Having trouble renting with a service animal?

Many renters who have a disability and use a service or companion animal experience difficulties finding stable housing. This is true for some of the people who come to the Housing Stabilization Services program at Solid Ground. HSS supports families and individuals who are at imminent risk of housing loss so they can secure stable housing and prevent homelessness.

HSS case managers negotiate with prospective landlords on behalf of people who face housing barriers such as: economic, credit and background issues, or other risk factors preventing housing stabilization. People who have a disability and use a service animal may have been wrongfully denied housing many times and have a much harder time finding housing. While denying someone based on this status is discriminatory according to Federal and State laws, it is an all-too-common problem.

Individuals who use a service or companion animal are a protected class. Refusing to rent to them is discrimination and is illegal. Both Federal and State laws prohibit discrimination based on the use of a service animal. Discrimination in housing is detailed in the Fair Housing Act and Washington State Law.

When landlords deny housing to individuals with a disability, oftentimes their explanation has been that they have a “no pet policy.” According to the law, a service animal is considered to be a working animal, not a pet. The service animal must be permitted to accompany the person with a disability to any area where the public is allowed.

Moreover, housing providers must accommodate a person’s disability and her or his needs. A landlord or property manager cannot ask you for any details about what your disability is, nor seek proof of a service animal’s status. They may ask for a healthcare provider’s statement indicating that the tenant has a disability and will be assisted with a service animal. However, the type of disability doesn’t have to be disclosed.

You can find contact information for Fair Housing agencies through the City of Seattle’s website.

If you think that you have been discriminated against due to having a disability or based on other protected classes, please contact a Fair Housing agency in your community and ask how to file a formal complaint with them. Oftentimes Fair Housing agencies are able to provide detailed information about their complaint, investigation and fine processes before you file a complaint.

You can also access a recent Tenant Tip written by Solid Ground tenant counselors to find out more information on Fair Housing laws as well as resources to deal with discrimination. You may also access information about your rights as a renter by visiting Solid Ground’s Tenant Services website or by contacting our Tenant Services Hotline to speak with a tenant counselor about your specific situation. The tenant services hotline is open Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 10:30 am to 4:30 pm.

(Editor’s note: This post was a collaborative project between Solid Ground Tenant Counselor Edlira Kuka and HSS Case Manager Pamela Calderon.)

The tenant information contained in this article or linked to the Solid Ground Tenant Services website is for informational purposes only. Solid Ground makes no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to its website. Solid Ground cannot act as your attorney. Solid Ground makes no representations, expressed or implied, that the information contained in or linked to its website can or will be used or interpreted in any particular way by any governmental agency or court. As legal advice must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case, and laws are constantly changing, nothing provided herein should be used as a substitute for the advice of competent counsel. Solid Ground Tenant Counselors offer these tenant tips as generalized information for renters. People with specific questions should call our Tenant Services hotline at 206.694.6767  Mondays, Wednesdays & Thursdays between 10:30 am and 4:30 pm.

Huge Success at 2011 Hempfest Voter Registration Drive!

Volunteer Juan Vega & the Washington Bus' Vote Bot registering voters

This past weekend, Solid Ground’s Statewide Poverty Action Network – in partnership with Seattle Hempfest – registered over 1,100 new voters! We made a significant impact in changing what voting power looks like in Washington State as part of our outreach and Vote for a Change Campaign, which focuses on voter registration, education and vote participation in low-income communities and communities of color.

An essential part of our outreach is to educate communities about the 2009 Voter Restoration Act, which Poverty Action was instrumental in passing. The Voter Restoration Act restores the right to vote for 400,000 previously incarcerated persons, who are also disproportionately people of color.

Before this law passed, previously incarcerated people were required to pay all legal financial obligations to restore their voting rights. This barrier particularly impacted people living on low incomes. Now, you can vote as soon as you are no longer under the Department of Correction’s supervision.

