WORKINPROGRESSLawyersand"Social"Movements:AstoryaboutthePuertoRico"Zero

Evictions"Coalition MyrtaMorales‐Cruz1

"Politics,beforeallelse,isaninterventioninthevisibleandthesayable."‐JacquesRancière,"Ten ThesesonPolitics".2

"Democracy is the institutionofpoliticsas such,ofpoliticsas a paradox. Why a paradox? Because the institution ofpoliticsseemstoprovideananswertothekeyquestionastowhatitisthatgroundsthepowerofruleinacommunity.Anddemocracyprovidesananswer,butitisanastonishingone:namely,thattheverygroundforthepowerofrulingisthat there is no ground at all."‐ Jacques Rancière, "DoesDemocracyMeanSomething?"3

Introduction

The literature related to lawyers and "social"movements has focused on how

lawyerscanhamper"social"movementsandhasaddressedtherolethatlawyersplayin

already established movements. In this paper, I wish to explore the possibility of

lawyersplayingacrucialroleinthecreationofmovementsthatIwillcallpoliticaland

democraticmovements.4Iwillverybrieflyaddresssomeoftheliteratureregardingthe

topicoflawyersand"social"movementsandwillreflectonmyexperiencesasalawyer

attempting to support the creation of a political and democratic movement against

evictionsoflow‐incomecommunitiesinPuertoRicoandthechallengesthatIhavefaced

inthisendeavor.TheworkoftheFrenchphilosopherJacquesRancièrewillbeusedasa

backgroundformyreflection.Excerptsfromhiswritingswillbewovenintothispaper.

1IwouldliketothankÉrikaFontánez‐Torres,LuisJoséTorres‐AsencioandWilliamVázquez‐Irizarryfortheirhelpfulandinsightfulcommentsonthispaper.2JACQUESRANCIÈRE,TenThesesonPolitics,inDISSENSUS:ONPOLITICSANDAESTHETICS37(StevenCorcoraned.&trans.,2010).3JACQUESRANCIÈRE,DoesDemocracyMeanSomething?,inDISSENSUS:ONPOLITICSANDAESTHETICS50(StevenCorcoraned.&trans.,2010).4JACQUESRANCIÈRE,HATREDOFDEMOCRACY56(StevenCorcoraned.&trans.,2010).

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Iseektohighlighthisscholarship,whichIhavefoundtobeextremelyvaluableformy

work.5 ByincludingmanyexcerptsfromRancière'swritingsIamattemptingtobring

his voice closer to the readers of this paper. I do notwant to "explicate"6 Rancière,

ratherIseektodirectlypresenthisworkandlinkittomyown.

Drawingfromtheliteraturerelatedtocollaborativelawyering,thecritical legal

studiesmovement,Rancière'swork,andmyexperiences,Iwillreflectonthepossibility

of lawyers claiming a space for a more politicized version of "law" in struggles for

change:aroleforlawandlawyersthatcouldpotentiallyserveasacatalytic7agentfor

politicalanddemocraticmovements.Thisisapedagogicalpracticehavingequalityasa

"presupposition"inwhichthegroupslearnthattheycanbetheirownadvocates.8The

lawyerbecomesaninvisiblefigureservingasalinkbetweendifferentgroupswhoface

similargrievances.He/Sheblursthedistinctionbetweenlegalandextralegalstrategies

and aims to create a space where voices and faces from marginalized groups can

emergeinthepublicsphere.Thelawyer,workinginpartnershipwiththemarginalized

groups, seeks to present the claims of the marginalized groups as "a public matter

affecting the collectivity, and, as a result, something that ought to come within the

domainofcollectiveaction,publicdiscussionandlegislativeregulation."9

ThestoryofthePuertoRicoZeroEvictionsCoalitionwillserveasabackground

formyreflection. Thecoalition iscomposedofpeople from low‐incomecommunities

5 IhavereadRancièreinEnglish,not intheoriginalFrench. OtherwritingsbyRancièrenotquotedinthis paper but related to this discussion are: JACQUES RANCIÈRE, DISAGREEMENT: POLITICS AND PHILOSOPHY(JulieRose trans., 1999); JACQUESRANCIÈRE, THEPHILOSOPHER ANDHIS POOR (AndrewParkered.& trans.,2004),andJACQUESRANCIÈRE,DemocraciesAgainstDemocracy,inDEMOCRACYINWHATSTATE?76(AmyAllened.&WilliamMcCraigtrans.,2011).6See JACQUESRANCIÈRE,THE IGNORANTSCHOOLMASTER: FIVELESSONS IN INTELLECTUALEMANCIPATION (KristinRosstrans.withandintroduction1991).7LucieWhitehaswrittenaboutlawyersas"catalysts"forsocialchange.SeeLucieE.White,CollaborativeLawyeringintheField?OnMappingthePathsfromRhetorictoPractice,1CLINICALL.REV.157(1994).8SeeRANCIÈRE,supranote6.Theword "presupposition" is taken fromthe Introduction to thebookbyKristinRoss,atxix.9RANCIÈRE,supranote4,at57.

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who are struggling against the threat of eviction, whether it entails demolition of a

publichousingprojectorexpropriationfromurbanorcoastalareas. WhenIrefer to

"thestory",Iam,ofcourse,writingthestoryoftheCoalitionastoldbyme,thelawyer

whoactivelyparticipatedinitscreation.

AbriefglimpseatsomeoftheliteratureonLawyersandSocialMovements

Professors Austin Sarat and Stuart Scheingold, both professors of Political

Science,haveproducedaseriesofbooksonwhattheyhavecalled"CauseLawyering".10

One of their most recent is entitled "Cause Lawyers and Social Movements"11 and

provides a good starting point to briefly discuss Rancière's views on "social"

movements.SaratandScheingolddescribetheirpreviousworkandthebookonsocial

movementsinthefollowingmanner:

Inourpreviousworkwehaveattendedtothewayslawyersconstructcausesand causes supply lawyers with something to believe in (Scheingold andSarat 2005) as well as to ways commitment to a cause challengesconventional ideas of lawyerprofessionalism (Sarat and Scheingold1998).InCauseLawyersandSocialMovementsweshiftthefocusintwoways.First,wemove from an analysis of causes to a concernwith social movements.Second,weturnourattentionfromthewaycauselawyeringarticulateswiththeprojectoftheorganizedlegalprofessiontotheexplicitlypoliticalworkofcauselawyers.12

They adopt the definition of "social movement" provided by the sociologist

CharlesTilly:

...a sustained series of interactions between power holders and personssuccessfully claiming to speak on behalf of a constituency lacking formalrepresentation, in the courseofwhich thosepersonsmakepublicly visible

10SeeCAUSELAWYERINGPOLITICALCOMMITMENTSANDPROFESSIONALRESPONSIBILITIES (AustinSarat&StuartA.Scheingoldeds.,1998);CAUSELAWYERINGANDTHESTATEINAGLOBALERA(AustinSarat&StuartA.Scheingoldeds., 2001); AUSTIN SARAT & STUART A. SCHEINGOLD, SOMETHING TO BELIEVE IN: POLITICS, PROFESSIONALISM ANDCAUSELAWYERING(2004);THEWORLDSCAUSELAWYERSMAKE:STRUCTUREANDAGENCYINLEGALPRACTICE(AustinSarat&StuartA. Scheingoldeds,2005);CAUSE LAWYERSANDSOCIALMOVEMENTS (AustinSarat&StuartA.Scheingoldeds.,2006).11SeeCAUSELAWYERSANDSOCIALMOVEMENTS(AustinSarat&StuartA.Scheingoldeds.,2006).12AUSTINSARAT&STUARTA.SCHEINGOLD, Introduction inCAUSELAWYERSANDSOCIALMOVEMENTS1‐2(AustinSarat&StuartA.Scheingoldeds.,2006).

