Our NMASS Lower East Side Workers Center at 77 Ludlow Street has helped over 2,000 residents file LMDC Residential Grant applications and send protest letters to pressure Governor Pataki. We also brought together over 1,300 community members to a Town Hall Meeting at Seward Park High School to discuss how rebuilding funds should be spent. On March 31, we held a press conference at which we delivered 2,500 protest letters to Pataki, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and State Senate leader Joe Bruno, demanding that they immediately use the $1.2 billion the LMDC still has to pay us and protect our families.

So where's our money now? Pataki is using our money to help landlords and real estate developers push poor people out of the Lower East Side. He's given millions of dollars to wealthy Battery Park & Tribeca residents and nothing to the Lower East Side. And he already transferred $50 million from the Residential Grant Program to subsidize luxury housing for the rich. And Pataki and the LMDC haven't even responded to the thousands of applications LES residents have sent. A few of us have gotten denial letters, but most haven't heard anything. It's clear that Pataki wants to "rebuild Lower Manhattan" by kicking out low-income working people.

What's our plan? We gave Pataki, Silver and Bruno 30 days to respond to our protest letters. Their time is up. Now, we're launching a voter education campaign, mobilizing residents, community groups, churches and service agencies to hold these elected officials responsible. We want you to join us to mobilize our friends and neighbors to speak out against the discrimination and inequality we've faced for too long.

If you haven't received your LMDC 9/11 money, you need to come join us on Sunday, June 6 at 2 p.m. at the Our Lady of Sorrows Church "Bingo Hall" at 103 Pitt Street, between Rivington and Stanton. We will hold an important Community Meeting to talk about our next steps to fight for our money and our homes. Please don't hesitate to call us at (212) 358-0295 for more information.

Together, we can fight and win. It's now or never.