It doesn’t have to be this way.  

It can seem like the current dominant housing model in the U.S. is inevitable.  Rooted in both individual and structural racism and sexism, driven by the pursuit of individual profit -  it’s what we know and what many have come to accept as normal. But thanks to a new report from the Right to the City Alliance and Homes for All, we know there are other, better alternatives for a housing system that puts people first.

The report, Communities Over Commodities: People-Driven Solutions to an Unjust Housing System, begins with a critical analysis of our current dominant housing system and how it has failed to provide for people’s basic need.  The report then turns to examine 4 existing and successful models - two domestic, 1 from Europe and 1 from Latin America - of how a thriving, people centered housing system can operate.  

A cornerstone of the report is the Just Housing Scale, a simple but revolutionary index for evaluating how housing systems serve people and their communities.

The report offers a hopeful, concrete vision of what is possible, but is clear eyed in its assessment of what is necessary to make the vision a widespread reality

“The issue is not a lack of solutions, but a lack of political will. The question is, will most policymakers and elected officials dramatically shift to enact policies that support these alternative models that are proven to work and are based upon decom- modifying land and housing and empowering residents? Or will most of them continue to serve the interests of developers, corporate landlords and the real estate industry at the expense of the majority of families and people in this country?

We know that reports alone — even with strong evidence of solutions that work — will not bring about the dramatic shift in policy that we need. We will need the social movements that led to the birth and growth of these models to continue expanding and gaining momentum as more and more impacted residents join together to create a just housing system.”

That movement is being built right now by groups like Right to the City, Homes for All and their allies.  Another world is possible and this report gives us a valuable piece of the map for getting there.

You can download the report at: www.HomesForAll.org/reports/CommunitiesOverCommodities

Join report authors and US-based organizers for a national webinar release of the report on Thursday March 15th at 2PM ET / 11AM PT. Register Here.