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demandsforchangesinthedistributionorexerciseofpower,andbackthosedemandswithpublicdemonstrationsofsupport.13

Thisdefinitionisproblematicsinceitcreatesaseparationbetweenthepolitical

and the social,with the effect of entrenching a separationbetween those entitled "to

rule"andthose inthemovement,whoareconfinedtothe"social". It isalsoofgreat

concernitsreferencetopeoplespeaking"onbehalf"ofothers.Rancièreelaborateson

thisinthefollowingmanner:

These struggles, owing to their sites and objects, have generally beendescribed as social movements: disputes over salaries and workingconditions, andbattlesoverhealth and retirement systems. However, thisdesignationisambiguous.Infact,itpresupposesagivendistributionofthepolitical and the social, orof thepublic and theprivate, that is in reality apoliticalcontentionpertainingtoequalityandinequality.Thedisputesoversalarieswereabovealldisputesaboutdeprivatizingthewagerelation,aboutproclaimingthatitwasneitherarelationofmastertoservantnorasimplecontractformedoncase‐by‐casebasisbetweentwoprivateindividuals,butapublicmatteraffectingthecollectivity,and,asaresult,somethingthatoughtto come within the domain of collective action, public discussion andlegislativeregulation.14The canonical distinction between the political and the social is in fact adistinction between those who are regarded as capable of taking care ofcommon problems and the future, and those who are regarded as beingunable to think beyond private and immediate concerns. The wholedemocraticprocessisaboutthedisplacementofthatboundary.15A political movement is always a movement that blurs both the givendistributionofthe individualandthecollective,andtheacceptedboundaryofthepoliticalandthesocial.16

Rancièrequestions theboundariesbetween the"social"and the "political", the

"collective"andthe"individual",andthe"public"andthe"private".Thecontentionsof

these so‐called workers' "social" movements are related to equality and inequality.

13 Id. at 3 (quoting CHARLES TILLY, Social Movements and National Politics, in STATEMAKING AND SOCIALMOVEMENTS306(CharlesBright&SusanHardingeds.,1992).14RANCIÈRE,supranote4,at5.15RANCIÈRE,supranote3at57.16RANCIÈRE,supranote4,at84.

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People involved in these movements were (are) capable of "taking care of common

problemsandthe future"andcould(can) thinkbeyondtheirprivate interests. These

movementswere(are)democraticandpoliticalmovements.

FollowingRancière's views onpolitics and democracy, Iwill now examinemy

ownworkas the lawyerwhohelped tosupport thecreationof thePuertoRico"Zero

Evictions"Coalition.

ThePuertoRico"ZeroEvictions"Coalition

LawyeringasaPedagogicalPractice

Mystorybeginswiththecreationofthecommunitydevelopmentsectioninthe

LegalAidClinicoftheUniversityofPuertoRicoSchoolofLaw.Withoutmyexperiences

as a lawyer andprofessor in the Clinic, Iwould not have thought of encouraging the

creationofacoalitionofcommunitiesfacingthethreatofeviction.FromAugustof2002

until Julyof2008, the legalworkwasdone in conjunctionwith the students.17 Since

then,Ihavecontinuedworkingwiththesecommunitiesonaprobonobasis.

In 2000, I returned to Puerto Rico after some time studying abroad. I had

returned with the idea of opening a clinical section in a law school dedicated to

"community based advocacy".18 This was the title of a class that I had taken with

ProfessorLucieE.Whitewhile anLL.M. student atHarvardLawSchool.19 Whitehas

challengedlawyers,inaseminalarticlethatshewrotein1988,tofocusonempowering

18 I have described the creation of the community development section in the Legal Aid Clinic of theUniversityofPuertoRicoSchooloflawinotherwritings.SeeMyrtaMorales‐Cruz,Nomedeselpescado,enseñámeapescar,inDerechoyPobreza187(SELA2005)(RobertoSabaed.,2006);MyrtaMorales‐Cruz,CommunityLawyeringinPuertoRico:PromotingEmpowermentandSelf‐Help,2007INTERNATIONALJOURNALOF CLINICAL LEGAL EDUCATION83 (2007) (revisedEnglish translation of 2006 article); andMyrtaMorales‐Cruz,¡LosFiltrosLuchan!ACaseStudyofLawyeringandParticipatoryDemocracy:ParticipatoryLobbyingasaStrategyforWorkingwithMarginalizedCommunities,2(1)OÑATISOCIOLEGALSERIES(2012);Availableat:http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1997412.Prof.CarmenCorrea‐Matoswasaco‐professor with me during the first three years of the clinic. She specializes in community economicdevelopment.19Thenameofthecoursewaslaterchangedto"CommunityActionforSocialandEconomicRights".

6

the communities with which they worked.20 In this article, White presented three

dimensionsofadvocacyandfocusedonthethirdone,whichshelaterdescribedinthe

followingmanner:

On the third dimension is advocacy that is focused on poor people's ownpoliticalconsciousness. Itsgoal isnot tochangeeithersocialpolicyoreliteattitudes toward the poor. Rather, “third dimensional” advocacy seeks toenablepoorpeopletoseethemselvesandtheirsocialsituationinwaysthatenhance theirworld‐changing powers. At the same time, lawyering on thethirddimensionseeks tochange theattitudesandself‐conceptsof lawyersthemselves. This work seeks to transform our own political identities,relationships,andcommitments,enablingus toworkmoreeffectivelywithhistoricallysubordinatedgroupstoachievesocialjustice.21

White'sthirddimensionof lawyeringheavilyreliesonPauloFreire'sPedagogy

oftheOppressed.22Freire'sworkshowshowacriticalconsciousnesscansurfaceamong

oppressed groupswhen they reflect together about their situation.23 It is a learning

practice that is non‐hierarchical "in which small groups reflect together upon the

immediate conditions of their lives."24 This is a "dialogic process of reflection and

action",25inwhichnooneexclusivelypossessestheteacherrole.26

In 1991 Jacques Rancière wrote The Ignorant Schoolmaster: Five Lessons in

IntellectualEmanicipation. In this bookhe describes thework of Joseph Jacototwho

was a schoolteacher in 19th century France. Jacotot announced that all peoplewere

equallyintelligentbecauseofhisownexperiencewithagroupofFlemishstudentswho

didnotknowFrenchtowhomhepresentedabilingualtext(inFrenchandFlemish)so

20SeeLucieE.White,ToLearnandToTeach: Lessons fromDriefonteinonLawyeringandPower1988WISC.L.REV.699(1988).21 SeeWhite, supra note 7, at 157‐58. Professor Gerald López has also written about this type oflawyering.which he has calledRebelliousLawyering. See GERALD P. LOPEZ, REBELLIOUS LAWYERING: ONECHICANO'S VISION OF PROGRESSIVE LAW PRACTICE ( 1992). Othershave referred to this type of lawyeringascollaborative lawyering and law and organizing. See Ascanio Piomelli, Appreciating CollaborativeLawyering,2000CLINICALL.REV. 427(2000)andScottCummings&IngridEagly,ACriticalReflectiononLaw&Organizing,48U.CLAL.REV.443(2001).22SeeWhite,supranote19,at760etseq.(citingPAULOFREIRE,,THEPEDAGOGYOFTHEOPPRESSED(1970)).23Id.24Id.at761.25Id.26Id.at762.

