Santa Monica Rallies for Low-Cost Housing

Inclusive Santa Monica and Abundant Housing LA advocate for affordable housing in Santa Monica.

Tieira Ryder speaks with fellow Santa Monicans from a Better Future members from Abundant Housing LA members on Main St and Ashland in Santa Monica, Calif. on September 19, 2021. The gathering intends to bring attention to Santa Monica's worsening housing crisis while bringing up some proposals on how to effectively resolve it. (Marc Federici | The Corsair)

In the middle of a closed intersection, a number of activists handed out fliers for affordable and stable housing in the city of Santa Monica, dressed in futuristic garb to attract attention to their cause. The affordable housing rally which took place along Main St. and Ashland Blvd. In Santa Monica on Sunday, Sept. 19. was organized by Inclusive Santa Monica and Abundant Housing LA.

Tiera Ryder, who participated in the rally, said her experience as an unhoused college student is what inspired her to advocate for safe and affordable housing. “Ten years ago, when I was in college, one of my biggest problems was stabilizing my housing. The cost of living was just out of range for me to try to focus going to school full time,” said Ryder.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, from 2015 to 2019, the median gross rent in Santa Monica was $1,802. In comparison to all of Los Angeles county during that same time, the median gross rent was $1,460.

According to We Are Santa Monica, there are approximately 907 homeless individuals in the city. In all of Los Angeles County, there are approximately 66,000 homeless individuals.

When asked about how Santa Monica College can help their homeless students, Ryder said “The Bundy Campus, immediately, absolutely needs to have housing for students there and it needs to be affordable, permanently. Somewhere where they can live for the entire year, even when they’re not in school.” Ryder proceeded to say “We should, at minimum, be able to give them bachelor sized apartments. They have a sink, they have a hot plate, and they have a small fridge in their apartment. That’s like the size of a standard hotel room.”

California has seen a spike in homelessness. One of Governor Gavin Newsom’s biggest political initiatives has been about tackling the problem. According to the official website for the www.ca.gov, the state will invest $12 billion of the $100 billion California comeback plan to address California’s homelessness crisis. Activist Brad Ewing offered his thoughts about Gov. Newsom’s approach to homelessness, Ewing said “I think the fact that the eviction moratorium was allowed to expire was quite egregious for the governor and the democratic leadership within the legislature.”

When asked about what they hoped people would take away from the rally, Ewing said “We wanted to present a very positive vision for the future. We want to present a vision like what is the Santa Monica in 2050 that we want to live in look like?” The organizers wanted to stress that everyone deserves equitable and affordable housing now, and far into the future

If you want to learn more about Inclusive Santa Monica, you can find them on Facebook. And if you want to learn more about abundant housing LA, you can visit their official website at abundanthousingla.org.