Occupy Atlanta saves a home from foreclosure

• Joeff Davis
• Occupy Atlanta attempted to disrupt the foreclosure auctions at the Fulton County Court House on December 6.

Occupy Atlanta is announcing today that the owner of a home they've been occupying in Riverdale has struck a deal with her mortgage holder.

An injured Iraq vet who was involuntarily retired from the Army in 2007, Brigitte Walker fell behind on her mortgage and was being threatened with foreclosure by JP Morgan Chase after unsuccessful attempts to modify her loan. After a three-week occupation of the home by a handful of members of Occupy Atlanta, the bank agreed to a loan modification Monday morning.

Last week, CL ran a guest editorial by Elizabeth Warren, a real estate investor who defended the foreclosure auctions that Occupy Atlanta has protested in recent months. Warren wrote, "I know how difficult things have been for many Americans. I also know that throwing families out of their homes looks bad. But I'm frustrated that all the news stories about last week's event were from the protestors' point of view. Reporting on peoples' emotions can certainly add context to a story, but emotions can cloud fact."

Whether or not emotions cloud fact, it appears that Walker's story — and the attention that was drawn to her plight by the occupiers — is what finally got through to the bank, convincing them to work with her.

In light of the new development — a big victory for the movement — Occupy organizer and spokesman Tim Franzen wanted to respond to Warren's column. Here's what he had to say (co-written with Shabnam Bashiri) ...
In late November, Brigitte Walker, a decorated Iraq War veteran received another foreclosure notice. Brigitte had unsuccessfully tried to modify her loan with Chase Bank since she medically retired from the army as a result of combat related injuries in 2007. Her home was set to be sold on the Fulton County Courthouse steps on January 3rd, whether she was in it or not. Instead of making holiday plans or putting up a Christmas tree, Brigitte and her girlfriend Ajai were worried about losing their home. On a whim, Brigitte sent an email to Georgia state senator Vincent Fort, who set up a meeting with Occupy Atlanta. On December 6, after leaving the very same auction where Brigitte's home was to be sold the following month, we started occupying her home.

The sad reality is that countless families in Georgia have their homes auctioned off at county court houses every month. Many believe that homes auctioned on the court house steps are unoccupied. This is not true; Occupy Atlanta has seen multiple families begging auctioneers not to sell their homes. For many, this auction is the last nail in the coffin of their American dream, their home. Let's not get it twisted, the auctioning of occupied foreclosed homes in Georgia is nasty business.