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thattheycould learntheFrenchlanguage: "Onecould learnbyoneselfandwithouta

master explicator when one wanted to, propelled by one's own desire or by the

constraint of the situation."27 There is no need for explication from a teacher to a

student.28FromthisexperienceRancièrederivesthe"presupposition"oftheequalityof

theintelligences:

In the experimental situation Jacotot created, the student was linked to awill,Jacotot's,andtoanintelligence‐thebook's‐thetwoentirelydistinct.Wewillcalltheknownandmaintaineddifferenceofthetworelations‐theactofan intelligence obeying only itself even while the will obeys another will‐emancipation.29

Thelawyerwhostrivestoengageinanemancipatorypracticewiththepersonor

groupswithwhomhe/sheisworkinguseshis/herwilltopresent/showthelawtothe

clientorgroup.Theylearnthattheycanbetheirownadvocates;theycantalkaboutthe

law,discussitandquestionit.Inthisway,thelawyercanbeanemancipator:

Essentially,what an emancipated person can do is be an emancipator: togive,notthekeytoknowledge,buttheconsciousnessofwhatanintelligencecandowhen it considers itself equal toanyotherandconsidersanyotherequaltoitself.30...Wecanthusdreamofasocietyoftheemancipatedthatwouldbeasocietyofartists. Such a society would repudiate the division between those whoknowandthosewhodon't,betweenthosewhopossessordon'tpossessthepropertyof intelligence. Itwouldonlyknowminds inaction: peoplewhodo,whospeakaboutwhattheyaredoing,andwhothustransformalltheirworks into ways of demonstrating the humanity that is in them as ineveryone. Such people would know that no one is born with moreintelligence than his neighbor, that the superiority that someone mightmanifest is only the fruit of as tenacious an application to working withwordsasanothermight showtoworkingwith tools; that the inferiorityofsomeoneelseistheconsequenceofcircumstancesthatdidn'tcompelhimtoseekharder.31

27RANCIÈRE,supranote6,at12.28Id.at12‐15.29Id.at13.30Id.at39.31Id.at71.

8

Itmustbeannouncedtoeveryone.First,undoubtedly,tothepoor:theyhavenootherwaytoeducatethemselvesiftheycan'tpaythesalariedexplicatororspendlongyearsonschoolbenches.Andaboveall,itisonthemthattheprejudiceoftheinequalityofintelligenceweighsmostheavily.Itistheywhomustberaisedupfromtheirhumiliatedposition.32

ThereismuchincommonbetweenLucieWhite'spedagogicallawyeringtheory,

heavily influencedbyPauloFreire, andRancière'swork in the IgnorantSchoolmaster.

White,FreireandRancièreallattackhierarchiesinpedagogyandpresentemancipatory

practices having equality as a presupposition. The lawyer or the teacher will's can

catalyze a process of emancipation. Working with the law can sometimes be

challengingwhenwearefacinganareathatisparticularlytechnical.However,frommy

experiencesIhavelearnedtoneverunderestimatethecapacityofpeopletoengageand

understand the law on their own. I had not readRancière until recently, but I have

foundhisworktobetremendouslyusefulforalawyertryingtoengageinthelawyering

workthatWhitehasdescribed.

Lawyering,PoliticsandDemocracy

Whenchoosing legalstrategies forour"clients"33 thestudentsandI lookedfor

strategiesthatcreatedaspaceforpublicparticipationandpoliticizationoflaw.Present

inLucieWhite'slawyeringtheoryistheCriticalLegalStudiesMovement'svisionoflaw

asanotherbattlegroundwherepoliticalstrugglesarefought.34 Wecenteredourwork

32Id.at106.33Iprefertheterm"groups"to"clients"sinceithasalessprofessionalized,hierarchical,connotation.34 See DUNCAN KENNEDY, A CRITIQUE OF ADJUDICATION (FIN DE SIECLE) (1997). I have previously describedWhite'sseconddimensionoflawyeringinthefollowingmanner:

Inthesecondimageoflawyering,"lawasapublicconversation",thelawyerrecognizesthatlitigationcansometimeshelptoredistributepower(White1988).Nonetheless,thiseffectis"secondarytolaw'sdeeperfunctioninstimulatingprogressivesocialchange"(White1988,p. 758). More importantly, in this image litigation is "public action with politicalsignificance" (White 1988, p. 758).White envisions "law and its practice" as a "discourseaboutsocialjustice"whichhas"culturalmeaning"(White1988,p.758).In this imageof lawyeringsuccess isnotmeasuredbywhether the lawsuit iswon(White1988). It ismeasuredby"whetherthecasewidensthepublic imaginationaboutrightandwrong, mobilizes political action behind new social arrangements, or pressures those in

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mainly around three communities thatwere facing the threatof eviction. Thispaper

willbrieflydescribetheexperiencesthatIhadworkinginconjunctionwithmystudents

asa lawyer for thesecommunities(whicheventually ledtothecreationof thePuerto

Rico "Zero Evictions" Coalition): the communities of Los Filtros, Mainé and Las

Gladiolas.35

IntheLosFiltroscaseanamendmentrequiringpublichearingsandacommunity

referendum before expropriation could take place was successfully sought. In the

Mainé case, the importance of a public consultation before the Planning Board was

stressed. Finally, in the Las Gladiolas case, the consultation requirement before

demolitionofapublichousingprojectcantakeplacewasdefended.Whenweresorted

tolitigation,politicalmobilizationhadtoincrease,assuggestedbyBoaventuraDeSousa

Santos.36

Whenwestartedworkingwithpeoplefromthecommunitiestheyimmediately

assertedtheir“righttohousing”.37TheConstitutionofPuertoRicoincludesinitsBillof

Rightsseveralsocioeconomicrights,includingtherighttohousing.38Thissectionofthe

powertomakeconcessions"(White1988,pp.758‐759).Thelawyer,thus,designsthecasehavinginmindasanaudiencethesubordinatedgroupandthewiderpublic(White1988).The litigation must be coordinated with any political action that the lawsuit might helpinitiate (White1988). Lawyers seek topersuade the judgeandat the same timemobilizepublicopinion(White1988).Whitewarnsusthatthistypeoflawyeringcannotrespondtosubordinated clientswho have a "more realistic assessment of their options" or a "moreguardedinterpretationoftheirownsuffering"(White1988,p.760).

Myrta Morales‐Cruz, ¡Los Filtros Luchan! A Case Study of Lawyering and Participatory Democracy:ParticipatoryLobbyingasaStrategyforWorkingwithMarginalizedCommunities,2(1)OÑATISOCIOLEGALSERIES4‐5(2012);Availableat:http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=199741235Thereisneverunanimityincommunitystruggles.Therearealwayspeopleinthecommunitywhodonotsupportthecouncilorgroupsthatattempttorepresentthem.Wetriedtoworkwithasmanypeoplefrom the community aspossible and formallyhadas "clients" groupsor councils thatwereelectedbypeoplewholivedinthecommunity.36BOAVENTURADESOUSASANTOS,TOWARDANEWLEGALCOMMONSENSE: LAW,GLOBALIZATIONANDEMANCIPATION(2ded.2004).37PuertoRicodoesnothave thepowerof signing treaties, so it issubject to theUnitedStateswhen itcomestothesigningofhumanrightstreaties.38CONST.PR,Art.II,§20.

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Constitution,theoneincludingsocio‐economicrights,wasnotapprovedbytheUnited

StatesCongress.39 Thesectionhasaparagraph thatconditions theserights toPuerto

Rico’s economic development. Lawyers in Puerto Rico rarely invoke the right to

housingincourt.40However,peoplefromthecommunitieswereopenlyassertingtheir

right tohousing as a political claim;whether they alsobelieved that theyhad a legal

righttohousingisopenfordiscussion.

Itwasimportantforustobringtogetherpeoplefromthedifferentcommunities

withwhichthecommunitydevelopmentsectionoftheLegalAidClinicwasworking.In

PuertoRico traditionally people from “special communities” and frompublic housing

projects had not worked together. “Special communities” are low‐income

neighborhoods or “barrios”.41 Many people in Puerto Rico mostly associate urban

violence with public housing projects, not with the “special communities”. Also,

residentsofpublichousingprojectscarryastrongstigmabecausetheyliveonhousing

complexes financed by the government. Wewere able to introduce people from the

communities to people from the public housing projects and helped to bring them

togetherindifferentactivitiesandsettings.

Moreimportantly,aslawyers,we(thestudentsandI)strivedtoworktogetherin

partnershipwithpeoplefromthecommunities, inanon‐hierarchical,egalitarian,way.

