Final Straw: Eviction Defense, Community Resiliency, and Getting Free

Long-running anarchist radio and podcast show The Final Straw speaks with two members of HEDS-Up!, an eviction defense group based in Durham, NC.

This week I got the chance to sit down with Olive and Yousef of the Durham NC based eviction defense group HEDS-Up! HEDS-Up! stands for Housing Eviction Defense Solidarity and is a group which formed in Durham North Carolina when COVID was first hitting the area and folks’ housing was becoming more and more unstable.

We get to talk about a lot of topics in this episode, among which are gentrification in Durham, what the NC eviction process might look like, and about the group’s handbook the Eviction Defense Handbook, vol. 1312, as well as their all points call for autonomous, abolitionist jail support, on their website https://cantpaywontpaydurm.org/.

Socially distanced but still making a scene at 400 S Salisbury St! Come out to show solidarity with our community members in lockdown. pic.twitter.com/BRcBbBWBJT

— Smash Solitary with Solidarity (@smash_solitary) November 15, 2020

The Eviction Defense Handbook is extensively written and researched, and was put together by HEDS-Up! for educational and empowerment purposes. It covers topics from abolition, to how one might structure an eviction defense team, pertinent information regarding COVID and evictions, how to look up information on a specific property, a step by step of what to expect in eviction court, and many more topics.

You can email HEDS Up! at hedsup@protonmail.com