 Hello and welcome to the Miami documentary on housing and climate justice conference session. My name is Ronald Baez, I'm going to be your moderator today. I am a filmmaker and the Miami producer for Raising Liberty Square, which is the documentary that will be guiding our conversation for today. I do want to introduce our panelists, if I may. We have Phillip and Hattie Walker. They are the founders of Project Liberty Square, family and friends, and they're former residents of Liberty Square. Erin McKinney, who is a community advocate and real estate developer born and raised in Liberty City. Daniella Pierre, who's an affordable housing advocate and the president of the Mamidade branch of the NAACP. And Katia Esson, who is the director and producer of Raising Liberty Square, a feature film about climate gentrification in Miami. So all of you guys, thank you so much for joining us and welcome to this panel. To get us started, I do want to just give some context with a trailer. So Erin, if you don't mind putting up the trailer for Raising Liberty Square, please, for our audience. Let's change. I'm a single mother of seven. I have a difficult decision to make whether I will stay or whether I will go. Liberty Square is the heart. And when you destroy the heart, you destroy the people. So where is the people going to go? When they came to build Miami, they wanted it to be this beachfront paradise. So what they did was push the people of color, black folks to the middle of the city, which sits on a ridge. Look in it for us. Why are you seeing what it's going to be? Why? Why are there no people that look like me? This is the next step in the process. Somehow or another, Mr. Milo, the plans changed. How do I get a place to live? Everybody call Milo and ask him for an apartment? Put on a good front for my staff and I put on a good front for my children, but it does bother me. I have to go to sleep at night. And I'm wondering what would happen to us if we do lose the place. I'm not disconnected from these kids. I used to be one of these kids. Why you love the kids? Why you do that? Because when I grew up, no one told me they loved me. I'm in war stage, willing to fight for these children and my community. We're starting to see developers who have historically only did business on the beach or in affluent communities are not coming in and fighting over housing projects that sit smack dab in the middle of our city. I'm a firm believer of mixed income development and breaking up concentrated poverty. I'm not saying it's because I work for the firm. I'm actually, I am impressed with our plan. I've heard everything from, you know, Harry, you just here to take a check every two weeks or, you know, you're a house nigger, something like that. What color you want her on the beach? I need to know if I can start getting stuff. Baby, get a meeting with the people that made all these promises. That's why I'm asking you, how you know they're gonna keep their word? It's in the contract. Amy, it's ground zero for sea level rise. We are the example of climate gentrification. When I was a child, my grandfather always would say, they're gonna come take Liberty City because we don't flood. So as you can see, we're going to be exploring some pretty big topics surrounding climate gentrification, cultural and historic preservation and housing with our panelists who hopefully we can get back on here. There's Aaron. And just so everyone has a sense of what's going to happen, we'll be exploring some discussions and then we will move into the audience questions after the fact. But if I may start with Philip and Hattie Walker. Just a quick question for y'all. Can you tell us a little bit about Liberty Square? Why is this a significant place and why did you organize the Liberty Square Projects, Friends and Family Reunion for residents and former residents? Okay, I'll answer the first part and then Philip will do the second part. Okay, Liberty Square was significant because it was so beautiful. You have to realize these people were coming from not having running water in their houses. And the landscape was out of sight. It was gorgeous. I mean, people was on a waiting list to get in there. At one time, they even had a grocery store. They had a church at one time. They had a school at one time. But most of all, they had unity with the family. It was just something that you don't see now, nowhere, unless it's in a private home. And people, when they moved out of Liberty Square at that time, they moved out to ownership. They didn't stay there as forever. And that's what was so significant to me. Okay, now Philip will talk about the organization of it. Well, we had got used to each other going to funerals. Every time we lived on, we was going to a funeral when our neighbors from the project. So we decided that we would form the Project Reunion. And that was in, I think it was around about... 2006. Yeah, by 2006. And from there, we decided that we would go back into the project and help. Help give our scholarships, clothes, whatever. We wanted to give something back because the project was really a place where you can go, be safe, but laid on, what happened to it? Also, in 2013, we organized where we became now a nonprofit organization. We became a group for just meeting socially, to doing something, to give back to our roots. Yeah, you formalized that organization. Yes. What would you call it? 3-0-1. Yeah, 3-0-1. 