James E. Causey

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Little has changed since the book “Evicted” turned a spotlight on the eviction crisis in Milwaukee’s poorest neighborhoods, according to author Matthew Desmond.

Desmond, a professor at Princeton University, embedded himself in Milwaukee in 2008 and 2009 to focus on the housing crisis. He said he chose Milwaukee because the eviction story here was similar to other cities, such as Kansas City and Cleveland, and Milwaukee's situation "tells an American story".

“If you ask me if (the numbers) are much better (in Milwaukee), then the answer would be no,” said Desmond, a sociologist. “Things are still bad, but I think what we are hearing is that after 'Evicted' other cities are saying, 'Look at us — We’re bad, too.'"

Desmond will visit Milwaukee on May 16 for his first public lecture here since winning a 2017 Pulitzer Prize for his book. The event is part of the 150th anniversary of Jewish Family Services.

When "Evicted" was released in 2016, Desmond reported that Milwaukee landlords were evicting 16,000 adults and children each year because they either fell behind in their rent; landlord foreclosure; or the property was being condemned. Thus, more than one in eight renters in the city were forced to move between 2009 and 2011.

In April, the Eviction Lab, Desmond’s research group at Princeton University, released the first-ever data set about evictions across 48 states by looking at 80 million eviction records across the country.

SERIES:50-Year Ache: How far has Milwaukee come since the 1967 civil rights marches?

The data set placed Milwaukee 59th for large cities in eviction rates at 4.25%. The top five cities on the list include: North Charleston, S.C., at 16.5%; Richmond, Va., at 11.44%; Hampton, Va., 10.49%; Newport News, Va., 10.23%; and Jackson, Miss., 8.75%.

According to data released by Legal Action of Wisconsin, there were 14,077 evictions filed in Milwaukee in 2017, up 4.6% from the 13,457 filed in 2016.

“No one should find these eviction rates acceptable,” Desmond said in an interview with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “Now that we have the data, we know that an estimated 2.3 million people live in a home that received an eviction notice. That is 36 times the number of people who died of a drug overdose in this country.”

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Last week, Mayor Tom Barrett announced a $10,000 grant from the Advancing a Healthier Wisconsin endowment aimed at bringing stakeholders involved in eviction and its prevention together to target possible solutions.

Stakeholders will study the eviction system throughout the region and develop ways to reduce evictions. A final blueprint of recommendations is expected by the end of the year.

"We have been busy on this front and my philosophy is to do what we can do so we don't get to that point to where there is a legal eviction," Barrett said. "We want to keep it out of the courts."

While more needs to be done, Barrett said the city has gone after notorious landlords like Elijah Mohammad Rashaed, who was accused of exploiting desperate tenants by renting out unsafe properties. The City Attorney's Office initially sought to place Rashaed's properties in receivership, but reached an agreement calling for him to sell the 166 properties owned by him and 18 LLCs he controls.

Barrett said "Evicted" helped to lay out the problems, but now it’s time to brainstorm solutions that can work.

Desmond, who earned his PhD in 2010 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said the eviction crisis is among the most urgent and pressing issues facing the country today. He also called it one of the most traumatic.

“Being evicted has a tremendous impact on the lives of adults and children. It’s completely devastating to have all your stuff placed out on the street. Your kids have to change schools; you often have to move to a worse neighborhood; and on top of that you carry the blemish of an eviction on your record, making it hard for you to find safe and affordable housing again,” Desmond said.

Biggest misconceptions

While there are many factors that lead to a person being evicted, one of the biggest misconceptions is that people are lazy or living beyond their means, Desmond said.

Desmond used Lamar — not his real name — in his book as an example of how low-wages keep people in a constant struggle for housing.

Lamar had a monthly income of $628, while his rent was $550.

“When you are spending 70 to 80% of your income on rent, it leaves little room for anything else,” Desmond said. “One mistake or mishap and you can end up homeless.”

That could be something as simple as a medical emergency or reduced hours at work. Either can put a person so far behind in their finances that they can't catch up.

In Milwaukee, nearly a third of renters paid half or more of their income to put a roof over their heads in 2016, according to a Journal Sentinel analysis of data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The analysis of monthly rents showed people in some of the most impoverished areas of the city often pay $750 to $900 per month in rent. Renters in middle and upper-middle class neighborhoods on the south and western sides of the city pay similar amounts.

That means residents in the lowest-income, mostly African-American neighborhoods face some of the highest relative rent costs in the city.

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While Desmond wished readers could have compassion for people in Lamar’s shoes, he said race also plays a role in how we view people in these positions.

Studies have shown that white Americans have limits on their compassion when they believe African-Americans are disproportionately benefiting from programs such as rental assistance, food stamps or energy assistance.

A 2017 New York Times opinion piece — "What Do We Think Poverty Looks Like?" —argued media professionals tend to "portray poverty as if it is rare for anyone but black Americans," while poor whites mostly show up in stories about hunger and old age.

