US Lawmaker Who Was Homeless Fights to Help Others Avoid it

 

The administration of U.S. President Joe Biden issued a renewed ban on evictions that will last until October 3. The order will temporarily stop evictions in counties with "substantial and high levels" of coronavirus spread.

Eviction² is the process of forcing people or businesses to leave property that they do not own.

The order was given by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and covers areas where an estimated 90 percent of the U.S. population lives.

Personal connection

The eviction ban was an especially important issue to one lawmaker. About 20 years before she was elected to Congress, Representative Cori Bush of Missouri lived in a car with her husband at the time and two young children. The family had been evicted³ from their rental⁴ home.

Bush is a first-term Democrat⁵ from the city of St. Louis. To her, the debate over whether to continue the ban on evictions during the coronavirus crisis has been personal.

In a show of support for the measure, she started to sleep outside the Capitol last Friday. She wanted to call attention to the issue as part of the effort to pressure Biden and Congress to act.

Bush's experience sets her apart from members of the different political parties in the capital. She has a direct connection to an urgent problem affecting many Americans.

"I know what it's like to be evicted and have to live out of my car with my two babies," Bush told reporters Saturday. "As long as I am a sitting U.S. congressperson, I will not keep my mouth shut about it."

Bush was a part of a larger push among some lawmakers to stop evictions. Her decision to sleep outside the Capitol got attention. Top congressional leaders and administration officials invited her to meet with them. Reporters asked to speak with her.

She met with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, and had a short talk with Vice⁶ President Kamala Harris on Monday. Bush's career in politics has developed quickly. She has gone from leading protests against police in Ferguson, Missouri, to Congress in little more than five years.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Tuesday gave a salute⁷ to Bush "for her powerful action to keep people in their homes."

Not going home

At first, the Biden administration argued it does not have the legal power to continue the ban. A Supreme⁸ Court opinion in June said that Congress must pass a bill to do that. But Congress did not and lawmakers left town for their August break.

On Tuesday, before the administration's announcement, Bush said: "Am I supposed to just go home? No, I'm an organizer. I am an activist⁹. So I fell back into what I know how to do."

She has had experiences that led her to become an activist. In 2001, Bush became sick while pregnant with her second child. She had to quit her job at a preschool. The lost income led to their eviction.

For about three months, she and her husband at the time lived out of their car. She said that she was not earning a lot of money at the time. Later, her family, already struggling themselves, was able to help her find a home.

"I don't want anyone else to have to go through what I went through, ever," Bush said tearfully.

Later she legally separated from her husband and Bush went back to school, earning a nursing degree. She also became a religious leader.

Activist in Ferguson

Her life changed in 2014. A white police officer shot and killed Michael Brown, a Black man, in the St. Louis area of Ferguson, Missouri. Bush joined thousands of activists¹⁰ in the protests following the shooting. She quickly became a leader of the movement calling for police and criminal justice reform in the St. Louis area. She was back on the streets again three years later after a white St. Louis police officer was found innocent in the shooting death of a Black suspect.

Her activism fueled an interest in politics. She ran unsuccessfully in a 2016 election for the Senate and in 2018 as a Representative for St. Louis. But after George Floyd's death, she gained support from the progressive group Justice Democrats¹¹. She won election last November.

Arguing with her own party leaders

Some questioned Bush's decision to go against congressional leadership and the president from her own party. Administration and congressional officials also noted¹² that much of the money Congress had set aside to provide housing assistance has not been given out by the states.

House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn said he was "sensitive" to Bush's goal, but suggested she may be fighting the wrong battle.

"It's not the federal government that's doing it," Clyburn said. "If you've appropriated $46 billion for the country, and only $3 billion has been used, then that's not Congress...It's on whoever has got the money tied up."

After the administration made its announcement, Bush tweeted out a photo of herself sitting with others on the Capitol steps. It said: "Grateful."

Words in This Story

county –n. an area of a state or country that is larger than a city and has its own government to deal with local matters

rental –adj. related to renting; paying money to be able to use someone else's property especially to live in an apartment or house that belongs to someone else

evict¹ – n. to force a person or business to leave a place that they do not own

salute – n. to give a sign of respect to (a military officer, flag, or the like) by moving your right hand to your forehead

appropriate – v. to get or save (money) for a specific use or purpose

1 evict   

vt.驱逐，赶出，撵走

参考例句：

• The lessor can evict the lessee for failure to pay rent.出租人可驱逐不付租金的承租人。
• The government always says it's for the greater good when they evict farmers from their land.当政府把农民从他们的土地赶出去的时候，总是号称是为了更大众的利益。

2 eviction   

n.租地等的收回

参考例句：

• The family have won a temporary reprieve from eviction.这个家庭暂时免于被逐出。
• He claimed damages for unlawful eviction.他要求对非法驱逐作出赔偿。

3 evicted   

v.（依法从房屋里或土地上）驱逐，赶出( evict的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• A number of tenants have been evicted for not paying the rent. 许多房客因不付房租被赶了出来。
• They had evicted their tenants for non-payment of rent. 他们赶走了未交房租的房客。

4 rental   

n.租赁，出租，出租业

参考例句：

• The yearly rental of her house is 2400 yuan.她这房子年租金是2400元。
• We can organise car rental from Chicago O'Hare Airport.我们可以安排提供从芝加哥奥黑尔机场出发的租车服务。

5 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

6 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

7 salute   

vi.行礼，致意，问候，放礼炮；vt.向…致意，迎接，赞扬；n.招呼，敬礼，礼炮

参考例句：

• Merchant ships salute each other by dipping the flag.商船互相点旗致敬。
• The Japanese women salute the people with formal bows in welcome.这些日本妇女以正式的鞠躬向人们施礼以示欢迎。

8 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

9 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

10 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。