We propose to map evictions in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Specifically, the project would analyze the degree to which tenants being evicted have due process with actual court hearings in evictions (as opposed to defaults with no hearing), and the degree to which disparities in access to the courts differ based on the racial and economic make-up of the different areas of Miami.
Our vision is to ascertain the demographics of the different zip codes of Miami. We would then use the detailed data provided by the clerk of the Miami Courts to compare and contrast the level of access to the courts that residents are afforded in evictions based on zip code. This would allow us to map how much due process tenants in evictions get in Miami, and also see the role that the racial and economic make-up of the different areas play in that level of due process.
We would provide comprehensive data sets from two years of eviction records in Miami, from 2013 and 2014. This data, which was purchased through a public records request from the Miami Clerk of Courts, includes more than 47,000 evictions. The data details the record of the case, including whether; the tenant filed an answer or had an attorney, whether the tenant had a hearing in front of a judge or was defaulted without a hearing, and whether the tenant resolved the case or was actually thrown out of their home. The data includes the names of the parties as well as the zip code of the case. Also, we have data from March of 2016, where AmeriCorps is tracking similar data. For information regarding the racial and economic make-up of the different areas, we would rely on census data to obtain demographic information for the particular zip codes.
We hope to generate easily digestible neighborhood and county-wide maps, as well as key statistics to be used as talking points. Ideally, the maps would be interactive and able to be displayed on a capsule website or electronic report. Besides the general facts about the eviction, we are hoping to highlight patterns of disparate impact in communities of color, poor areas, and areas under threat of gentrification.
Key issues we want to highlight are geographic concentration of evictions, the relationship of evictions and race, and the revolving door of evictions. We would also highlight geographic areas where landlords evict their tenants without the tenant getting a court hearing. More broadly, we are also focusing on the impact of laws which allow landlords to obtain an eviction judgment without a hearing, and how that correlates with displacement. (though how this would play into a map might require more creative thinking).
The final product will be used for grassroots community education, educating stakeholders and elected officials on the crisis in our community, and potentially as evidence in litigation to challenge unconstitutional practices. The data generated through this project will be paired with first-person stories from those directly impacted by eviction and displacement.
Legal Services of Greater Miami will use the material in accordance with their LSC funding restrictions, which prohibits lobbying. Community Justice Project is not subject to such restrictions and may use the materials for advocacy purposes, including advocating for improved tenant’s rights laws on the local and state level, and fighting displacement in neighborhoods of color.
Most importantly, we want to make these tools accessible to not only be seen by, but used by and owned as tools, for tenant leaders in their own work fighting for the preservation of their homes and communities.
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