Of our 1,100 newly registered voters, at least 50% were previously incarcerated persons. This was a great accomplishment, and we will continue to do this imperative outreach so that people of color and people living on low incomes will no longer be marginalized from the political process.

A volunteer shared, “People who had been denied the right to vote, some for over 10 years, were so empowered and excited when they registered, I wanted to cry.”

Special thanks to Juan Vega, a Poverty Action Board member, whose life passion is to address race and class inequalities through empowering previously incarcerated persons. Juan was instrumental in organizing a beautiful weekend of sun, food, fun and anti-poverty movement building!

We had over 60 volunteers with us throughout the weekend, registering and engaging with people about how we can tackle the root causes of poverty with our voting power! Among our volunteers were Cheryl Cobbs Murphy, Executive Director of Solid Ground, members of Equal Rights Washington and Washington Bus, Poverty Action Board members and dedicated volunteers. Thanks to all of our amazing members and volunteers, we were able to increase the voting power of low-income communities and communities of color!

Low-cost Internet for families receiving free school lunches

Editor’s Note: This article was originally written by Lambert Rochfort for the Seattle/King County Community Voice Mail Blog.

Would your family like to have high-speed Internet at home but can’t afford it? A new program from Comcast called Internet Essentials offers high-speed Internet for $10/month, a laptop computer for $150, and free Internet training, for families with children who receive free school lunches through the National School Lunch Program.

The Internet Essentials program was created because, when Comcast acquired NBC Universal in January, the Federal Communications Commission signed off on the merger so long as Comcast agreed to help low-income households get online.

Participants in the Internet Essentials program will receive:

• Fast home Internet for just $9.95 a month + tax.
• A low-cost netbook computer available at initial enrollment for just $149.99 + tax.
• Access to free Internet training, online, in print and/or in the classroom.
• Norton Security Suite online security software, with parental controls.

The computer is optional, you do not have to get the computer to receive discounted internet service. If you chose to buy the $150 computer, they will send you a computer coupon, a list of eligible computers and a list of local stores that sell those computers and accept Comcast vouchers.

Comcast promises that there will be no price increases, no activation fees, and no equipment rental fees.

With cable Internet like Comcast Internet Essentials, your family should be able to do all the things they want to do online, like email, homework, sharing photos, job searches, paying bills, watching videos, downloading music and more. The download speed is up to 1.5 Mb per second and upload speed is up to 384 Kb per second.

Your household is eligible to participate if it meets all of the following criteria:

• You are located where Comcast offers Internet service: Comcast does offer Internet in most of King County; when you apply for the program, they can tell you whether their Internet service is available at your address.
• You have not subscribed to Comcast Internet service within the last 90 days.
• You do not have an overdue Comcast bill or unreturned equipment.
• You have at least one child receiving free school lunches under the National School Lunch Program: Children are eligible to receive free school lunches if their household income is below 130% of Federal Poverty Level, which amounts to monthly income of $1,594 for a family of two, $2,008 a month for a family of three, $2,422 for a family of four, $2,836 for a family of five (and add $414 of monthly income for each additional family member).

Customers will be accepted into the program for three full school years. Any household that qualifies during the next three school years will remain eligible for the program as long as a child eligible for a free school lunch is still living in the household. To participate in Internet Essentials, you must verify that your child is currently certified to receive free school lunches by providing a copy of this year’s acceptance letter or other document from your child’s school or school district demonstrating free-lunch status at their school. You will need to re-certify your child’s school enrollment each year to continue to participate in Internet Essentials and receive a discounted Internet service rate.

Starting this school year, families may sign up for Internet Essentials by calling 1-855-8-INTERNET (1-855-846-8376). Note that an application is not available publicly, you must call Comcast to request an application. When you call, they will verify your eligibility and then mail you a customized application to your address, which only you can use. If your application is approved they will send you an acceptance letter with instructions on how to get your internet service set up. For more information call 1-855-846-8376 or visit their website InternetEssentials.com.

Note: Solid Ground does not yet have any experience with or feedback about this service. If you sign up, let us know how it goes for you! Thanks.

