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Demonstrators march to protest evictions in Philadelphia on Thursday. (Rachel Wisniewksi/Bloomberg News)
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September 4, 2020 at 6:00 a.m. EDT
The potential “homeless pandemic” threatens both economic security and public health. And yet, the country has faced this type of crisis before — and made significant strides in ensuring social welfare as a result.
During the Great Depression, social scientists Sophonisba Breckinridge and Edith Abbott launched a study of the Chicago Renters’ Court. Established to hear cases in which tenants were subject to immediate eviction for nonpayment of rent, the court was busy during the Depression; from 1931 to 1933, total evictions in the city doubled.
Their research showed that…
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