5-0-1, 3-0-1, 3-0-1. For sure. No, that's interesting. It's very clear. So how is the nonprofit moving now? Is it kind of like going in that direction? Is it you're maintaining those programs that you've been doing? Oh, yes, yes, by law. By guidelines of being a 5-0-1, 3-C, there are certain things that you have to do to maintain that status. So not only do we do, we work in conjunction with other organizations, because together you stand and divide as you fall. So we are all unit, but we have a big heart. And being nonprofit, we don't even charge ourselves. We give, we don't even have dues for ourselves. And we enjoy giving back, because this is from how we look for whence we've come. And we have judges, lawyers, you name it, they came from Liberty Square. We're so proud to give back. In any way we can. That's excellent. It's good to know that the Liberty Square Project Friends and Family Reunion is something that you can support right now. If I can, though, I'd like to move on to Daniella Pierre, who we know is a wonderful housing advocate. Daniella, what is happening across Miami with public housing? We're talking about, Philip mentioned that change that happened from when he was growing up in Liberty Square to what Liberty Square might look like today. How does Liberty Square fit into the context of public housing across the city? Thank you so much for the question. And I would say, you know, 85 years later, we're back at Liberty Square with the redevelopment. And I would say due to an age in housing stock, there is a common consensus that redevelopment, revitalization and a restoration inclusive of Liberty Square and all things Liberty City has been needed for a very long time. And particularly for public housing units within that area. However, what is happening, or at least what appears to be happening as it relates to Liberty City, appears to be an organized takeover. And some element of displacement. Displacement by families who are continually being priced out of the only area they have called home. Increasingly, public housing, those units that are coming back online, are being at a rate where it prices out our seniors and our low income families. So it's becoming an area that had a need for revitalization for a very long time. But what is being redesigned for today isn't as accessible or affordable as it was in the past. So we see that going on within Liberty City and particularly within Liberty Square. Again, you've had families where generationally, that's the only place in space they were able to call home for a number of reasons. But because of the times that we're in now and some would say it's by design, but I would also say it's inclusive of antiquated policies that continue to have families become priced out and marginalized as it relates to moving housing forward within the area. So those are the things that are happening at least on a high level overview perspective when it comes to Liberty Square and Liberty City in particular. Yeah, it's interesting because you mentioned kind of historic policy on one side. And then I know Katya, the film director, producer of Raising Liberty Square, you've actually gotten really into how that historic policy has transformed in modern time. And we call this thing or this thing is coined in Miami, climate gentrification. Can you tell me a little bit about what climate gentrification is? And also just so we have some background, why did you make this movie? Thanks, Ronald. Yes, this new term climate gentrification was, as you said, actually coined in Miami, but it manifests itself differently in different cities or in different places. Miami has a very specific form of, and I still go like this, climate gentrification, because Miami is basically ground zero for sea level rise in the world, some argue. But it's really one of the most, not the most vulnerable city to sea level rise. And historically communities of color have been pushed inland, away from the beaches, away from the precious coastline, but they were pushed on a ridge that exists in Florida. So these communities now sit on much higher ground. And the beaches are extremely wealthy, but they're also extremely low lying. Sometimes really literally one foot or zero above sea level. So they are the first ones gonna be, I mean, they're trying to do all kinds of stuff, raising roads, doing pumps, but I mean the beaches, they're gonna go. And so now these wealthier people, but definitely investors and developers are looking inland for many reasons, cheaper insurances, but also looking for the future. And as Daniela was saying, the historic communities in these places are being pushed out, and that's climate gentrification. And when I started this film, when I started raising Liberty Square, which at that point I didn't have that title yet in my head, but it's a play on this Liberty Square rising and the title is raising, R-A-Z, but that came later because I really started with a purely historic interest in the projects. Moonlight, the movie Moonlight had just come out. I had studied here in the late 80s, mid 90s, did not know anything about this community, and then learned about that it was supposed to be raised to the ground. And I learned it is one of the first segregated, segregated public housing projects in America, one of the largest built during the New Deal. So the my European heart was like, what do you mean you're gonna tear this down? I just couldn't believe it. And Phillip, remember when I met you, you were still at the point like, we have to preserve all this. That's how I, I said, oh my God, we have to preserve anything. I said we have to preserve it. It was a historic perspective. Exactly, but then I learned, oh, wait a second, this is high ground. What's happening? So then I learned about- Learn about what Daniela's talking about. Exactly, and the film includes the story, but also goes into the other questions that Daniela is talking about. Certainly, that's, no, that's, it's really interesting. And one of the people in the documentary, of course, is Aaron McKenney, who has a really unique