Cooking Matters: Learning about Ramadan

Janna dePorter is an AmeriCorps/VISTA Member doing a year of service with Solid Ground’s Cooking Matters program, which provides classes on nutrition, healthy cooking and food budgeting for people at risk of hunger and malnutrition. This post is adapted from the Cooking Matters Seattle blog.

Ramadan 2011 runs from August 1st to the 30th

The sun is finally out to stay and I’m extremely happy. It’s finally summer! Things are beginning to slow down here at the office as summer classes come to an end and fall classes have yet to begin. We’ve had Cooking Matters classes all over the city and beyond. Claire Leamy, Cooking Matters Supervisor, has been doing a kids’ class down at Marra Farm using the fresh produce that has been grown there. Emily Gordon, Cooking Matters Program Coordinator,  just did a kids’ class series in one week while they were in summer camp. I’ve been doing family and adult classes both north and south of the city.

By doing classes with people from all over the King County area, we are exposed to a variety of cultures, languages and religious practices. It’s wonderful to see how different people live and eat and to see the many ways that health can be achieved.

Ramadan began yesterday and has had an impact on our classes. Ramadan is the Islamic holiday that occurs during the 9th month of the Islamic calendar. Muslims fast from food and drink during daylight hours and break the fast each evening once the sun has gone down. You can imagine the impact that has had on some of our classes! The majority of our classes occur during daylight hours, so practicing Muslims are unable to eat during our classes.

This has made me reflect on how important it is to be aware of the different practices and beliefs that exist in the world. For instance, many members of one of my classes told me that they would be unable to attend class because of Ramadan. I assumed that if we packed up the food we made in class for them that they would be able to still attend. It never occurred to me that they would be spending hours preparing for Iftar, the meal that breaks the fast at sunset.

There is so much more to the month of Ramadan than the fast. There is a greater focus on prayer, charity and kindness to one another. The preparation of food for Iftar brings family together as members of the family make their contributions to the meal. As one girl in Claire’s class said, “We fast for a month to remember that there are poor people that don’t have enough to eat and that we are lucky to have enough.” What I missed about Ramadan was the greater implications it has on the participants beyond the food. So, happy Ramadan to all those celebrating and enjoy all of its aspects!

Bearing down with white privilege

Roger Clemens with a fan

As a white person engaged in anti-racism work, one of the things I struggle to get a firm grip on is my white privilege: that internal voice and belief system that tells me everything is going to be ok and I’ll usually come out on top.

It’s an arrogance that comes from looking like the people who have ruled this country for generations, regardless of my own personal or family story.

I’m raising a teenage daughter and working hard not to pass on the blind sense of privilege I inherited. Never mind the fact that I’m not too far removed from immigrant grandparents who had barely a grade-school education. My parents were both professionals with advanced degrees. No matter how much they might have suffered as first generation Americans, they passed on to me the internalized expectation that I was as good as anyone, that I would have adequate, if not surplus, resources and never know want. I am white, a man, and now, unfailingly older – privileged to the power of three.

Through my experience with the anti-racism organizing at Solid Ground, I have learned to identify my privileges. I strive to recognize my privilege programming in my daily interactions with others, and to recognize that my sense of entitlement and privilege is far from the reality of most who come to Solid Ground for work, services or a way to participate in building a better community.

I was reminded of the benefits of white privilege in a round-about way last month. Reading the The Seattle Times Sports section, I learned that famous pitcher Roger Clemens’ trial for perjury ended in mistrial. Clemens was accused  of lying in statements made during previous legal actions concerning his alleged use of performance enhancing drugs.

Judge Reggie Walton ruled that prosecutors had used “extremely prejudicial” evidence in the trial and let him off on what amounts to a technicality. Clemens’ crack legal team and the incompetence of prosecutors assigned to the case got him off the hook.

On the other hand, our judicial system is stuffed full of people, disproportionately people of color, who have been entrapped, held and convicted because of prejudicial evidence, overbearing police tactics and unprepared civil defense teams. The vast majority of people who are incarcerated do not have access to the high-powered defense team Clemens bought.

