For the past five months, local artist Cori Lin (and PPNA part-time staff member!) has been working to illustrate the vibrant faces and stories of Powderhorn renters.
Cori is currently looking for a Powderhorn renter family who would be interested in being featured in this project.
The third portrait is of Chloe, shown against a backdrop of awards and certificates that decorate her kitchen wall. Chloe has been living in the same Corcoran apartment with her son, Trayvon, for the past 5 years. Her apartment is cozy and full of light, and Chloe chatted with Nancy, the photographer, and I while getting ready to run to her shift.
Photography by Nancy Musinguzi
Chloe has been dealing with the Apartment Shops negligence for years. She walked me through her living area and kitchen, pointing out her hard fought repairs: Windows that had let in freezing air, pests that had infested for months, even a drip in her ceiling that turned into a torrent, waking-up Chloe and her son to a waterfall in their kitchen. Even once the repairs people came, the process wasn't smooth. One time Chloe walked in to see the repair worker standing on her bed with their work shoes on. She has been fighting tooth and nail for livable housing, and still, in her own home, Chloe's asthma is triggered by the roaches in the building.
Chloe's lease is up in August and she's worried. She's been protesting Steve Frenz since 2014, but besides building owners changing, her situation with the Apartment Shop is still the same. Chloe is very worried about the high rents in South Minneapolis and told me that she felt like her only other option would be having to move to North Minneapolis entirely. She really wants to avoid moving away from the South Side, but doesn't have many options.
But she's not done. She is standing with the a group of renters that are collectively rent striking against the Apartment Shop. The renters in her building have been meeting regularly, organizing together to create a united front against a housing system that disadvantages renters and a huge company that does not care about the quality of their homes. Chloe has been involved with the renters organizing and advocacy group, Inquilinxs Unidxs por Justicia, who has been organizing the Rent Strike rally that is happening on July 10th.
You can support Chloe by joining in on the Rent Strike Rally and other upcoming events, or donating to Inquilinxs Unidxs, who have been supporting the Apartment Shop survivors.
Cori will be creating four portraits total for the Faces of Renting project for her #RentersRightsareHumanRights project that will be open this Fall
For more questions about the project, or to get involved, contact cori@ppna.org.
Thank you CURA and the Artist Neighborhood Partnership Initiative grant for funding this series.