perspective. Aaron, so you take on the perspective of someone who works in real estate development, but you work also as a community advocate, someone who cares deeply about what Liberty Square and Liberty City actually need. So one question I have for you is from your unique point of view, what are those critical considerations? What do you think Liberty Square and Liberty City really need to be able to thrive? Yeah, I understood, and thanks for the question. So I would just say first and foremost, one of the most important things is when you look at these revitalization efforts and these redevelopment efforts that are happening in Liberty City and similar communities, I think the first step is legitimate and intentional planning for the promises that these type of developments or these type of projects are promoted to achieve, right? And so it's not just putting things on paper, it's being more intentional about partnerships, timelines and so forth, because as mentioned in that small clip that was played just now, when the face I have, I think what was presented in the plan that we talked about for Liberty Square is a reasonable plan, right? What we're essentially addressing is this de-concentration or this economic desegregation that unfortunately far too many minority communities and these specific black communities tend to deal with where folks are essentially disenfranchised, as Khaji mentioned, and not necessarily connected to the larger community, to larger resources and opportunities that exist within those spaces. And so the idea and then on top of that, there are very little mechanisms in place to allow folks like me, a middle income earner, a middle class American to then move back into these spaces and help with that economic growth. So the concept in nature of changing community by creating this diversity, the socioeconomic diversity is a great one. And I think it's all about intention and approach. And I can't stress that enough, right? And the absence of making moves to create that diversity, what we are essentially doing is perpetuating the same concentration of poverty over and over again in these communities. And what I mean by that is, choosing to focus on strictly low income housing will never get us to achieve the revitalization efforts that the community deserves, right? There has to be that mix involved. But what does that look like and how do you approach it? And so one of the things I think is like critical from a development standpoint is trying to find a way to avoid any adverse impact on historic community members, right? If we're looking at redevelopment, is there a chance for a phased approach where we can allow folks to stay in place as opposed to having to relocate to other communities, right? Because again, if we're talking about low income residents, the financial resources available to them are oftentimes more limited than most. So there's record within someone's life with the introduction of a move far beyond the spaces that they've known and grown and become comfortable. The need for that, like I said, to add a density to allow that mix where we're looking at finding ways to upzone some of these areas. And I know that's a controversial target conversation considering this conversation about preserving the historic nature of community. But listen, you're not building more land, right? So if you actually want to address the housing issue, you need to be able to densify certain areas and create that, again, that housing diversity that's needed. You need property management that is culturally competent to deal with folks that are in different housing types, right? You say culturally competent. Culturally competent, yes. That are aware of the historic issues of said areas that can speak to and connect with the people to make them more comfortable in these spaces because what we've heard about being in my experience and also reading a recommendation by Katya, another book on integrating in the city, there's oftentimes this disconnect with management with folks that are made to feel like they're not at home in their own. And so it's the little things along the way. In addition to that, a legitimate real focus on providing the wraparound services and planning that's gonna help folks again to climb that socioeconomic ladder, right? The focus on providing opportunity for education attainment, for economic development, for health and wellness opportunities and resources that can be conveniently stationed within these newly built communities and these new structures. And then the emphasis on arts and the preservation of the culture of the community. I mean, this is the all critical components and without the proper planning, the actual pen to paper, the partnerships, the collaborations, the actual economic investment, a lot of times these efforts will then miss the mark if they don't have that focus on the real needs of community. Yeah, it seems like so much of it comes to intention. What is it you're trying to accomplish and how are you trying to accomplish it? One thing that's really interesting to me, and I'm sure the audience agrees is all of you have mentioned one particular concept which is the concept of history and the role that history plays in all of what's going on moving forward and all that has happened since the project was first founded. So I'd like to, if we can, I'd like to just initiate a little clip. It's a historical trailer from the film to give context to what that history is. Right here, this is my house where I grew up, 1209 North West 643. That was my bedroom window right there. There was a tree, mom always planted trees. All of this was trees and she always planted trees and flowers wherever she was. This is me in front of the mango