And they certainly don’t have fans throughout the court system the way Clemens does.

Following the trial’s abrupt end, Clemens “accepted hugs from a couple of court workers, shook hands with the security guards, and autographed baseballs for fans…” before “ducking into a nearby restaurant to escape the media horde following him.”

So, he strode into the courtroom, an award-winning pitcher taking to the mound, knowing his fastball and location would overwhelm his opponent. More disenfranchised people approach court expecting they will lose, regardless of the truth, and that their human dignity might well be assaulted along the way.

I’ve never thrown a Big League pitch nor made millions doing anything. But I share Clemens’ arrogance and assumption that I will win, that the world will take care of me. The real question, I guess, is what I do with that knowledge…

Tenant Tip: Changes to the Residential Landlord-Tenant Act

Washington State capitol building

Several sections of the Residential Landlord-Tenant Act (RLTA) recently changed and took effect as of July 22, 2011. The changes to these sections of the law came about through a consensus-based process between landlord groups and tenant advocates working with state legislators in passing this bill. Because of the consensus process, there are many more changes that tenant advocates would like to see made to the RLTA, however many of those changes did not take effect during the last legislative session.

The next several tenant tips will discuss these changes, give a brief overview of what they mean for tenants, and describe how they may be different from the laws prior to this bill passing.

Because the tenant tip is not legal advice and cannot be regarded as such, this general information can be used for tenants to learn about the law changes and understand how they may affect someone’s particular situation as well as what steps to take in asserting renters’ rights based on the law.

The law changes include:

• new sections added to the RLTA .
• language that was removed or added to existing sections.
• clarifications to some definitions.

While several tenant tips to follow in the next few months will address each change and give more detailed information, tenants can access the state’s legislature website to read on Substitute House Bill 1266, which includes the changes to the RLTA.

The information contained in these Tenant Tips or linked to the Solid Ground Tenant Services website is for informational purposes only. Solid Ground makes no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to its website. Solid Ground cannot act as your attorney. Solid Ground makes no representations, expressed or implied, that the information contained in or linked to its website can or will be used or interpreted in any particular way by any governmental agency or court. As legal advice must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case, and laws are constantly changing, nothing provided herein should be used as a substitute for the advice of competent counsel. Solid Ground Tenant Counselors offer these tenant tips as generalized information for renters. People with specific questions should call our Tenant Services hotline at 206.694.6767  Mondays, Wednesdays & Thursdays between 10:30 am and 4:30 pm.

My Plate

Choose My Plate is the new Food Pyramid

Something exciting happened a few weeks ago. The USDA came out with a new food guide called My Plate. It’s great because it gives a good idea of how your plate should be divided up by the different food groups. I like that it’s so much easier to teach! A plate really makes sense to people, and I think it’s a really great model for how we should eat – especially with half of our plate filled with fruits and veggies. You can learn more at the USDA’s ChooseMyPlate.gov. It’s a fun website to poke around to learn about the different food groups and the nutrients they provide. There are also some resources for estimating how many calories a person needs and how many calories are in certain foods. So check it out and have fun!

Help us make our CoHo Team match for Family Shelter!

This past weekend, we had an awesome turnout at the Fremont Outdoor Movie! We raised $4,772.10 for our Family Shelter program, which provides vital emergency shelter and support services for homeless families. THANK YOU to all who came, and to the CoHo Team of Windermere Agents, event organizers for the past eight years, who are matching all donations dollar-for-dollar!

 

We are so close to our goal of raising $5,000 that CoHo will match all donations given online through Friday, August 5th! Go to support.solid-ground.org/COHO now to support Family Shelter and help us reach our goal! 

 

A big thank you also goes to Tutta Bella, QFC, Satay, Hawaiian Breeze Island Cuisine and Fainting Goat Gelato for donating gift cards to our raffle!

Solid Ground group before The Princess Bride screening