39 The Constitution of the United States does not include socioeconomic rights. Puerto Rico is aCommonwealthoftheUnitedStatesofAmericawithaConstitutionofitsownthatwasapprovedin1952.However,thereismuchpoliticaldebateaboutwhetheritisstillinacolonialrelationshipwiththeUnitedStates.ForanaccountofthepoliticalandlegalrelationshipbetweentheUnitedStatesandPuertoRico,seeEFRÉNRIVERARAMOS,THELEGALCONSTRUCTIONOFIDENTITY: THEJUDICIALANDSOCIALLEGACYOFAMERICANCOLONIALISMINPUERTORICO(2001)40 See Esther Vicente Rivera, Una mirada a la interpretación de los derechos económicos, sociales yculturalesenlasdecisionesdelTribunalSupremodePuertoRico,44REV. JUR.U.I.P.R.17(2009‐2010),forananalysisoftheSupremeCourtofPuertoRico'streatmentofsocioeconomicandculturalrights.41 The following criteria are taken into account for the designation of "special communities": highpercentage of illiteracy, high percentage of people living under the poverty threshold, highunemployment rate, families financially supported by only one member, and a long history ofunemployment and of neglect in the provision of basic services. Act for the Development of SpecialCommunitiesinPuertoRico2001(21L.P.R.A.§967).

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Welearnedfromthemandtheylearnedfromus. Westronglybelievedthatwecould

helptoradicalizepeople'sperceptionsaboutthelaw.42Manyalreadyknowandbelieve

thatthelawisnotequalto"justice",buthavingalawyeropenlystatethiscanhelpthem

tomoreopenlyembracepoliticalmobilization.Finally,wetriedtoremainasinvisible

andsilentaspossibletostimulatethepeoplewithwhomweworktoappearandspeak

ontheirownbehalf.ThisapproachisstronglytiedtoRancière'sviewonpoliticsas"an

interventioninthevisibleandthesayable."43

LosFiltros

The council of residents of the Los Filtros communitywas the first group that

approached the community development section in search of legal aid. I first

encountered Jorge Oyola, spokesperson for the community, during a meeting that I

attended one night in the Trujillo street of Juan Domingo, a community who had

organized itself to successfully prevent eviction by a private developer who was

supported by the municipality. Both Juan Domingo and Los Filtros are located in

Guaynabo, the municipality with the highest per capita income in Puerto Rico.

Guaynabowasthreateningtousethepowerofeminentdomain(expropriation)against

agroupoflow‐incomecommunities.Thealleged"publicpurpose"fortheexpropriation

wastheconstructionofnewhousingcomplexes.

IhavedescribedindetailthestruggleoftheLosFiltroscommunityfrommyown

perspective44andmorerecently,fromtheperspectiveofthegroupofpeoplefromthe

community who actively participated in the lobbying of Statute #232 of August 27,

42SeeMorales‐Cruz,supranote33,at11.43RANCIÈRE,supranote2,at37.44 SeeMyrtaMorales‐Cruz,Nomedes elpescado, enseñámea pescar, inDerecho yPobreza 187 (SELA2005)(RobertoSabaed.,2006)andMyrtaMorales‐Cruz,CommunityLawyeringinPuertoRico:PromotingEmpowermentand Self‐Help, 2007 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CLINICAL LEGAL EDUCATION83 (2007) (revisedEnglishtranslationof2006article).

12

2004, which protects "special communities" from expropriation by a municipality.45

The lobbying campaign was successfully combined with mobilization outside the

legislativearena.46

Statute#232hassufferednumerousattempts torepeal it,butpeople fromthe

Los Filtros community, together with people from other "special communities" and

communitiesthatbelongtothePuertoRico"ZeroEvictions"Coalitionhavebeenableto

mobilizeandpreventit.47

In our work we did not limit ourselves to what Lucie White calls the first

dimensionoflawyering,whichIdescribedelsewhereinthefollowingway:

Inthefirstimageoflawyering,the"contestoflitigation",thelawyerdesignsandwins lawsuitsthatwillpromotethe interestsofclients(White1988,p.755).Heorshe"'translates'clientgrievancesintolegalclaims"(White1988,p.755).Withinthisimage,thelawyer'sroledoesnotinvolvequestioningthestructureofthelaw,askingwhetheritpreventsthelawyerfromtranslatingclient'sgrievances into legalclaims.This lawyertriestousethecourtsasamechanismtoredistributepowertomarginalizedgroups.Itisan"essentiallytraditional professional role" in which "the client is in the background"(White1988,p.756).48

If we had limited ourselves to questioning the "public" purpose of the

expropriationincourt,thecommunitywouldhavebeenevicted,but,moreimportantly,

the possibility of engaging in a pedagogical, egalitarian, democratic, political practice

probablywouldhavebeen lost. As lawyers,weattemptedtoengage inapedagogical

45 The statute creates a participationmechanismbefore amunicipal government can expropriate landlocated within a "special community": the celebration of a referendum in the community beforeexpropriationcantakeplace(75%ofthosevotinghavetoauthorizetheexpropriation)andauthorizationby the state legislative chambers after celebration of public hearings in both chambers to which theleadersofthe"specialcommunity"andthemunicipalityhavebeeninvited.46 Formorediscussionaboutthepossibilitiesofusinglobbyingasa lawyeringstrategywhenworkingwithmarginalizedcommunities,seeMyrtaMorales‐Cruz,LaExperienciadeEnseñarunCursodeDerechoyPobrezaenPuertoRico:EnsayosobreelDiscrimencontralasPersonasdeEscasosRecursosEconómicos,79REV.JUR.U.P.R.126(2010)andMyrtaMorales‐Cruz,Counter‐hegemonicworkasalawyer:Theroleofthelawyerworkingwithmarginalizedgroupsintheageof"globalgovernance",45REV.JUR.U.I.P.R.399(2011).47 In 2007, the Municipality filed a case before the Puerto Rico state courts alleging that all "specialcommunities"inGuaynabowereillegallydesignated. ThecommunitydevelopmentsectionrepresentedJorgeOyolaandtheresidents'councilofLosFiltros.Thecaseisstillpending.48SeeMorales‐Cruz,supranote33,at4.

13

emancipatory practice with people from the Los Filtros community. Wewanted to

teachthemthattheycouldtalkaboutthelaw,questionit,andchangeit.Bylimitingour

ownvoiceandpresenceaslawyers,westrivedtoopenaspacefortheinterventionof

thepresenceandvoice("thevisibleandthesayable")49ofthesenewpoliticalsubjects.50

Mainé

Mainé was never declared a “special community”, so it was not protected by

Statute 232 of August 27, 2004. Thus, theMunicipality of Guaynabo did not have to

obtain a joint resolution by the State Legislative Assembly and hold a community

referendum before using the power of eminent domain against the community. The

landthatthepeopleofMainéoccupiedhadalsoacquired,likethelandofLosFiltrosand

JuanDomingo,enormousvalueduetourbansprawl.

During the last months of 2005, the Municipality of Guaynabo filed eminent

domain cases in court against the remaining six families in the community. These

families were the only ones, out of a total of more than seventy families, willing to

questiontheexpropriationprocessincourt. Manyoftheotherfamiliessuccumbedto

thecontinuouspressureexertedbytheMunicipality.Westoodbythesesixfamiliesjust

astheystoodbesidethe“specialcommunities”duringtheentirelobbyingprocessofthe

statute that benefited all of them, but not Mainé. These remaining families were

extremely courageous and tenacious. Every time that we had a court hearing, they

cametocourtwithus.Theywereveryactiveinholdingpressconferencesandinviting

other spokespersons from the “special communities” anti‐evictionmovement and the

environmentalmovementtotheconferences.

49RANCIÈRE,supranote2,at37.50SeeMorales‐Cruz,supranote33.

14

Aparticular strength that theyhadwas that theywereable to convey through

themediatheemotionalstressofundergoingathreatofeviction. LiketheLosFiltros

community,theyhadadesignprojectfortheircommunityfromtheCommunityDesign

Workshop of the University of Puerto Rico School of Law’s School of Architecture.