tree. Cherries and maulberries and almonds and guavas. It was like a paradise. If you went away, you went downtown or you went on an errand, your house, you left your door unlocked. This was the kind of community that we had. Those were golden days, you know? Golden days. So this was like a haver and it was a pleasure to live in the project. Liberty Square was family. As a child, we didn't know we were poor because we had such a rich life. The neighborhood hotel became the social center of the South. Muhammad Ali had his victory party in this very cafe where I'm sitting when he beat Sandy Liston. Dr. Martin Luther King stayed here. Malcolm X, Jackie Robinson, Nancy, Wilson stayed here. You know, we could just go on with the names of celebrities who when they performed on Miami Beach could not live there. They had to come in the black community. When Liberty Square was initiated in October of 1936, the wall was the message of breaking off of this neighborhood from the surrounding neighborhood, which was white on the other side. Segregated housing left the black communities largely underserved. No political representation whatsoever. So you have, you know, oftentimes very poor electrical services, very poor water management, almost no green space to speak of, under representation in terms of educational questions. And that leads to, again, a sense of disempowerment. The riots that emerged here in the 1960s, again in the 80s, multiple times, that problem was set in motion as early as the late 1930s with Liberty Square being in place. The concentration of poverty is really what then contributes further to the problems that the neighborhood faces in terms of drug and, you know, vice industries, in terms of, you know, liquor stores, again, in terms of overall danger to, you know, young people. Former Miami Northwestern senior high students shot and killed. Four people shot and killed. The area has become known for its drug use and gun violence. Miami's most dangerous neighborhoods. All right, so now that we have that context, I want to start with Philip and Hattie. You guys have been working really, really hard and fighting hard to preserve the historic Liberty Square Community Center for some time now. I'm wondering if we could just give us a little bit about why that's important and what's the status of that fight now? Well, you know, history is so great that when our organization remember, we had started to, you know, we were doing things, but we jumped into real action and we were trying to let the people know and we were telling everybody, this project was built in 37. It's the third project in the nation, you know, it's the first in the southern part. And, you know, you don't have nothing like this in the black community to be proud of. It's so strong. I'm in my seventies and I'm telling you, we live in a hurricane state and my last child was born. She wasn't my last, but she was born in 66. I went to my mom in the project because I knew I was safe. Now think about this. They got new buildings now and one of them had a leak. I don't remember a roof coming off of Liberty Square. I don't remember a window being torn. So this is why my husband was so, he wanted to preserve the whole Liberty Square. That would have been so beautiful to have it renovated and everything. But, you know, the people were fooled that the tenants in the time and they were saying, oh, no, we want nice builders. So we fought like the dickens. And God blessed us with Dave Heritage's trust to provide them proof that it was worth saving. And they once helped us to save the community cell because the state preservation, historic preservation said, don't touch that ground, it's historic. And then they came to us, oh, we need you now. You know, they didn't say it like that. Well, they didn't say it like that. Yeah, no, what happened, when they found out that they couldn't do, they could not touch that property. And then they came to us. And we really didn't want the people that think that we didn't want them to have anything new. But it wasn't about new. It was about the history of it. And they didn't get it. It was just, it was about the history. The project was something that you can go to and just stay there. And it was like a haven for, you know, we can go to, it wasn't no crime. You know, it's not that nobody didn't curse, but it wasn't breaking in, no one houses it. Great different place than it is, I mean. You not only had your parents, you had the whole neighborhood of parents. So everybody was more respectable because they knew that Miss Jane on the corner was gonna tell daddy when he got home. And speaking of daddy, you had a lot of fathers in that time. It's not like a housing where our absent parent, just a one, you know, the mother, you had a lot of fathers in that project. So that's the beautiful part that I remember that. Of course. So what is the actual status of the Liberty Square Community Center now? Is it set to be preserved? Oh yes, I'm sorry. I was, I caught myself short when I was giving credit to Dave Harris, how they came in and got up and we got up under that umbrella and they, we fought together to save Liberty Square Community Center. I'm saying community center because we had a chance to be nasty and say, no, we want to preserve the whole thing. But no, after the state came involved and let them know the builders that, no, this is holy ground, not really, you know, you got to make sure the Indians not buried down there and all that kind of stuff. They really was very strict. So that's where we, we have proof. We have it in writing where we signed off the builder, the tenant association, Dave Heritage's, the president, my husband, you know, we had housing director, you know, it's written in stone. Like they