Occupy D.C. protesters filled the sidewalk outside mortgage giant Freddie Mac’s District office to protest foreclosures Monday afternoon.
About 60 protesters — some carrying a giant papier-mache golden calf — attended the Chinatown rally to support Bertina Jones, a Bowie, Md. resident whose home mortgage was purchased by Freddie Mac after it went into foreclosure. She delivered a letter to company representatives on Monday, asking them to halt foreclosure on her home.
Jones says she fell behind on mortgage payments in 2008 but renegotiated the mortgage with Bank of America, who, she said, later informed her that the modifications to her mortgage were “off the table” and sold it to Freddie Mac.
Speaking outside the company’s offices on Monday, Jones said she had never been involved with Occupy D.C. before but was grateful protesters had rallied behind her.
“Freddie Mac wasn’t listening to me,” she said, encouraging other homeowners to fight back against foreclosures. “Can you hear me now?”
Monday’s protest was organized by Occupy Our Homes D.C., an offshoot of the Occupy D.C. movement that, despite being barred from sleeping in McPherson Square and Freedom Plaza, is still maintaining a presence in the city. The rally outside Freddie Mac was the first major protest the group has launched.
Since a de facto eviction that removed most tents from McPherson Square, Occupy D.C. has been focusing on local issues, said Rooj Alwazier, who helped organize Monday’s action.
“[The camp] was a space to come together to connect — it was a tactic,” she said. These days Occupy is placing more focus on working groups that target specific issues, she said.
