Human Essay: Evicted

 Humanity to Housing: Community Building in Evicted

Nationwide economic difficulties are not very frequent occurrences in the States, but each time they do happen, much of the country is taken by surprise, the poorest often unable to recover from the massive blow often dealt to both their livelihood and living conditions. In Evicted, Matthew Desmond follows the stories of eight families in Milwaukee, documenting their struggles during the Financial Crisis of 2007-2008, and the aftermaths that this tragedy prompted within their lives. People within Desmond’s documentation come from various backgrounds, experiences, and socio-economic statuses, all providing a different view of the devastated state of the housing market after the Financial Crisis. In these stories of desperation, care, and recovery, humanity is expressed through a need or desire for empathy. Much like other tales of community, Evicted elaborates on the community built through struggle, care, and empathy and the effects of these situations on those within.

Desmond’s way of storytelling allows the reader to empathize with many if not all of the figures in his book, even if their viewpoints and interests contradict one another. For example, Sherrena is the root of many individuals’ troubles within her story. She is an ambitious person, but often an unsympathetic landlord. While the time that this documentation focuses on was hard for most, at the end of the day, Sherrena still had a roof over her head. She still owed property and had a support system many of her residents couldn’t dream of. Desmond tells her story at length anyway, allowing a voice to someone many readers would be hesitant to listen to. Part of the crafting of Evicted is centered around being understanding and empathetic toward those who society often looks down on. People living in trailer parks and roach-infested apartments aren’t typically the people society highlights to speak about poverty. Ironically enough, we hear news about economic struggle from those who experience the least of it: news stations looking for a drastic statistic or heartwarming story to catch the attention of viewers, impersonal websites and articles reducing people to numbers within an equation, and the highest, most vocal of society, people with power, wealth, and status who talk about the “devastating” effects this statistical decrease has made in their incalculable profits.

Taking a very human approach, Desmond documents each interaction and story he tells with care and interest, truly presenting an unbiased opinion of each individual. One recurring theme throughout these narratives is a sense of dehumanization found in a lack of empathy. When asked about the characters within this book, my peers highlighted Sherrena as a character they were able to identify with the least. I believe that this isn’t strictly centered in Sherrena’s story alone, but in the effect she had on others and their lives. With Arleen and Lamar in particular, Sherrena expressed casual care and interest in her tenants until they fell behind in rent or particularly frustrated her in another way. One situation where this feeling of separation may have solidified for a reader was when Sherrena met with other members of her community’s real estate association. While talking with friends after the meeting, Sherrena expressed disdain for Lamar, who has been consistently highlighted as caring and kind among her tenants. While her concerns with him were warranted, he was behind on rent and had done a sub-par job on a task he’d asked Sherrena for, the reader still is led to sympathize with him, whether that’s due to his disability, his care for his boys, or simply the way Desmond portrayed him. Arleen also highlights a situation easy to sympathize with, as she is a mother of four, constantly evicted and separated from her children due to her circumstances. An opposition to Sherrena after hearing these stories is understandable, but Desmond still attempts to tell her story authentically.

Dehumanization in Evicted isn’t seen in the writer’s words, but in the reader's responses and the individuals’ actions. People like Arleen are often seen by society as unwell or even unwise, but Desmond’s gentle ventures into humanity for the individuals of his story allow these walls between reader and character to be broken down. Rather than active dehumanization within this book, there is a focus on the building of humanity for individuals, giving the reader enough context to truly care about the people within.

This book, along with the previous one, gave me insight into perspectives I have not experienced but have lived adjacent to. Desmond creates a very important perspective as a writer, one that highlights all stories, giving the reader a choice on who to agree or sympathize with. Books like Evicted are crucial to the overall growth of understanding within a society thriving off exploitation and separation. When presented with a piece of media as all-encompassing as this book, a reader is forced to see all perspectives of a situation they had no say in, limiting separation from others. I believe it is the responsibility of citizens within societies that hold this type of exploitation to educate themselves by engaging in stories that foster empathy. Without care for others, how are we to know or care what our actions do to others?

Evicted is a book that fixates on the individualization of people present in a system that seeks to group them under a statistic. Matthew Desmond ventures into this space without bias, seeking an understanding of these people and their identities. Those represented in this book are individualized by their experiences, but also by their trust and care for others. The hope that they have is perpetuated by some dream of a better situation for themselves and those they care for. From the simplicity of Scott’s dream to return to medicine to the undeniable empathy shared between Crystal and Arleen when they met, Desmond is intentional about the identities of those he writes about, telling the nuances of their stories to allow a reader sight through their eyes. This book as a whole is centered around the fact that humans will lean toward care unless interrupted by self-interest.