say, talk is cheap. That they cannot guess that it is preserved. Yeah, so that was the bottom line. And we're now in the stage of waiting to renovate it. You know, so that's the beautiful news that it won't be torn down. Yes, as you've already seen on the film, they already started, you know, tearing down. Yeah, it goes to show the power of residents and sticking together and being able to accomplish something this year. I do think there's an interesting, there's some parts of Liberty Square that are almost an agronistic. A good example is the race wall. Katya, in the trailer that we just saw, the good doctor talks about this race wall. Can you tell us a little bit about it and maybe like how people explained its presence today or how you maybe you were explained its presence or what happened? Yeah, that was one of my great embarrassments. When I came back to Miami and learned about this wall that I realized all these years that I had been studying and living in Miami, I had never any idea about that this wall existed, you know. And when Liberty Square was built in 39, as we just learned, although it was in the middle of nowhere, pushed far inland, very few neighbors at that point, but those few white neighbors said, okay, if you build this colony here, we want a wall. We want a six foot wall. And that was their condition. So this wall was built. And I don't know exactly when, but it was then cut down. Maybe, I don't know if somebody here on the call, I think it's not 100% clear, really, when they cut it down, now it's like waist high, but there's still the remnants there. And again, I'm not quite sure, but I know recently and Hedy and Phil and Phillip and maybe Aaron or Daniela, I don't know when, but it recently got historic designation, the wall, right? Two years ago, finally, right? But it took a long time. And as far as I know, it's still not clear who's really, if the developer is taking care of it, who's taking care of it? So it's to be watched who will take care of this wall. And in my experience now over the last five, six years, it is very, there's a lot of danger of historical places disappearing in Liberty Square. They're being sold, the land is being sold, the building is being sold, and then it gets torn down. And I'm thinking about Georgette's tea room, I don't know what's happening with that. I'm thinking about something like the pit where the Miami base started, which is also historical, base of hip hop. And just as a little aside, as a companion piece for the documentary, we created, our team created a virtual reality piece called Liberty City VR to exactly try to do this, to preserve, digitally preserve places that are maybe gone already and also give importance so that maybe they don't have to disappear. So this is a second project that we're doing in terms of digital preservation, trying to really alert people to the wealth of history of Liberty City. That's rather fascinating concept of digital preservation in that context. That's really interesting, but I think it's also interesting how you're talking about moving forward. You're talking about what will happen. It kind of brings me to Erin a little bit because Erin, I do wonder to myself, and I'm sure a lot of our audience wonders, being that you have understood the development industry, that you understand what's happening, that you look at it from a community advocacy point of view. What do you think would benefit the residents that are there now? How do you think that Liberty Square residents and former and future residents can actually be best served with what's happening on the ground? Yeah, so I would just almost for the most part reiterate my previous point. I think what was presented on paper is a novel concept, a novel plan, sans the vouchers, but I'll get them out in a second. Again, I just think this concept again, of bringing in additional earnings into the community, preserving those that are already there and allowing for the build out of additional services and commercial activity is needed to help the community grow. I mean, you know, naturally black unemployment trends higher than the national average. You know, you've got employment, although trending downward, you know, just under 10% but among black youth is, usually close to 13%. I mean, these are real challenges that create the buy products that we read about and see in the news on a daily basis, right? The fact that folks are in tough economic conditions, the fact that we don't have proper programming and activities for you to then keep them engaged, right? So the jobs that come from these activities, the wraparound services to deal with the health disparities, cancer pluses and such, having these, that inclusion, I'm sorry, that infusion of this new commercial activity, these new spaces, these new services within the community, I think it will be critical to again, improve it in long-term outcomes for residents of living cities, but those that also, you know, live on the outskirts. Now, thinking about folks that used to live there and now get into the voucher piece for a second because ideally I understand the need for the concept behind, you know, giving up vouchers in these type of situations and these projects and, you know, quite frankly, no one should be forced to live or they don't want to live simply because they're eating out financially strapped, right? So that- Aaron, if I can ask you just to define vouchers for those in the audience who might not know exactly. Absolutely. So you have housing choice vouchers, project-based vouchers and such. These are essentially subsidies that come from HUD, Ministry of the Local Housing Authority, that would have then allow folks to rent on the market at fair market value. And similar to public