“That’s been proven time and time again, but we must make them understand that this is not about a social good, it’s about real people and real lives. It’s about children, and it’s about health and stress and everything else,” Desmond said.

RELATED: 'Evicted' depicts Milwaukeeans struggling to find affordable housing

Milwaukee educator and civil rights activist Howard Fuller agreed.

Fuller believes one of the best ways to close the longstanding educational gap between blacks and whites is to make sure disadvantaged children of color are in safe and affordable housing and neighborhoods.

Young people living in safe housing perform better in school and have better educational outcomes, said Fuller, a former Milwaukee Public Schools superintendent who now runs a charter high school, Milwaukee Collegiate Academy, at N. 28th and W. Capitol Drive.

Better housing comes with livable-wage employment opportunities. In Milwaukee, about 27,000 households make less than $10,000 a year, Fuller said.

According to the 2017 federal poverty guidelines, an individual making $12,060 annually is considered impoverished. A family of two: $16,240.

“We know we have young men and young women and families out there looking for housing in this city who are homeless," Fuller said. "There are people without jobs and without housing and without hope. We have got to end this. This is not acceptable.”

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Barrett echoed that better-paying jobs are the key, but he argued Gov. Scott Walker, a Republican, and the state must be on-board with helping Milwaukee.

“You can’t just have a governor who touts the number of jobs but then you have people working, even working full time who are living in poverty,” Barrett said. “All that glitters isn’t gold when you look at jobs.”

Eviction court

Fixing the eviction crisis is not easy, but there are things that can work.

Desmond said he would start by fixing the inequalities in eviction court, which he says doesn’t function as an institution of justice.

In eviction court, most people being evicted don’t show up because they don’t have a lawyer and Legal Action of Wisconsin can only help about 3% of the people being evicted.

Most landlords have experience in court or have an attorney to represent them.

RELATED: Landlord Games: Milwaukee landlords have learned how to play the system, leaving taxpayers to foot the bill

In New York City, for example, more people show up to eviction court because the law guarantees legal representation for every resident facing eviction.

The city became the first in the nation to establish a "right to counsel" in housing cases for the poor in July 2017. Advocates for the disadvantaged pushed for the law because landlords had lawyers 90% of the time, while tenants had representation less than 10% of the time.

In Milwaukee, when a person says that they didn’t pay their rent, the case is over. In Cleveland, they ask why, Desmond said.

“If it’s because of a relapse, then they are connected to the right resources," he said. "A job loss, then they try to work something out to keep the person from being on the street.”

In Boston, there is even a one-time infusion of financial assistance that keeps a person in the home.

“We found out that this one-time fund has helped keep 80% of the renters housed up to four years later,” he said.

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Based on his research, Desmond said Milwaukee renters who have been evicted were 25% more likely to experience long-term housing problems, and women who have been evicted have suffered depression up to two years after their eviction.

Deedee Peterson, associate executive director of Legal Action Wisconsin, said her organization provides freelegal representation to people in eviction court three days a week, helping 12 to 30 people per week.

But they can't keep up with the 40 to 60 eviction cases heard a day.

Desmond would also like to see an expansion of affordable housing and a massive expansion of housing vouchers. He says safe housing leads to healthier families and would stabilize neighborhoods so people can build roots and feel vested.

A 2017 University of Maryland study found that people receiving housing assistance are more likely to have access to medical insurance, meaning that they are more likely to seek medical attention before an issue become chronic and more expensive.

Over the long-haul, money is saved, he said, because unstable neighborhoods become safer, reducing the police presence.

Desmond said historically unfair legal practices have hurt African-Americans when it comes to housing. In 1932, 99% of black families did not own their homes; the fair housing bill was not passed until 1968. Subprime lending practices also hurt black families along with racial discrimination and segregation, Desmond said.

"It's a reason why only 40% of black families own their homes compared to 71% of white families," he said.

Desmond said everyone must take responsibility for the eviction crisis in cities such as Milwaukee.

“We got to this crisis point because no one feels responsible for it,” he said. “But we make decisions to send our kids to private schools or move to Whitefish Bay.”

The same people complain when their neighborhood schools are failing and the property tax rate rises, Desmond said.

“I feel like we have a responsibility to talk about poverty as a relation to people and community instead of treating it like an isolated thing,” he said.

Reporter Kevin Crowe of the Journal Sentinel staff contributed to this report.

'Evicted' author's visit

Matthew Desmond will visit Milwaukee May 16 for a luncheon entitled "Home and Hope: A Community Call to Action." The event, the 150th anniversary celebration for Jewish Family Services, will run from noon to 3:30 p.m. at the Potawatomi Hotel and Casinon, 1721 W. Canal St.

Tickets cost $125 and reserved tables start at $1,500. To register go to: https://tinyurl.com/y9958dcb

Read the series

To read the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's 50-Year Ache series, exploring where we stand a half-century after the civil rights marches of 1967 and 1968, go to jsonline.com/50year.