Wheneverweheldacommunitymeeting,itwasextremelylikelythatpeoplefromthe

LosFiltroscommunityandother“specialcommunities”fromGuaynabowouldcometo

give them support. People from the Los Filtros community usually attended court

hearingsintheMainécases.Weregularlymetwiththecommunitymemberswhowere

fightingagainsttheexpropriationandalwaysstressedthattheyshouldnotplacetheir

hopes in the law, which helped to encourage mobilization by them.51 They held

numerous press conferences and participated in many activities, making themselves

visibleandheard.

InthecaseofMainéthealleged“publicuse”intheeminentdomaincaseswasthe

construction of a “social interest housingproject”. We challenged the “public use” in

thiscasewiththreemainlegalarguments.

The first argument was an administrative law argument. It was argued that

regulations of the Puerto Rican Planning Board required that a public transaction

consultationbefiledbytheMunicipalityandapprovedbythePlanningBoardbeforethe

expropriation complaint could be presented in court. This consultation provided,

before theadoptionof Statute#232 (whichonly applies to expropriationsof "special

communities" by municipalities), the only space for citizen participation in eminent

domainproceedings.Residentsofthelotsthatweregoingtobeexpropriatedhadtobe

notified, had a right to present comments and could request that public hearings be

held. BecausetheMunicipalityhadnotpresenteditsprojectbeforetheBoard,itwas

51SeeSantos,supranote34.

15

notclearwhattypeofprojectwasgoingtobebuilt. Wearguedthat theMunicipality

hadtopresenttheprojectintheadministrativeforumbeforecomingtocourt.52

Wealsoallegedthattheregulationsforthe“social interesthousingprojects”in

Guaynabo were unconstitutional since they violated the doctrine of unconstitutional

conditionsandtheequalprotectionclause.53Theregulationsstatethatiftheownerof

the property that is going to be expropriated does not agreewith the price that the

Municipality offers as “just compensation”, he or shewill not qualify for the housing

project.This,weargued,violatedthedoctrineofunconstitutionalconditionssincethe

government (the Municipality) was offering a benefit, housing, but it was placing a

conditionthatwasunconstitutional:theownercouldnotclaim“justcompensation”as

requiredconstitutionally. Wealsochallengedtheconstitutionalityoftherequirement

that only U.S. citizens qualified for the housing project, in violation of the equal

protectionclause,whichprotectslegalpermanentresidents.54

Finally,weaskedthattheMunicipalitypresentitsallegedprojectincourt,since

itwasnot clear that a “social interesthousingproject”wasavalid “publicuse”. For

example,howmuchtheunitswouldcostwascrucialindeterminingtheexistenceofa

publicpurpose.

The litigation was very tortuous. The judges rejected our request for

consolidationofthecases. Theresultwasthatwehadtofilesevenseparatebriefs in

theCourtofAppeals. TheCourtofAppealswasabletoconsolidatesomeofthecases.

Oneof the judgesofthecourtof first instanceissuedanorderforevictionofa family

withinaperiodoffivedayswhilethecasewasstillpendingbeforetheCourtofAppeals.

52Thissectionoftheacthasnowbeenrepealed.53SeeBáez v.AlcaldeMunicipal deGuaynabo,100D.P.R. 982 (1972),MoralesMoralesv. EstadoLibreAsociadodePuertoRico,126D.P.R.92(1990).54SeeDePazLiskv.AponteRoque,124D.P.R.472(1989),Grahamv.Richardson,403U.S.365(1972),Sugarmanv.Dougall,413U.S.634(1973).

16

Peoplefromthecommunitycalledandwereterriblyaffected. Werequestedanorder

fromtheCourtofAppealstostoptheeviction.Itwasgranted.

We had victories at the state Court of Appeals. The Court held that the

expropriationprocess could not continueuntil thePlanningBoard approved a public

consultation. It emphasized the fact that the ownerswere an important part of that

process and that the regulations required that the Board inquire about its necessity,

including factors such as the social and economic conditions. The Court of Appeals

declined to decide regarding the constitutional question in the absence of a public

consultation.Itfoundthattheconstitutionalissuewasnotripe.Butitmadeclearthat

itwas thecourt’s responsibility to finallypass judgmentover thevalidityofa “public

use”allegedbythegovernmentinanyeminentdomaincase.

In another victory for the community, the Court of Appeals subsequently held

that theMunicipalityhad topresentevidenceabout theallegedpublicpurpose in the

courtoffirstinstance.Itruledthatitwasthecourt’sdutytoevaluatesuchevidenceand

decidewhethertheproposedexpropriationfurthersapublicpurpose.TheMunicipality

had alleged that it was entitled to deference as to the alleged “public purpose”. It

contendedthatitdidnothavetopresentevidenceregardingthehousingprojectthatit

allegedlywantedtobuildinthecommunity.

TheMunicipalityaskedtheSupremeCourttooverturntheCourtofAppeals.The

SupremeCourtruledagainstusinalloftheissuesinDecemberof2010.55Thefamilies

thatstill lived inthe landwherethecommunitywas locatedrecentlyhadtomove. It

was a verypainfulprocess for them. Someof themremainveryactive in thePuerto

Rico"ZeroEvictions"coalition. Eventhough,as lawyers,ourpresenceandvoicewas

55Mun.Guaynabov.Adquisiciónde197.8817metroscuadrados,180D.P.R.206,(2010).AnanalysisoftheSupremeCourt'sdecisionwillbethesubjectofanotherpaper.

17

theoneheardinthecourts,peoplefromthecommunitywereabletomakethemselves

publicly visible and heard.56 Outside the courts, theywere the protagonists of their

struggle.57

LasGladiolas

TheLasGladiolasbuilding complexwasapublic housingproject comprisedof

668 apartments located in the financial district of San Juan, PuertoRico. ThePuerto

RicoPublicHousingAuthorityobtainedademolitionpermit fromtheU.S.Department

of Housing and Urban Development in early 2006. In June 2006, the community

development sectionof theUniversityofPuertoRicoSchoolofLaw’sLegalAidClinic

filedaclassactionsuitonbehalfof theresidentsofLasGladiolas in theUnitedStates

DistrictCourtforPuertoRico.58Thereweretwomainclaims:thelackofparticipation

of residents in the development of the application for demolition and a de facto or

constructivedemolitionclaim.

Federal law requires that the application for demolition of a public housing

project must be developed in consultation with residents.59 It also requires that

buildingsbemaintained indecentandsanitaryconditionsas longastherearepeople

residing in them.60 In the case of Las Gladiolas residents were alleging that the

government and the private maintenance companies stopped providing adequate

maintenanceservicestothecomplexinviolationoffederallaw.

56SeeRANCIÈRE,supranote2,at37.57SeeJenniferGordon,TheLawyerisNottheProtagonist:CommunityCampaigns,LawandSocialChange,95CAL.L.REV.2133(2007).58 In July of 2005, the community development section filed amandamusbefore thePuertoRico statecourtsonbehalfofArcadioAponteRosarioandtheresidents'association¡GladiolasVive!requestingthattheAdministratorofthePuertoRicoHousingAuthorityprovidethemwithacopyoftheapplicationfordemolition that the Administration had presented to the U.S. Department of Housing and UrbanDevelopmentDepartment(HUD).InNovemberof2006wefiledanadministrativecomplaintbeforeHUD.5942U.S.C.§1437p.60Id.

18

Thelitigationwastryingtoraisepublicawarenessaboutgentrificationandthe

dangers of reducing public housing units in Puerto Rico. Whenever we had an

appearance incourt,membersofthecommunityattendedandheldpressconferences

outside of the federal court building. They used thesemoments as opportunities to

mobilize.

Once again, we worked with the architect founder of the Community Design

WorkshopoftheUniversityofPuertoRicoSchoolofArchitecture(whowasbythistime

aretiredprofessor)andaprofessorandstudentsfromtheFacultyofEngineeringofthe

UniversityofPuertoRico.Theyhelpedtoshowthatthebuildingswerenotbeinggiven

propermaintenance.Theyalsopreparedplansformodernization.

TheSocialWorkDepartmentoftheFacultyofSocialSciencesoftheRíoPiedras

campusoftheUniversityofPuertoRicohadbeenworkingwithyouthandchildrenfrom

the project formany years. The students and professorswere crucial in helping the

childrentodealwiththestressthatthepossibledisplacementhadcausedthem.