housing, the idea is that the residents will only be responsible for paying no more than 30% of their income and the balance will then be covered by the voucher. And so we had a number of presidents in W Square that chose to take set of vouchers. And, you know, my preference would have been that it was a temporary thing that would, you know, force, I hate to say force, but allow folks back in, not that they're not allowed now, but that was encouraging to come back in because my thing is, you know, why collect these series of anecdotes about the troubled dark days and not be able to reap the benefits of what's to come, right? And so I think that folks should have been more encouraged to stay in the space. But those that did choose to move off site that have made that decision to remain permanent off site residents and voucher holders, you know, one thing that I would like to see is more support from the powers at the local housing authority to make sure that folks are actually, you know, doing okay or holding their ground or actually just fairing out in the marketplace. I mean, it's intimidating when they tell me to be on the private market. I say that as a middle income, earning college educated professional. And, you know, as someone who's still a renter here, it's tough. And so that additional support I think is always needed, but that's a major budgetary functions within, you know, government. That's a whole other conversation about where we place priorities in regards to our investments. But I think there needs to be more oversight there to ensure that folks are gonna be taken care of long term. And then one last point I will put out there and I think this is kind of goes back to the point that yelling me earlier about the rising costs of, you know, what's called affordable housing. Sure, affordable housing. And, you know, one room she didn't make is called a housing residence being forced out. And again, her guidelines and where those tools work is that their income is always gonna be capped, oh, sorry, their rent payments are gonna be capped at 30% of the AMI. What I feel the issue really comes into play is we think about affordable housing, right? The typical tax credit, you know, bond deal programs that exist to subsidize these income-restricted housing developments. And the reason I say that is because of how we go about setting one two rates within these programs. Everything is based on the area median income for that jurisdiction. And so in Miami Dade County where we have a median income of 68,000 and that's generally due to the fact we have huge income disparity, that doesn't necessarily speak to the median income of an area like Liberty City. So when rental rates are set to be affordable to those that are at that 60% of area median income market, where does that leave a person that lives in Liberty City in Overtown and Little Haiti that even with those lower marks, those lower risk rates for the market is still way out of touch with them. So, you know, and again, this is a larger issue than any more federal, I mean, it requires more subsidies involved. But I would like to see how there can be more brainstorming around trying to make sure that those that are moving into these, again, not just in Liberty City, but these affordable housing developments that are below the market, that aren't public housing residents, but are at about 30, 40% of area median income that we create opportunities for affordable housing for them that they know some spaces as well. Yeah, there's this interesting kind of like overlap of private industry and government, it seems. And like, and the way that you solve this or the way that you can tackle this always going to involve, at least it seems to me, it's going to involve kind of like that overlap. Daniela, you have a great deal of experience dealing with city elected officials, so on and so forth. And kind of trying to advocate for affordable public housing, especially the place like Miami, which just last April was declared a affordable housing crisis. What do you think is the role of city and elected officials in addressing climate gentrification in the housing crisis in Miami? Well, as we look at our elected leaders, the role is to make certain that they do all things to protect the lives of their constituents. So safety to life matters should always be priority, as well as affordable economic development. And far too often, it seems as though both of those priorities are absent of the real needs of the people of that area. So oftentimes you will find developments or projects that are coming into the areas that have no input from the community. And it still happens. Notification is not sanctioned and required to go to renters, but guess what? That development that's coming is in an area that is heavily populated by renters or transient community who has no knowledge, no input, no say so, no voice in the process and no action as it relates to community benefits agreement. So all that is happening at the same time with people who we elect to represent us. So I would always say that there is more that can be done and it needs to be done equitably as we move forward to protect the legacy of our communities. What is coming into our communities oftentimes is not a reflection of the current population. It actually serves not enough of a purpose for the people that live there. So and I say that because you have an area of Liberty City, Liberty Square, that has a need for quality childcare facilities. Those are some things that should be designed and built and funded for the people of that area. The same way where it comes to healthcare quality and accessible healthcare facilities. And also in the Liberty Square area, we need access to food. That's a food desert. Liberty