The very same crumbling economy that caused the value of Chris’ home to depreciate left her hopeless in today’s damaged job market. Mrs. Frazer’s home was foreclosed on in October of 2011 after faithfully paying her mortgage for over 15 years! Investors One Corporation sent her a statement claiming she had to pay $176,000 on a house that the very same document stated is only worth $40,000. There is no sense in expecting such a large amount of money for a home that has lost so much value. Evicting this family means evicting an 85 year old great-grandmother and her 3 year old great-grandson. Why kick a family to the curb and allow a home to sit unoccupied? It would make much more sense to allow for a new mortgage, based on the current value of the home. This foreclosure is wrongful and Occupy Atlanta will assist Ms. Frazer in the fight to expose the fraudulent actions that have taken place. Many other families and individuals across America have fallen victim to these unlawful practices and Occupy Atlanta is fighting against such injustices. Occupy Atlanta has once again made a foray into the suburbs of Atlanta where so many families have been and are currently struggling to keep themselves afloat.
Occupy Atlanta hopes to not only save the Frazer home, but assist the community at large in helping find solutions to local problems. Too many homes nearby sit bank owned and vacant, or even worse: abandoned and in varying states of disrepair. This brings down the home values of EVERY home in the area and dampens the mood of the community. Let’s make Decatur a focal point for resisting foreclosures and foster a spirit of community that cares for and takes care of one another. We can start by saving the Frazer home. Come and join the fight!
]]>Statement from Occupy Athens:
As of 6 PM, Saturday, March 3 Occupy Athens begins a 24 hour occupation of City Hall with tents until such time as our demands are met.
Occupy Athens has become concerned regarding how the proposed downtown Selig Development is moving forward. We feel there has been little change for the average citizen of Athens to voice their concerns or ideas about this project.
Therefor, we demand that city goverment and Selig Enterprises hold a series of four official town hall meetings with the purpose of garnering input from the people of Athens. This project will not succeed without the cooperation of the people.
We demand 4 Town Hall meetings, open to the public and all public-input, attended by the Mayor, the City Commission, and at least one representative from Selig Enterprises. We demand that the full plans of the project be disclosed to the public and have time alloted for people opposed to the development to give their own arguement.
We demand a formal apology from the Mayor and the members of the EDF for their illegal conduct, including the closed door September 12 meeting, which violated the integrity of the city government and the sovereign will of the people of Athens.
We the people can no longer allow corporate interests acting behind closed doors to determine the outcome of our everyday lives. Occupy Athens will not rest until the corruption in our local government is uprooted and the voice of the people is well heard.
Occupy Athens encourages all individuals to participation in the occupation. There are a myriad of ways one can support, please see the below schedule or occupyathensga.org for more information.
Join us at City Hall at 301 College Ave., Athens, GA 30601
City Hall Occupation Schedule
Saturday, March 3
6PM – Set up Tents
8PM – General Assembly
Sunday, March 4
10AM – Religious Group
11AM – Brunch
1PM – Sign Making/ Sing-a-long
3PM – Teach -Ins
5PM – Weekly Activity Planning Meeting
6PM – Dinner
7PM -Facilitator Training
8PM – General Assembly
Monday, March 5
8AM – Letter Drive (All Day)
3PM – Economic Development Foundation meeting
6PM – Dinner
8PM – General Assembly
Tuesday, March 6
8AM – Letter Drive (All Day)
4PM – Soapbox
6PM – Dinner
6:20PM – Commissioner Meeting preparedness
7PM – Commissioner Meeting
After Meeting – General Assembly
Wednesday, March 7
8AM – Letter Drive (All Day)
10AM – Knitting against Patriarchy
3PM – Mock City Commissioner Meeting
4PM – Soapbox
6PM – Dinner
8PM – General Assembly
9PM – Occupy Field Day!
Thursday, March 8
8AM – Letter Drive (All Day)
9AM – Press Conference
6PM – Dinner
8PM – General Assembly
Friday, March 9
8AM – TBA
4PM – Soapbox
8PM – General Assembly
Saturday, March 10
8AM – TBA
8PM – General Assembly
The following week will be decided upon, written and released on March 10
Website: http://www.athensoccupier.com
Follow Occupy Athens on Twitter: twitter.com/#!/occupyathensga
Facebook: www.facebook.com/groups/203509473052292
Donate to Occupy Athens:
http://m.ipetitions.com/#petition/att-surplus-petition
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Last week, a new bill was introduced in the Georgia Senate titled SB 469. This bill is an attempt to bankrupt unions in our state, and make it even more difficult for workers to organize and gain collective bargaining rights. The bill also intends to impose strict penalties and fines on those who are willing to take on the 1% and their corporate greed. Non-violent direct action has been a force for change throughout our history, from the women’s suffrage movement, to the civil rights movement and beyond. This new bill attempts to strip that power away from the people, criminalizing dissent.
Not coincidentally, this bill comes on the heels of effective actions Occupy Atlanta recently organized, such as a peaceful sit-in at Chase Bank to demand that they keep a family in their home of 57 years, or the sit-in and encampment set up at AT&T’s headquarters here in Atlanta to try to save 740 jobs. It seems as if the heads of these corporations find it easier to buy off our legislators and change our laws, rather than fix these problems that can help save our communities from further despair.
Please help us put an end to SB 469. Join us on February 29 at the Georgia State Capitol building at 9:30 AM to protest this bill and retain our right to do so.
You can also contact the sponsors of this new bill at the information below.