CommunitymembersweresuccessfulindrawingthesupportofthePuertoRico

BarAssociation,thePuertoRicoCivilRightsCommissionandthelocalchaptersofthe

American Civil Liberties Union and Amnesty International. They also attended the

PuertoRicoSocialForum.61MirtaColón,oneofthespokespersonsforthecommunity,

presented her testimony during public hearings held by the United Nations Special

Rapporteur investigating racism in the United States. She denounced the HOPE VI

61ThePuertoRicoSocialForumtookasitsinspirationtheWorldSocialForum.AccordingtoitsCharterofPrinciples,"[t]heWorldSocialForumisanopenmeetingplaceforreflectivethinking,democraticdebateof ideas, formulationofproposals, freeexchangeofexperiencesand interlinkingforeffectiveaction,bygroupsandmovementsofcivilsocietythatareopposedtoneoliberalismandtodominationoftheworldby capital and any form of imperialism, and are committed to building a planetary society directedtowardsfruitfulrelationshipsamongHumankindandbetweenitandEarth."CharterofPrinciples,WorldSocialForum.Availablefrom:http://www.forumsocialmundial.org.br/(lastvisit,April15,2012].

19

federalfundingprogram,whichpromotesthedemolitionofpublichousingprojectsand

theirsubstitutionforlowerdensitymixedincomehousing.

During the presentation of the Las Gladiolas documentary at the Puerto Rico

SocialForumaparticipantsuggestedtoholdanactivityentitledAbrazoSolidarioaLas

Gladiolas(“SolidarityHugforLasGladiolas”). Duringthisactivitypeoplefromoutside

the community went to show their support. The activity was held on two more

occasions.ThesecondAbrazoSolidariohadasoneofitshighlightspublichearingsheld

bytheConstitutionalandHumanRightsCommissionofthePuertoRicoBarAssociation.

Duringthehearingspeopletestifiedabouttheirsituation.Thegroupofsocialworkers

and a law student held a theater workshop for children in which Arcachuba, a

superherocreatedbythechildren,participated.

Foralongperiodoftime,wemetalmostweeklywithagroupofpeoplefromthe

community to address issues that developed. The government pressured them to

abandonthecomplexinmultipleways.Theweeklymeetingswereaspacetodevelop

strategies with the community about how to confront the new developments.

Additionally,weproducedseveralbulletinsthatexplainedtothecommunitywhatwas

happeninginthefederalcourtcase.

The government and the private maintenance companies kept harassing

residents in Las Gladiolas by filing eviction cases in the local state court, starting

administrativeproceedingsinordertocanceltheirleasecontractswiththePuertoRico

HousingAuthorityandconstantlysendingthemlettersrequiringthattheyrelocate,for

example.

The private company that administered the complex started holding informal

hearingsasafirststepinthecancellationofleasecontractsadministrativeactionsthat

werestartedagainstresidents thatremained in thecomplex. Thesehearingshadthe

20

effect of making people commit more to the struggle. Once they heard the legal

argumentsthatwerepresentedontheirbehalfatthesehearingstheytoldusthatthey

feltmore empowered. Afterwe vigorously defended residents in the administrative

hearings,theprivatecompanydecidedtodiscontinuetheprocess.

However, the pressure exerted by the government and by the private

maintenancecompanywastremendous.Thelivingconditionsintheprojectworsened

every day. Many families reluctantly left the housing complex. The long litigation

processalsotookitstollonthecommunity.

More than200documents comprised thedocket in the class actionbefore the

federaldistrict court inPuertoRico. Thegovernmentmoved for summary judgment.

Thedistrictcourtruledinfavorofthegovernmentandgrantedsummaryjudgmentin

December of 2008.62 The community appealed its case to theUnited States Court of

Appeals for theFirstCircuit. Wehadoralargumentsbefore theCourtofAppealson

Marchof2010.Sixteencommunitymembersattendedoralarguments.InJulyof2010,

theCourtruledagainstus.63ThetowersweredemolishedinJulyof2011.

People from the community, however, continue their struggle and have been

promised by the state government that a public housing project for more than two

hundredfamilieswillbebuiltonthelandwheretheoriginalcomplexwaslocatedand

thatthelastfamiliestoremaininLasGladiolaswillreturntoit.Mostofthosefamilies

are relocated in private apartments during construction of the new complex. Their

struggletoreturntothe landwherethey lived, together,continues. Theycontinueto

meetonaregularbasisandremainveryactive. Theyaremaking themselvesvisible

62AponteRosariov.AcevedoVila,591F.Supp.2d.130(D.PuertoRico2008).63AponteRosariov.AcevedoVila,617F.3d1(1stCir.2010).

21

andheard64andhavelearnedthattheycantalkaboutthelaw,discussit,andquestion

it.

CreationofthePuertoRico"ZeroEvictions"Coalition

In 2009, I approached Mirta Colón, spokesperson for the Las Gladiolas

community, to suggest the creation of a coalition that would help to bring together

membersfromcommunitiesfacingthethreatofeviction.Wewouldorganizeamarch

to be held on October 17th, the day that the United Nations has designated as the

InternationalDayfortheEradicationofPoverty,andusethatactivitytoannouncethe

creation of the Puerto Rico "Zero Evictions" Coalition. The coalition would join the

"ZeroEvictions"CampaignoftheInternationalAllianceofInhabitants.65

I had first heard of the International Alliance of Inhabitants ("IAI") during the

Puerto Rico Social Forum,whichwas held in 2006. During the Forum Pedro Franco,

coordinatoroftheIAIforLatinAmericaandtheCaribbean,participatedinapaneland

presented the "Zero Evictions" Campaign of the Alliance. Franco met Mary Ann

Hopgood, spokesperson for the group "Santurce No se Vende" ("Santurce is Not for

Sale")66andJorgeOyola,spokespersonforthecommunityofLosFiltros.Bothofthem

werelaterinvitedtoparticipateinaconferenceorganizedbytheIAIinSantoDomingo,

DominicanRepublic,in2007.

I had been invited to an activity in the community of Villas del Sol in which

Francowouldparticipate. Theactivity,whichwas tobeheldonSeptember20,2009,

was called Jornada por la Paz y la Solidaridad con Villas del Sol y con todas las

64SeeRANCIÈRE,supranote2at37.65The InternationalAllianceof Inhabitants is anetworkofgrassrootsorganizationsof inhabitantsandterritorialmovementsthatstrugglestowardstheachievementofhousingandcityrights.Seehttp://www.habitants.org/(lastvisit,April15,2012)66 The community of San Mateo de los Cangrejos in Santurce was expropriated by the Puerto RicoHousing Department claiming that it was going to "revitalize" the area. People from the communityactivelystruggledagainsttheexpropriationuntil2006.

22

comunidades víctimas de los desalojos por parte del estado (Peace and Solidarity

GatheringforVillasdelSolandallthecommunitiesthatarevictimsofevictionsbythe

State).ProfessorLilianaCotto,asociologistprofessorattheUniversityofPuertoRico,

Edwin Quiles, the professor who founded the Community Design Workshop at the

SchoolofArchitectureoftheUniversityofPuertoRico,andHildaGuerrero,coordinator

for the non‐profit organization Grito de los Excluídos (Cry/Shout of the Excluded),

playedimportantrolesbothintheorganizationofthePuertoRicoSocialForumandof

thisgatheringinVillasdelSol.67

Duringthesummerof2009Ihadjoinedagroupoflawyerscoordinatedbythe

Pro Bono Office of the Puerto Rico Bar Association who represented close to 200

families from the community of Villas del Sol, located in Toa Baja, Puerto Rico, a

municipalitywhichisclosetotheSanJuanmetropolitanarea.ThecommunityofVillas

del Solwas being evicted by the Puerto Rico Housing Department. The Department

filednearly200evictioncasesinthePuertoRicanstatecourts. VillasdelSolisalow‐

incomecommunitymostlycomposedofimmigrantsfromtheDominicanRepublic.The

governmentallegedthatthecommunitycouldnotoccupythelandbecauseitwasprone

toflooding.ThecaseofVillasdelSoloncemoreplacedthelackofaffordablehousing

intheislandinthepublicdiscussion.