Square is the top of the line when it comes to a food desert. So we need things that will provide clean, green, accessible and affordable food. So when it comes to what is being built, designed and advanced in communities such as Liberty Square, Liberty City, it's not oftentimes what the people who live there truly need. And that's what we're calling on elected officials to do more of. Be more, as Erin mentioned, be more intentional about what is actually going to come into those communities so that people have an opportunity to not only live there, but to thrive. And I would also say that when it comes to programs that are being federally funded to advance housing, there is some regulations that call for family self-sufficiency. Elected officials need to make certain that through those housing authorities that there is commitment to making certain that those family self-sufficiency plans and authorizations are put in place so that those who have lived in communities that have been deprived, deprived economically have an opportunity to be self-sustaining families. I see, that's an interesting, so just so we're all clear at the audience, we're gonna start, I'm gonna start reaching into the audience questions and just kind of throw in a match, you guys, as I see them. But that's an interesting point for a question that I think Erin might have some insight into. Erin, there's a question here that says, in the development, who is it that oversees accountability for plans and intentions? Like, how does that function? So it all depends on the type of development. So, since we're on the topic of Liberty Square, I mean, this was something that was a collective effort between developer and the local housing authority. So, I mean, they had standards of what they wanted to see included. It included a series of community meetings about what they wanted to see and said development. And at that point, once crafting an RFP to kind of speak to the terms of the county's desires, somebody's desire as a community after a series of meetings, there then was a RFP developed to allow folks to bid and then propose their plans for the project site. You know, where I become more concerned again, going back to the point I made towards the tail end the last time you allowed me to speak, was more so concerned about ensuring that the housing agencies that are responsible for administering RFPs, that have the site control of these plans that are working with these developers are adequately staffed to then ensure that, you know, again, what the commitments are are actually thought of doing. And I think, you know, working in my experience in Miami-Dade County Public Housing Community Development, I think I've met some amazing people in that shop that work extremely hard. They're having a very demanding hard work in chief that demands excellence of them. And I've seen these people really, really push hard. But at the end of the day, there's only so much you can do, right? And so if folks are stretched in and can only take one so much, naturally things are going to strip you of the project. And unfortunately in this situation, that could be the promises of services and programming or even how development is supposed to function that at that point, because no one's looking, you know, there's a possibility of, you know, getting away with mergers and speech. So, you know, I'm not afraid to have public oversight in the government. I hear you. No, it's an interesting question. We have a second question coming. I'd like to actually pose this to Katia. Katia, you have spent years at this point in Liberty City working, recording, meeting people, having conversations. How have you seen Liberty City adapt to sea level rise? Let me, if you allow me, I would like to jump on what impact, what I'm hoping the film, you know, what kind of impact we're hoping to achieve with the film, if you allow me. Because it also goes to what Daniela and Aaron were saying, you know, we have a unique chance with this film because the film will come out on PBS next year when there are three or maybe four blocks of nine will be done. So this film can affect the, hopefully positively affect the development directly by maybe challenging the ones in charge to follow through with their commitments. You know, something that Aaron just mentioned. We also would like to really change the way people maybe see the residents of Liberty Square support a growing movement of young black leaders who are working to build their power and determine the fate of their own neighborhood. We want to establish that climate gentrification is real, you know, which is still a debate among some people and add to the growing sense of urgency nationally and internationally to address the crisis of sea level rise and climate change in general, you know, that and the disproportional impact that that has on poor people and people of color, you know. Certainly. No, certainly. And in the pursuit of that goal, have you seen the people in the documentary that the documentary seeks to support and elevate? Have you seen them kind of move to adapt to this reality of climate gentrification? I mean, they're fighting it. Somebody like Valencia or everybody, you know, Daniela, they have, you know, people are fighting it, you know. Yeah, so that might be an interesting question to pose to Daniela, Daniela, how do you see that fight going and what do you think is the future of adapting to that, maybe not adapting to the forefoot, but rather pushing against it, right? So as it relates to what, climate gentrification? Yes, ma'am. Okay. Oh yeah, so definitely want to give, you know, kudos and shout out to the work that's being done within our community and across this nation from Valencia Gunder and