Vallcarca organizes and stops the first mass eviction of 40 families with 13 minors.

BarcelonaMore than 500 people have gathered since 7 a.m. this Wednesday on Avinguda Vallcarca in Barcelona, ​​​​at the corner of Carrer Farigola, to prevent the first attempt to evict two apartment blocks and a warehouse owned by Barcelona City Council. And for now, they have succeeded.

The 40 families who live there, including 13 minors enrolled in school in the neighborhood, have decided to carry out peaceful resistance and – together with social movements and housing unions in the neighborhood – have organized a series of events to stop the arrival of the delegation of this first voluntary administrative eviction. This is a very similar organization to what was already seen in the Casa Orsola, in the Eixample neighborhood of the Catalan capital, in January.

Today's objective was also to prevent the delegation from evicting the people who have been living in these buildings for years. The City Council sent them eviction notices a few weeks ago and reminded them that the buildings would eventually be demolished, in order to continue with the urban redevelopment plan prepared for the Vallcarca neighborhood. Municipal sources assure that these families live in "substandard housing" and that the council cannot guarantee the safety or maintenance of the buildings. "The only alternative regarding these buildings was and is to demolish them," reiterate City Council sources.

The affected families, however, maintain that the apartments have no deficiencies, according to the occupancy certificates and the independent technical reports they have requested. That's why they're demanding the right to remain in the blocks, at least until the council has expropriated all the remaining land affected by the urban development plan. This is a necessary step to begin construction, but one that could take years.

The first tense moment of the morning came shortly after 7:00 a.m. According to the organizers, the municipal delegation, escorted by Barcelona City Police, arrived at the back entrance of two of the buildings (which also have entrances and exits at 48 and 54 Bolívar Streets). "When they were asked for identification and blocked, they left, saying they were going to the courthouse to request authorization," the event organizers explained.

City Council spokespersons clarify that municipal technicians have only visited the properties to "verify" that they are still occupied, as part of the voluntary administrative eviction procedure. Once it has been verified that people are still living there, they explain, the next step will be to request judicial authorization to carry out "the forced execution." "In any case, Barcelona City Council has worked and will continue to work to address situations of vulnerability and offer social and housing resources and solutions appropriate to people's needs, with special attention to children," they emphasize, while admitting that, for the moment, no alternative has been offered to the affected families.

"They want to burden the entire structural housing problem on Social Services. And what are the workers on the front lines of social services telling us? That they cannot take on a structural problem like housing," said Iru Moner, one of the residents of the affected blocks and a member of the Som Barri neighborhood movement. Moner has singled out the PSC (Spanish Socialist Workers' Party), accusing it of "returning to the politics of bricks and mortar and the real estate bubble": "They're forcing us out of the city, depriving us of living in our neighborhoods. This is the beginning of a city conflict, and right now Vallcarca is the barricade against gentrification in Barcelona."

Neighborhood support, Orsola style

And while the eviction was debated behind the back doors of the buildings, the protests on the street were peaceful, and the procession's withdrawal was announced from a balcony and celebrated as a social victory. The street events, which could be followed live on YouTube, enjoyed the support and presence of various figures, especially from the world of culture and social movements.

The speeches continued throughout the morning. Organizations from the housing movement participated, such as the Renters' Union and COSHAC, as well as the education sector's associations, with Docents080 and the student union SEPC, and other public workers' platforms, such as Cabecera, from the health sector, the Firefighters Against Evictions, and A Cobert, a new platform.

Neighborhood associations also took part; neighbors who have been protagonists of other mass evictions, such as Josep Torrent, from Casa Orsola, and poetry readings and musical performances were held. With the heat wave upon us, the organizers celebrated the departure of the municipal procession with a wet finale, a foam party.