As ICE Terror Forces People Inside, Calls Grow for Eviction Moratorium in MN

""It is very expensive to be sheltering in place," Yusra Murad, a communications organizer at Inquilinxs Unidxs por Justicia, told Truthout. Murad's group is a Twin Cities-based tenants' rights collective that is one of the groups leading the call for the eviction moratorium."

"Operation Metro Surge has forced undocumented families in the Twin Cities into a cascade of difficult decisions, and activists warn that without an eviction moratorium, the region faces an impending eviction catastrophe. Many have had loved ones - and their household's primary income earners - taken by federal agents and have been scrambling to scrape together funds to pay February rent."

""Residents also need immediate protection from ICE, which is why the City Council is calling on Gov. Walz to implement an eviction moratorium now. No family should have to choose between keeping a roof over their heads and risking being kidnapped by ICE. This is the choice families have been forced to make.""

Operation Metro Surge has caused widespread fear and sheltering in place across the Twin Cities, disrupting work and schooling and driving up unpaid bills. Undocumented families have faced arrests of household primary earners, forcing desperate financial decisions and difficulty meeting February rent. Tenant organizers and a Twin Cities tenants' rights collective are leading calls for a statewide eviction moratorium to prevent an eviction catastrophe. The Minneapolis City Council unanimously passed a resolution urging the governor to enact a moratorium and called for immediate protections from ICE to prevent families from choosing between safety and housing.

Read at Truthout