Abayomi Azikiwe, editor of the Pan-African News Wire, covering a Moratorium Now! Coalition demonstration outside the State Office Building, Cadillac Plaza, in the Detroit New Center Area on November 20, 2008. (Photo: Alan Pollock).
Originally uploaded by Pan-African News Wire File Photos
Call Gov. Granholm at 517-373-3400 to Demand an Immediate Moratorium on Utility Shut-offs in Michigan
Action: Moratorium NOW! Coalition Wants Winter Halt to Utility Shut-offs; Group Writes Letter to Gov. Granholm to Impose Moratorium
Contact: Abayomi Azikiwe, 313.671.3715
Address: 5920 Second Avenue, Detroit MI, 48202
URL: http://moratorium-mi.org
Moratorium NOW! Coalition to Stop Foreclosures, Evictions & Utility Shut-offs Condemns State Government's Inaction Resulting in the Deaths of Three People in Detroit
At the January 6, 2009 meeting of the Moratorium NOW! Coalition, it was decided to appeal again to Gov. Jennifer Granholm to impose an immediate halt to utility shut-offs in Detroit and throughout the state. This appeal is the result of the unnecessary deaths of three people on Dexter avenue at Columbus in Detroit due to the lack of heating inside their home.
Marvin Allen, 61, and his 60-year-old brother, Tyrone Allen, were found dead on the first floor of the home. Lynn Greer, Tyrone Allen's 58-year-old girlfriend, was found dead on the second floor of the building. This is a crime against humanity that warrants immediate attention.
At our January 6 meeting, we held extensive discussions on the economic conditions prevailing in Detroit and throughout the state.
The unemployment rate in Michigan, over 15 percent, is still above what exist in other states around the country. Despite efforts to stem the tide of rising unemployment, the overall net job losses remain far too large.
As a result of high unemployment and underemployment, Michigan's, and particularly Detroit's, foreclosure and eviction rates, along with utility shut-offs, are astronomical. In a meeting last summer with executives at DTE Energy, we were informed that over 150,000 of the company's customers have had their services disconnected during the last year."
The Moratorium NOW! Coalition sent a letter to Gov. Granholm saying that:
"We are requesting that you utilize your political and legal authority to impose a moratorium on utility shut-offs starting immediately and extending until at least May 1.
"With an exceptionally cold Winter upon us and absent of a moratorium on utility shut-offs, hundreds of thousands of people around the state risk imminent danger that could result in more serious injuries, sickness and even death. We only need to remind ourselves of the deaths that occured last year as a result of utility shut-offs. In July the Reed-Owens family of northwest Detroit lost four members after their power was shut-off by DTE Energy."
The Moratorium NOW! Coalition is a community-based organization that was formed during the early months of 2008. Since its formation the organization has worked tirelessly to win a moratorium on home foreclosures, evictions and utility shut-offs in the state of
Michigan.
This group intends to pursue the demand for a declaration of economic emergency in Michigan through public meetings, demonstrations and other actions aimed at organizing people who are the most severely affected by the current economic crisis.
Please call Gov. Granholm to demand the imposition of a Moratorium on utility shut-offs immediately. Her number is (517) 373-3400. To contact the Moratorium NOW! Coalition just reach out to us on the numbers listed above.
The Moratorium NOW! Coalition is encouraging everyone to attend this year's annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Rally and March on January 18 in downtown Detroit. The demonstration begins at Noon in the sanctuary of the Central United Methodist Church located on Woodward Avenue and Adams.
The following day, January 19, we will hold a demonstration outside the City County Building on Woodward and Jefferson beginning at 10:00am. We will then attend the City Council meeting to participate in public comment to demand that action be taken to halt the senseless deaths resulting from utility shut-offs in Detroit. Mayor Bing will also hear from us in regard to the administration's responsibility to protect the lives and well-being of the residents of Detroit.
For more information just contact us for further details.
Abayomi Azikiwe
Moratorium NOW! Coalition
Media Liaison
313.671.3715
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3 die in space heater fire
Cut-off DTE customer got power illegally
BY TAMMY STABLES BATTAGLIA
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
About four weeks ago, 59-year-old Lynn Greer visited a DTE Energy office to have power restored legally to her boyfriend's west-side home.
She never returned with the $181 DTE needed to turn the electricity back on.
Detroit fire officials said space heaters running on an illegal electrical hookup may have started the blaze at 8011 Dexter that killed Greer early Tuesday, along with her boyfriend, Tyrone Allen, 60, and his brother, Marvin Allen Sr., 61. One brother used a walker and the other a cane.
The Allens' nephew, Ronald Gross, 45, awoke to smoke and jumped from a second-story window to escape.
The brothers' sister, Charlotte Nash, said both men were on disability. Marvin Allen, a father of five, worked at a dry cleaner and rental store before he began to have trouble walking. Tyrone Allen, the father of one, was a welder, she said.
Investigators found the two brothers on the first floor and Greer on the second, Detroit Fire Captain Steve Varnas said Tuesday morning. They did not find any smoke detectors, and a wire ran across the backyard, running electricity to the home illegally, he said.
One of Marvin Allen's children, Antonio Allen, 18, sobbed as he saw what was left Tuesday after the fire.
DTE Energy spokesman Scott Simons said the company cut an illegal electric hookup at the home in May. Gas and electric service in Marvin Allen Sr.'s name was cut for nonpayment in July 2008.
"This is obviously a tragic situation, but possibly one that could have been avoided," Simons said, adding that assistance programs are available.
Customers who are having problems paying their electric and gas bill can call DTE Energy customer service at 800-477-4747. The Detroit Fire Department gives out smoke detectors. For information, call 313-596-2957.
Contact TAMMY STABLES BATTAGLIA: 313-223-4456 or tbattaglia@freepress.com
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