Supporters join Mark Harris at Fannie Mae to demand justice

Mark Harris, an Occupy Our Homes Atlanta member who has been fighting Fannie Mae for his home since last fall, was joined today outside their regional headquarters by dozens of supporters, and community members, including American Friends Service Committee, Atlanta Jobs With Justice, Teamsters Local 728, and the SCLC.
Mark, a Desert Storm veteran, had his home foreclosed on back in October while he was still attempting to work out a solution with his servicer. Since then, Mark has traveled to DC to meet with Fannie Mae executives, and collected over 9,000 signatures on a petition created on Start2.occupyourhomes.org. Despite this, Fannie Mae has refused to keep their word and negotiate in good faith, and are attempting to move forward with an eviction.

At the action, activists built a mock house, representing the thousands of homes across the country that Fannie Mae has taken from communities. Once the house was built, the group joined in a prayer, followed by veterans speaking out against the injustices they face  when returning home after serving their country in the military.

The coalition used the opportunity to do an eviction defense training around the house that was built, sending a message to Fannie Mae that Mark’s home would not be easily taken from him. The group then lined up behind Mark as he peacefully attempted to deliver his petition signatures to Fannie Mae. The building’s security guards wouldn’t let him through the entrance however, but agreed to make sure the signatures were received by Fannie Mae.

Mark was joined by several home defenders, some who had previously fought and won their homes back from the bank, as well as others who are still in the process of fighting along with him. Today’s action was also part of the launch of the national ‘Homes For All‘ campaign, led by the Right to the City Alliance, which is joining together homeowners, renters, homeless, and public housing residents to fight for action on housing, and further the movement to establish housing as a human right for all.

View more photos from the action below: