[quote] Squatters Have Become a Right-Wing Talking Point. What to Know About the Rare Practice
Document Type
News Article
Publication Date
4-4-2024
Abstract
Brandon Weiss, a professor of law at American University, said an unprecedented number of U.S. households cannot afford housing right now.
“Stories about the growing number of squatters is a sort of narrative, or rhetorical tool, being used to push back against tenants,” he said. “Narratives like this will shift the balance of power even further towards landlords.”
Weiss said there are campaigns to provide greater housing security, but if the story becomes that landlords are victims of tenants, it will deflect from the bigger problem of housing insecurity.
“Nobody is advocating wildly reckless lawbreaking, but if you take these caricatured cases to enact law reform, that can affect people in ways that the law probably didn’t intend,” he said.
Source Publication
The Washington Post
Recommended Citation
Weiss, Brandon; Javaid, Maham; and Paul, Maria Luisa, "[quote] Squatters Have Become a Right-Wing Talking Point. What to Know About the Rare Practice" (2024). Popular Media. 596.
https://digitalcommons.wcl.american.edu/pub_disc_media/596