Bill Hamrick (R)
Senator, District 30
301 Bradley Street
Carrollton, Georgia 30117
Bill.Hamrick@senate.ga.gov
Don Balfour, (R)
2312 Waterscape Trail
Snellville, GA 30078
Phone: (770) 729-5764
don.balfour@senate.ga.gov
Bill Cowsert (R)
Senator, District 46
P.O. Box 512
Athens, GA 30603
Phone: (706) 543-7700
Ross Tolleson (R)
Senator, District 20
P.O. Box 1356
Perry, GA 31069
Phone: (478) 998-1206 (O)
(478) 987-0325 (H)
a meeting at AT&T’s Atlanta headquarters, located at 675 West Peachtree St.
It is there, in this meeting, where they will be given notice of their official
layoff date. Being told you are being laid off is almost always devastating, but
in these economic times it can be downright terrifying. With unemployment,
foreclosures, and homelessness at record rates, being jobless in this city is no
easy feat. To add insult to injury, AT&T had record profits last year,
pulling in over $127 million in revenue, and compensated their CEO, Randall
Stephenson, over $27 million.
Last week, Occupy Atlanta set up an encampment in
front of the building at 675 West Peachtree St to demand AT&T put a stop to
these layoffs. We are committed to staying put until all the layoffs are
rescinded, and/or all 740 workers will have wage/benefit protection if they are
moved to new positions. AT&T has claimed that these workers will be given
new job offers, but according to many of the workers, this is news to them.
Those who are aware of the new offers, are being asked to take positions with
considerably less pay and benefits.
This is exactly how wealth consolidation
works. What’s happening at AT&T is symbolic of what has been happening all
over the country for decades. The 1% wants to lower the standard of living for
the average American worker, all so that they can pocket some extra cash. We can
no longer allow them to squeeze every penny they can out of the 99%. The 99%
creates the wealth; it is made on our backs. It’s time these big wigs stop
getting handouts they don’t need while everyone else suffers.
Please take some time today to send AT&T a
message to
STOP ALL THE LAYOFFS!
Email CEO Randall Stephenson at
or
call Michael Matthews, VP of Labor Relations
at
(205) 977-0722
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]]>Higher Ground Empowerment Center(HGEC) is a neighborhood church in the heart of Atlanta’s Vine City. For the past 108 years, Higher Ground Empowerment Center has been a pillar in the historic Vine City community, one of Atlanta’s most under-resourced communities. HGEC has offered an array of much-needed programs and services including free healthcare screenings, a food pantry, job fairs, an annual Vine City Thanksgiving dinner, Karate classes for youth, Saturday tutorials, and summer camps for students.
In 2008, the church suffered a major blow in the form of a disastrous tornado that ripped apart the property. In order to rebuild, the church was forced to take out a loan, one that became increasingly difficult to pay back and unrepresentative of the resale opportunities as donations and property values fell during the recession. The church repeatedly attempted to refinance the loan to be more representative of the property’s value, but BB&T, a company whose CEO, Kelly King, claims that their “foreclosure process is a values based on an approach where [they] work with our clients,” has not responded. The cruel irony is that BB&T bank spends about 5 million dollars a year on teaching positions and research on what they refer to as “the moral foundations of capitalism.” We find these morals and values suspiciously absent when the opportunity to profit off of the very people who bailed out BB&T to the tune of $3.1 billion comes about.
HGEC’s Pastor Dexter Johnson stated, “108 years of history, we don’t want to see it disappear, be lost in foreclosure. 2012 is the year of triumph. Though we may be down, we are not broken, we will not be moved.”
Occupy Atlanta stands in solidarity with HGEC and the Vine city community. 1/12/12 Occupy Atlanta will be holding a press conference at HGEC, 561 spencer st NW Atlanta 30314 at 11am. We will be setting up an encampment outside the church and will not leave until BB&T makes a deal that works for the church.
]]>This past Tuesday Occupy Atlanta set up encampments on the lawns of two metro Atlanta Homes. Both families have complex differences in their hardships, but they also share a common problem, a problem that is sadly facing millions of Americans.
Eloise Pittman and Brigitte Walker are both being foreclosed on and face eviction this winter. The irresponsible practices of the big banks have put millions of homes at risk and are holding America’s economy hostage.
Eloise Pittman bought her home at 404 Glen Iris Dr in 1953. After working in the education system for years, she finally settled in to a life of retirement. At 62 years old, Eloise heard her church needed help. Being a woman of faith, she went to the bank to see if she could take out a loan and was approved for a $312,000 loan. This loan would have cost her a million dollars to repay. As a senior living on a fixed income she never should have been offered this loan in the first place. The bank gave her this predatory loan knowing she wouldn’t be able to pay it back.
Eloise Pittman passed away last week. Her family is now left with a mountain of debt, and is trying to save a home that’s been in their family for over 50 years. Chase bank has been unwilling to find a solution that keeps them in their home.
Brigitte Walker is a decorated Iraq War veteran. She entered the army right out of high school and served for 21 years. In 2007 she was medically discharged. As a result she is now living on a fixed income and struggling to find work. Now she is facing eviction. After putting her life on the line for her country, it’s time that someone step up to defend her from this injustice.
Both mortgages are owned by Chase bank. Today, we appeal to you for help. Can you take the time to email, call, and fax the CEO of Chase Bank with one simple demand; Make the mortgages for wounded Iraq veteran Brigitte Walker(2706 South Hills, Riverdale Ga) and recently deceased Elosie Pittman(404 Glen Iris Dr., Atlanta Ga) work. Keep both families in their homes!
Contact Chase Bank Chairman and CEO Jamie Dimon:
Fax- 212-270-1121
Email- Jamie.dimon@jpmchase.com
Phone- 212-270-1111
All this action takes is the commitment to send a few messages, the commitment of a few minutes of your time. That commitment could help keep two families in their homes for the winter and send a message to the big banks that we will not let them make Americans pay the price for their irresponsible practices. We are the 99%, and we out number bank executives.
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