On Sunday, Sept. 7, 2003, it seemed as if the whole
Lower East Side came out - not only Latinos, but also blacks,
whites and Chinese. Over a thousand people who live or work in
the community came to a town hall meeting to express anger at
the shameful way the government is stealing 9-11 relief money
from the poor and handing it over to big real estate. The Lower
Manhattan Development Corporation (LMDC), which is responsible
for dispensing federal anti-poverty money to help those affected
by the post-9-11 economic downturn, had denied benefits to many
in the room, sometimes because they lived outside an arbitrarily-set
boundary, sometimes with no explanation at all. LMDC, Governor
Pataki and Mayor Bloomberg plan on using $50 million of what they
call a "surplus" of these funds to build luxury housing
for the rich. Two years after the disaster of 9-11, the health
of the people in Lower Manhattan deteriorates day by day while
the government continues to give victim's relief money to the
rich so they can make more money and drive out the poor through
gentrification. The town hall meeting shows a long-term movement
to fight for the health of the community is really taking root.
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