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For Immediate Release
April, 14 2011, 01:11pm EDT
Contact:
Melissa Quirk, National Low Income Housing Coalition, 202.662.1530 x230
Housing and Community Development Advocates to Congress: Budget Deal Hurts Communities, Low Income Families
he House and Senate are set to vote today on a budget deal that cuts nearly $40 billion from non-defense discretionary programs.
Members of the Campaign for Housing and Community Development Funding (CHCDF), a coalition of 72 national affordable housing and community development groups, believe those cuts should not come at the expense of low income households who cannot afford housing or from communities that desperately need assistance. In reality, lawmakers have proposed exactly that by cutting HUD's budget 6.4% below the FY10 funding levels.
WASHINGTON
he House and Senate are set to vote today on a budget deal that cuts nearly $40 billion from non-defense discretionary programs.
Members of the Campaign for Housing and Community Development Funding (CHCDF), a coalition of 72 national affordable housing and community development groups, believe those cuts should not come at the expense of low income households who cannot afford housing or from communities that desperately need assistance. In reality, lawmakers have proposed exactly that by cutting HUD's budget 6.4% below the FY10 funding levels.
These cuts, amounting to $2.8 billion in HUD program funding, will result in low income households losing access to affordable housing. Deferred maintenance will put current subsidized housing residents at risk of living in substandard housing units. Even more units will be lost from HUD's aging subsidized housing portfolio, which already loses 10,000 units per year due to attrition caused by unfunded maintenance needs. Communities will not be able to create the employment opportunities, economic activity or services desperately needed by low income households.
CHCDF members appreciate the efforts made by some members to limit the damage more severe cuts could have caused. The fact remains that these cuts will harm low income households and lower the bar for housing and community development funding in future fiscal years. CHCDF members understand the long-term necessity of addressing the nation's budget deficit, but hope lawmakers will work to achieve deficit reduction in a way that does not sacrifice the housing stability and community resources of the lowest income people in our nation.
The House and Senate are expected to vote at 1 pm on H.R. 1473, the Department of Defense and Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2011.
The National Low Income Housing Coalition is dedicated solely to ending America's affordable housing crisis. Established in 1974 by Cushing N. Dolbeare, NLIHC educates, organizes and advocates to ensure decent, affordable housing within healthy neighborhoods for everyone. NLIHC provides up-to-date information, formulates policy and educates the public on housing needs and the strategies for solutions.
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FBI Disrupts Plot to Assassinate Head of Pro-Palestinian Rights Group in New York
"This disturbing case underscores the growing climate of harassment, threats, and violence directed at those speaking out on Palestinian human rights and other social justice issues."
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Nerdeen Kiswani, the co-founder of the Palestinian rights group Within Our Lifetime, emphasized on Friday that public threats and violent rhetoric from a sitting Republican congressman and a Zionist organization had preceded the news that there was an active plot to assassinate her.
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Group members and supporters frequently chant: “Judaism, yes, Zionism no! The state of Israel has got to go!” at protests.
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Last month, Kiswani filed a civil rights lawsuit against Betar, alleging it had subjected her to physical intimidation and racially motivated threats that went "far beyond protected speech."
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Kiswani said the group's threats amounted to them putting "bounties" on her head.
In response to the news of the assassination plot, Betar on Friday called Kiswani a "violent terrorist."
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In January, New York Attorney General Letitia James announced an agreement in which Betar said it would dissolve its New York operations and stop its “widespread persecution of Muslim, Arab, Palestinian, and Jewish New Yorkers” who disagree with its stance on Israel and Palestine.
The Times reported that there was no indication that Betar was connected to the plot on Kiswani's life.
Kiswani has also been targeted by Fine, a notorious anti-Muslim bigot who responded to a satirical post by the organizer last month about dogs being "unclean" by saying, "If they force us to choose, the choice between dogs and Muslims is not a difficult one.”
CAIR and CAIR-NY said that "no one in our nation should face violence or intimidation because of their identity, advocacy, or political views."
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As Israel ramps up its devastating invasion of Lebanon, Rep. Rashida Tlaib has introduced legislation in the US House of Representatives aimed at blocking US support.
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Tlaib's resolutions come as another war powers resolution to limit Trump's ability to launch more attacks against Iran appears to have gained enough support to pass the House, although Democratic leadership has chosen to delay the vote until mid-April despite warnings that Trump may soon dramatically escalate the war, including with US ground troops.
That bill remains viable due to limited Republican support, including from Reps. Thomas Massie (Ky.), Warren Davidson (Ohio), and Nancy Mace (SC). While Massie has been a consistent anti-war vote, it's unclear whether other Republicans, as well as some pro-Israel Democrats, would similarly sign onto a resolution concerning Lebanon.
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Breakdowns and burnout are on the rise.
"I've seen doctors cry," one physician, who wished to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation, told Reuters. "With this crisis, they cry. They've stopped working, they've become depressed. You can see it on their faces."
Despite the worsening situation, Carlos told the CBC that he does not want to leave Cuba, and blamed the US for the crisis.
"The main cause of everything is the USA," he said. "I have no doubt about that."
Some do want to leave, blaming their own government as well the US embargo for Cuba's suffering. Others are taking things one day at a time.
"We don’t know what will happen," a nurse who gave only her first name, Rita, told the CBC, "so we just keep working."
The mounting—and preventable—deaths in Cuba are prompting renewed calls for the US to lift sanctions on Cuba.
"No patient deserves this. Trump's cruel Cuban blockade is killing people unnecessarily," National Nurses United, the largest US nurses' union, said on social media Friday. "Depriving Cubans of essential resources needed to sustain life and health is an unconscionable violation of human rights. Nurses say: End the blockade now!"
Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) also weighed in during a Thursday floor speech in which she said that "Cuba poses no threat to us, yet we are strangling an entire nation with economic warfare."
Trump's oil blockade is strangling an entire nation.
Families are going without food. Water systems are failing. Hospitals are struggling to stay open. This is economic warfare.
I'm calling for an immediate end to this cruel and indefensible blockade. Hands off Cuba. pic.twitter.com/MNybPNlBHn
— Rep. Ilhan Omar (@Ilhan) March 26, 2026
"Families are going without food. Water systems are failing. Hospitals are struggling to stay open," she continued. "These tactics are designed to suffocate an island into submission. Make no mistake: This unconscionable suffering is occurring because Trump is trying to force regime change."
"Hands off Cuba," Omar added. "End the blockade now."
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