IsuggestedtoMirtaColónthatweannounceintheactivitytobeheldinVillasdel

Sol, towhichmembersofdifferent communitieswhohad faced the threatof eviction

had been invited (such as Los Filtros, Mainé and Las Gladiolas) that we would be

organizingamarchontheInternationalDayfortheEradicationofPovertyandthatwe

67 Cotto has written a book about the struggles of many communities of "rescuers" (also called"squatters") inPuertoRico from the 1970's through the1990's. Thepeople from these communitiesprefer the term "rescuer" to "squatter". They see themselves as "rescuing" land that is deserted. SeeLILIANACOTTOMORALES,DESALAMBRAR(2006).

23

would be announcing on the day of themarch the creation of the Puerto Rico "Zero

Evictions"Coalition.Mirtathoughtthatitwasagreatideaandinvitedeveryonepresent

intheactivitycelebratedinVillasdelSoltoattendthemarchandjointhecoalition.

TherewasameetingheldinMirtaColón'sapartmentinLasGladiolastoorganize

themarch. Afterholdingapressconferenceaboutthemarchandthecreationofthe

coalition,more than twohundred people from the communities of LasGladiolas, Los

Filtros, Mainé, Santurce, Villas del Sol, Río Piedras68, Vietnam69, the communities

surroundingtheMartínPeñaChannel70,Vieques,71VillaSinMiedo,72andVillaCañona73

werepresent. Also,differentorganizationssuchasAmnesty International, thePuerto

RicoSocialForum,andvarioussocialistorganizationsshowedtheirsupport.

Since2009wehavebeenmeetingregularlyandhavecelebratedthemarchevery

year to commemorate the birth of the coalition and the International Day for the

EradicationofPoverty. Wearenot limitedtothe issueofpreventinggentrificationof

urban areas and have now as part of the coalition the community of Boca in

Barceloneta,which isacoastalcommunity inasmall town inPuertoRico. In the last

march,heldthispastyear(2011),weinvitedthecommunitieswhoarefacingthethreat

68TheRíoPiedrascommunityisstrugglingagainsta"revitalization"planbytheMunicipalityofSanJuanthat would entail the use of the power of eminent domain against residents and would result in thedisplacementofthecommunity.69 Vietnam, like Los Filtros andMainé, is also located in Guaynabo, themunicipality with the highestincomepercapitainPuertoRico.Itisa"specialcommunity"andthus,itisprotectedbyStatute#232of2004.However,themunicipalitykeepspressuringresidentstoabandonthecommunityandistrying,aspreviously mentioned, to get the courts to declare that all "special communities" in Guaynabo weredesignatedinanillegalfashion.70 The communities surrounding the Martín Peña Channel created a land trust in 2004. See, ÉrikaFontånez‐Torres,TheContingencyofPropertyPolicies‐AReviewoftheAssumptionsRelatedtothePoliticalTheoryofProperty in theContextsofSocialandEnvironmentalMovements inPuertoRico, inDerecho yPropiedad (SELA2008) (ed.,2009). Since2009the land trusthasbeenunderattackbyboth thestategovernmentandtheMunicipalityofSanJuan.71The communityofMonteCarmelo inVieques isa communityof "rescuers" that constantly faces thethreatofeviction.72VillaSinMiedoisoneofthecommunitiesof"rescuers"thathadstruggledinpreviousdecades.73VillaCañona isa community initially formed in the1960'sby "rescuers'of land. It is located in thecoastal municipality of Loíza, close to the metropolitan area. This area is actively sought by privatedeveloperswhowishtobuildtourismcomplexes.

24

of expropriation due to the state government plans to build a gas pipeline that goes

throughthecentralmountainousregionofPuertoRico.

Membersofthecoalitionsupporteachotherintheirstruggles: intheattempts

torepealStatute#232;inthestruggleofLasGladiolasagainstdemolitionandcurrently

in their struggle to return to the land where they lived; in the struggles of the

communitiesofMainé,LasGladiolas,andBocaagainstexpropriation;inthestruggleof

the Río Piedras community against a "revitalization" plan by theMunicipality of San

Juanthatwouldentailtheuseofthepowerofeminentdomainagainstresidents;andin

thestruggleofthecommunitiessurroundingtheMartínPeñaChanneltopreservetheir

landtrustagainstattacksbyboththestateandthemunicipalgovernmentofSanJuan.

We provide this support by organizing coalition press conferences to support low‐

income communities facing the threat of eviction andby attendingpress conferences

organizedbythecommunitiesthemselves.Wealsoattendmeetings,protests,andother

activitiesorganizedby thecommunities,andcourthearings. InOctoberof2010, the

coalition organized a one‐day forum to discuss the topic of evictions of low‐income

communities.Wearestrivingtoengageinapoliticalanddemocraticpractice.

IwillnowturnoncemoretothewordsofRancièrebeforeattemptingtolinkhis

worktothestrugglesofthePuertoRico"ZeroEvictions"Coalition:

Democracy, then,far frombeingtheformof lifeof individualsdedicatedtotheirprivatepleasure,isaprocessofstruggleagainstthisprivatization,theprocessofenlargingthissphere.Enlargingthepublicspheredoesnotentail,as it is claimed in liberal discourse, asking for State encroachments onsociety. It entails struggling against the distribution of the public and theprivate thatshoresupthe twofolddominationof theoligarchy in theStateandinsociety.Thisencroachmenthashistoricallysignifiedtwothings: therecognition,asequals andaspolitical subjects, of those thathavebeen relegatedby Statelaw to the private life of inferior beings, and the recognition of the publiccharacteroftypesofspacesandrelationsthatwerelefttothediscretionofthe power of wealth. This first involved struggles to include those that

25

police74 logic naturally excluded from voting and eligibility for office, allthosewhowerenotentitledtoparticipateinpubliclifebecausetheydidnotbelong to 'society' but merely to domestic and reproductive life, becausetheirworkbelongedtoamasterorahusband:wagedworkerslongtreatedas domestics dependent upon their masters and incapable of having anindependent will; and women subordinated to their husband's will andrelegatedto thecareof familyanddomestic life. Italso involvedstrugglesagainstthenaturallogicoftheelectoralsystem,whichturnsrepresentationinto the representation of dominant interests and elections into anapparatusdevotedtoprocuringconsent:officialcandidacies,electoralfraud,defactomonopoliesovercandidacies.Butthisenlargementalsoincludesallthe struggles to assert the public character of spaces, relations andinstitutionsregardedasprivate.75

WhatwehavedenouncedinthestrugglesagainstevictionsinPuertoRicoisthe

privatization of the use of the power of eminent domain and the power of the

governmenttoevict(incasesoftenantsofthegovernmentor"rescuers"ofpublicland).

Municipalities, in partnership with private developers, expropriate low‐income

communitiesinordertobuildhousingofamuchhighereconomicvalue.Inthecaseof

Santurce, thestategovernmentprivatized thepowerofeminentdomainandasserted

"revitalization"asa"publicpurpose".Privatedevelopershavebuiltexpensivehigh‐rise

apartmentbuildings,which remainmostlydeserted. In the caseof LasGladiolas, the

stategovernmentwasgoingtolettheprivatemarketdictatetothegovernmenthowto

usethelandwherethepublichousingprojectislocated.

These are all attacks on the right of housing of all the people from these

communities. Thecommunitiesarequestioningthestateandmunicipalgovernments.

Theyaremakingthemselvesseenandheard.("Politics,beforeallelse,isanintervention

inthevisibleandthesayable.")76

The purposes alleged by the governments are not public, but private, even

though they attempt to present them as "public" purposes. The communities have a

74IwilllaterincludeRancière'sdistinctionbetween"police"and"politics".75RANCIÈRE,supranote4,at55‐56.76RANCIÈRE,supranote2,at37.

