Why I Want To Be a Housing and Tenants' Rights Lawyer by Alex

Why I Want To Be a Housing and Tenants' Rights Lawyer by Alex - February 2019 Scholarship Essay

The first newspaper article I wrote after graduating college was about a group of affordable housing activists in Brooklyn. I followed the protestors with my camera and notepad as they marched through the streets. Their banners and chants brought attention to harassment by landlords who wanted to drive out low-income renters to make room for wealthier residents. The protest concluded with a rally in a park attended by elected officials and local leaders. When it was over, I walked home to write my story. I lived only 10 minutes away. Most of the protestors were also my neighbors.

That article, and subsequent articles I wrote about affordable housing, connected problems in my own life to a larger issue. My landlord had begun ignoring my requests to fix leaky plumbing or holes in the ceiling. The heat was out during the coldest days in winter. Strange fees were added to my rent, which made it more difficult to afford to live there. I started to understand these problems were related to changes in my neighborhood because of higher-income newcomers. Fancy cafes and restaurants were replacing longtime local businesses. Construction of expensive apartment buildings was underway along the neighborhood’s main thoroughfare. By talking to the activists for my articles, I began to see that my landlord’s neglect was a purposeful effort to drive me from my home. I realized the protestors were also fighting for my interests.

My realization came too late. The landlord succeeded in driving me from the apartment. But I continued to write about affordable housing in New York City. While many of my articles were about injustice and displacement, I also began to uncover stories of hope. People were organizing other tenants in their buildings and holding “rent strikes” to force their landlord to turn on the heat or make repairs. Other renters, after learning about their rights, were refusing to be intimidated by frivolous eviction threats and standing up for themselves in court. I began to see how ordinary people were capable of extraordinary acts of compassion and courage. Those activities, taken together, do make a difference and ultimately make the world a better place.

This is why my dream job is to be a housing and tenants’ rights lawyer in New York. This work involves representing people who are being evicted from their homes or taking legal action against landlords who fail to make apartments livable for tenants. My personal experience having to flee my apartment, as well as the inspiring stories I encountered as a journalist, have made this an important issue for me. A legal education would empower me to assist those who, unlike me, are willing to take a stand and fight for their homes. And perhaps I would have been one of them if a good lawyer was there to advocate for me.

I have been accepted at several law schools in New York and am in the process of deciding which one I will go to in the fall. While I will acquire many of the skills I need for this career by reading law books, I also plan to take internships at organizations that provide support to low-income tenants fighting eviction. The law schools I am considering also have their own housing clinics where students can provide free legal services. My goal is to have the education, training and experience to succeed in this profession by the time graduation arrives.

I am also gaining valuable experience in my current role as a Peace Corps volunteer in Rwanda. Although my volunteer work is about addressing childhood malnutrition, I can see many parallels between what I am doing now and the work I aspire to as a lawyer. The problem here is food insecurity and so I am introducing improved gardening and animal husbandry techniques that will allow families to have regular access to more diverse and nutritious foods. I think this experience will translate well to helping tenants. I hope to make their lives more stable and secure by helping protect their homes.