sake,
health be damned, but also to
chip away at some of the victories
that working class tenants
have made in building a
little bit of a sense of democracy
during this pandemic.”
The Crown Heights Tenants
Union, the Flatbush Tenant
Coalition, the New York
City chapter of the Democratic
Socialists of America, and
the Party for Socialism and
Liberation gathered outside
Brooklyn Housing Court and
marched across the Brooklyn
Bridge to Manhattan Housing
Court, chanting “I believe that
we will win” and stopping outside
the Court Street offi ce of
the law fi rm Slochowsky and
Slochowsky, who provide legal
representation to some of the
city’s eviction-hungry landlords.
Included on that list is Demetrios
Moragianis, who owns
six buildings in Brooklyn and
has sued more than 400 tenants
for eviction during the
pandemic, according to data
maintained by Right to Counsel
NYC. Moragianis has successfully
evicted more than 50
tenants since 2017. Moragianis
also owns The Astra, a new
mixed-affordability building
on Gates Avenue in Bedford-
OUT IN
THE COLD
Tenants, activists march as end
of eviction moratorium looms
Continued on page 26
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