26

political contention pertaining to equality and inequality, as Rancière would argue.

Theyareattemptingtodeprivatizetheuseofthepowerofeminentdomainandtheuse

of the power of eviction by the government. This power is being used to increase

wealth for private developers; to increase inequality. The issue is, quoting Rancière

once again, "apublicmatter affecting the collectivity, and, as a result, something that

oughttocomewithinthedomainofcollectiveaction,publicdiscussionand legislative

regulation."77Thesepoliticalsubjectsaredenouncingtheprivatizationoftheuseofthe

power of the government to evict for a "public" purpose. They are attempting to

question the boundaries between the public and private, the universal and the

particular:

The democratic movement, then, is in fact a double movement oftransgressinglimits:amovementforextendingtheequalityofpublicmantootherdomainsof life incommon,and inparticular toall those thatgovernthelimitlessnessofcapitalistwealth;anothermovementforreaffirmingthebelonging of anyone and everyone to that incessantly privatized publicsphere.78...Thisiswhatthedemocraticprocessimplies:theactionsofsubjectswho,byworkingtheintervalbetweenidentities,reconfigurethedistributionsofthepublicandtheprivate,theuniversalandtheparticular.79

Peoplefromlow‐incomecommunitiesfacingthethreatofevictionarestruggling

toextendequality toalldomainsof life incommon. Theyareattackingthe increased

wealththatprivatedeveloperswillaccumulateasaresultoftheprivatizationoftheuse

ofthepowerofeminentdomainandevictionbygovernments.

To continue withmy reflection, I will now present what I deem to be crucial

quotestounderstandRancière'sviewsonpolitics:

Twowaysofcountingthepartsofthecommunityexist.Thefirstcountsrealpartsonly‐actualgroupsdefinedbydifferencesinbirth,andbythedifferentfunctions,placesandintereststhatmakeupthesocialbodytotheexclusion

77RANCIÈRE,supranote4,at57.78RANCIÈRE,supranote4,at57‐58.79Id.at61‐62.

27

ofeverysupplement.Thesecond,'inaddition'tothis,countsapartofthosewithoutpart.Icallthefirstthepoliceandthesecondpolitics.80Politics,bycontrast,consistsintransformingthisspace...intoaspacefortheappearanceofasubject:thepeople,theworkers,thecitizens.Itconsistsinrefiguringspace,thatis,inwhatistobedone,tobeseenandtobenamedinit.Itistheinstitutingofadisputeoverthedistributionofthesensible...81Theessenceofpoliticsisdissensus.Dissensusisnotaconfrontationbetweeninterestsoropinions.Itisthedemonstration(manifestation)ofagapinthesensible itself. Political demonstration makes visible that which had noreason to be seen; it places one world in another‐for instance, the worldwherethefactoryisapublicspaceinthatwhereitisconsideredprivate,theworldwhereworkersspeak,andspeakaboutthecommunity,inthatwheretheirvoicesaremerecriesexpressingpain.82‐The worker who puts forward an argument about the public nature of a'domestic'wagemustdemonstratetheworldinwhichhisargumentcountsasanargumentandmustdemonstrateitassuchforthosewhodonothavethe frame of reference enabling them to see it as one. Politicalargumentationisatoneandthesametimethedemonstrationofapossibleworld in which the argument could count as an argument, one that isaddressedby a subject qualified to argued, over an identifiedobject, to anaddresseewhoisrequiredtoseetheobjectandtoheartheargumentthathe'normally'hasnoreasoneithertoseeortohear. It istheconstructionofaparadoxicalworldthatputstogethertwoseparateworlds.83

New political subjects have appeared: people who reside in low‐income

communitiesfacingthethreatofeviction.Thesepoliticalsubjectsincludepeoplefrom

"specialcommunities",fromothercommunitieswhohavenotbeendesignated"special

communities", from public housing projects and from communities of "rescuers" of

land.Theyhavemadevisiblethattheuseofthepowerofeminentdomainandeviction

by the governments has been privatized. They have questioned the governments'

alleged"public"purposesandthe'goodness'ofthegovernments'actions.

Politicalsubjectsbuildsuchcasesofverification['thatstymietherelentlessprivatizationofpubliclife'84].Theyputthepowerofpoliticalnames‐thatis,theirextensionandcomprehension‐to the test. Notonlydo theybring the

80RANCIÈRE,supranote2,at36.81Id.at37.82Id.at38.83Id.at39.84RANCIÈRE,supranote3,at57.

28

inscription of rights to bear against situations in which those rights aredeniedbuttheyconstructtheworldinwhichthoserightsarevalid,togetherwiththeworldinwhichtheyarenot.Theyconstructarelationofinclusionandarelationofexclusion.85...Thegenericnameforallthesubjectsthatstagesuchcasesofverificationisthedemos,orthepeople.86

Thepeoplewhoresideinlow‐incomecommunitiesfacingthethreatofeviction

havebroughttheinscriptionoftherighttohousinginasituationintowhichthatright

wasdeniedandhaveconstructedaworldinwhichsuchrightisvalid,togetherwiththe

worldinwhichit isnot. They,asRancièrehaswritten,haveconstructedarelationof

inclusion and a relation of exclusion. They had to show the world in which their

argument counts as an argument and had to show it for thosewho did not have the

"frameofreference"thatwouldallowthemtoseeitasanargument.87

Challenges...

Aslawyerswehavetriedtobecomeinvisibleandmutefiguresservingasalink

betweendifferentgroupswhofacesimilargrievances;toblurthedistinctionbetween

legalandextralegalstrategiesandhaveaimedtocreateaspacewherevoicesandfaces

frommarginalizedgroupscouldemerge inthepublicsphere. Workinginpartnership

with marginalized groups, we have sought to create a space where the claims of

marginalized groups could surface as a public issue that should be the object of

collectiveactionandpublicdiscussion.88Ourpracticehasequalityasapresupposition;

people from marginalized groups are just as capable as lawyers to be their own

advocates.89

85 JACQUES RANCIÈRE,Who istheSubjectoftheRightsofMan?, inDISSENSUS:ONPOLITICSANDAESTHETICS 69(StevenCorcoraned.&trans.,2010).86Id.at70.87RANCIÈRE,supranote2,at39.88RANCIÈRE,supranote4,at57.89SeeRANCIÈRE,supranote6(IntroductionbyKristinRossatxix).

29

We face many challenges in our work with the Puerto Rico "Zero Evictions"

Coalition.Oneofthemisstrugglingtokeepaspaceopenforeveryone,foritnottobe

dominatedbyafew"leaders"fromthecommunities(Iprefertheterm"spokesperson"

to leaderbecause it has a lesshierarchical connotation). Wehope to try to keep the

struggles collective, instead of focusing on the struggle of aparticular community, or

only of low‐income communities facing the threat of eviction, as opposed to more

universalclaims.InRancière'swords:

To say that a politicalmovement is always amovement that displaces thegivenboundaries, thatextracts thespecificallydemocratic, i.e.,universalist,component of a particular conflict of interests in such and such a point ofsociety, is also to say that it is always in danger of being confined to thatconflict, indangerofendingupbeingnomore thanadefenceofparticulargroupinterestsinalwayssingularstruggles.90Democracyisnotadefinitesetofinstitutions,norisitthepowerofaspecificgroup. It isa supplementary,orgrounding,power thatatonce legitimizesand delegitimizes every set of institutions or the power of any one set ofpeople.91

Weareconstantlystrugglingwiththeseparadoxes,butwekeepongoing...with

hopeandjoy.AsRancièrehassaid:

[Democracy]...isonlyentrustedtotheconstancyofitsspecificacts.Thiscanprovoke fear, and so hatred, among thosewho are used to exercising themagisterium of thought. But among those who know how to share withanybody and everybody the equal power of intelligence, it can converselyinspirecourage,andhencejoy.92

90RANCIÈRE,supranote4,at84.91RANCIÈRE,supranote3,at53.92RANCIÈRE,supranote4,at97.