her team for really kind of putting us on the map to say, hey, yeah, I better wake up and pay attention. Climate gentrification is real and it is here because we live in the highest point of elevation as it relates to climate change, sea level rise and justification, but because we're such in the struggle. And I say that because the area of Liberty Square has a high population of renters. I don't know if that's on top of mine for many people who live there. And I mean, I get it, we need to be forward thinking to preserve and protect our communities, but because we're such in a struggle just to survive day to day, you know, that's not something that's top of mind. So we do always look to those who are presenting the information and resources so we can keep ourself well versed on it. But I can say that more work, there is definitely more work that needs to be done so that we can be, you know, better prepared to address and defend those who are coming into our communities, purchasing the land where we live and then turning around and marking it up, you know, five times higher that prices us out of that area. So it's a real thing that's happening. It impacts our human rights. It impacts our civil rights, but it's something that, you know, is not top of mind for many people because we are already experiencing being priced out. We're already experienced being disenfranchised and we're already experiencing not having shelter. So that is something that we're still working towards to get, you know, more people to be aware of it and how we can come together as a collective to address it. Right. It seemed like Hattie had something she wanted to add. Yes. I wanted to share when you were saying, you know, what are people doing about, you know, gentrification? I can remember a couple of years back, he was a commissioner of the city then, commissioner Hartman, and he was saying, he was telling people, don't sell your houses, your house is valuable, you know, and a lot of them was trying to figure out, well, what is he talking about? So people are beginning to talk about it and I was glad that he did that because you have a lot of surrounding houses around Liberty Square that they're trying to bow. So yes, people are talking about it more and more. And on the news, they keep showing the sea level on Miami Beach, how this water came in so many inches and stuff. And I said, you watched the news. So it is being talked about and trying to sink in the people. Hey, who has, who have homes or whatever around that area that this is, you're living on a gold mine. That's what he was telling me. That's exactly what that. Yeah. So that's what I wanted to add. Surely. I'm going to try and sneak into questions real fast. And this person is going to be to Hattie and Phillip. What do you think the lessons are of the struggles that you've had with your nonprofit and being able to preserve as much of your kind of space? What lessons would you pass on to other communities dealing with the same problem? What comes to my mind first is that you have to stick together. I mean, when you feel strongly about something, sometimes people are afraid to speak out for whatever reason, but it's worth the fight because, you know, you don't gain it. Nobody's not going to put it on a platter. And then sometimes you have to do your own research. We began the research. We didn't know what we was doing going to the library, reading up on everything. And I wanted to add about the wall when you were saying about that. I saw a beautiful call wall in projects that the kids did. I don't want to talk too much about it because it hasn't been implemented, but they need to put that right on the wall on the sidewalk. That would even make Liberty Square more beautiful. And our organization has told them, we're here to fight with you to make sure that that wall inflammation comes in because that's a project in itself. So even now, we still have a fight within Liberty Square. And I told them, don't put my name on that. And I'm just, I'm just, I'm just over. We don't put your name on it. I said, don't put my name nowhere. Taking together seems to be big. Yes, but for other communities, you know, and I shared with people, you know, I said, I'm not a, I forget what they say I was, but I say, I'm just, I just speak for my heart, you know, and just go for it and be sincere because it'll come off when you're talking to someone, if you're trying to run a game or not. So no matter what the project is, even I think Lincoln Field, we were talking about they had a wall on that side. Nobody talked about that wall, you know, so, yeah. So I just, I just, I know it's not, sometimes it's not easy, but it's worth the fight. You know, anything you get is worth the fight. And a last question for Katya. Katya, where can we watch this film that has driven all of this conversation? Can you tell us a little bit about getting in touch with it, watching it? Where can we follow? Yes. So we just, we're just finishing it as we speak. We're doing all the technical finishing and we're premiering it beginning of next year on, we're going to do some festival tours and then it will be on PBS, on Independent Lens. I don't have the exact date, but we have a website with all the, that where we will update, where you can see the film WWU. It's the title of the film, Raising AZ, RaisingLibertySquare.com and there will be all the, the information and we will have, we're planning a lot of community screenings also all over the country. Very good. Thank you so much, guys. Thank you so much for being on this panel our wonderful audience and our wonderful hosts. I hope everyone's enjoyed this session and thank you so much for being with us today. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Bye.