Miriam Axel-Lute

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Miriam Axel-Lute is CEO/editor-in-chief of Shelterforce. She lives in Albany, New York, and is a proud small-city aficionado.
A city scene in Newark New Jersey.

Looking Back: Democratic Philanthropy, Newark on the Rise, the Surplus Land Campaign, and More

In this first installment of updates to Shelterforce articles of old, we find that market dynamics are different in many places we’ve written about, but many of the organizations fighting the good fight are continuing to do so, even in changed times.

How Have Things Changed? We Look Back at Our Past Coverage

Did promising or ambitious initiatives pan out? Did trends that seemed to be going strong stay on course? We revisit our past coverage and ask, “Whatever happened to that?”

Fixing the Harms of Our Eviction System: An Interview with Emily Benfer

Emily Benfer talks about what needs to change in our housing and eviction systems—not just now, but once the pandemic is past, the connections between health and housing, and how she came to be a go-to voice on the eviction crisis.

Housing Field Reacts to Marcia Fudge HUD Nomination

Surprise, frustration, and optimism mingle in response to left-field choice.
exterior of HUD building in Washington, D.C.

Who Should Lead Biden’s HUD?

People in the housing field have strong feelings about many of the candidates under discussion.

Will the Joe Biden Administration Bring Rent Relief?

President-Elect Joe Biden has a substantial housing plan, which clearly draws heavily from the affordable housing and community development fields. The plan is thoughtful...

“Why Would a Hospital Do This?” Shifting Institutional Culture for Health Equity

Hanaa Hamdi is the director of health impact investment strategies and partnerships at New Jersey Community Capital, the state’s largest CDFI. Michellene Davis is...

Policing, Segregation, and Causation vs. Correlation

Racial disparities in police killings increase with segregation. Does this mean segregation causes racialized police violence?

Fair Housing Is Still the Law, Even if Trump Refuses to Enforce It

Repudiating the requirement to affirmatively further fair housing is another example of this administration’s race baiting and disregard for both the spirit and the letter of the law.
A semi-circular dial has a gradation from left to right of red to green, accompanying by 7 faces progressing from angry to smiling

How Do We Change the Narrative Around Housing?

In-depth public opinion research points to ways to intensify support for housing justice policies—and to a few danger spots to avoid.

Racial Equity, Housing, and COVID: A Roundtable

Six regional and state housing advocates discuss the connections between uprisings over racial injustice, the pandemic, and the need for housing security.
Construction of the 1296 Shotwell development looms over the Mission District

The Case for Letting Developers Pay Not Build

The question of integrating affordable housing units required by inclusionary zoning on-site versus allowing developers to pay a fee to locate them off-site has long been a contentious one.
Dozens of young people, mostly Black, gather with Capitol Hill in the background, holding signs that read "Black Lives Matter." Two stand in the middle with arms upraised as if speaking to the crowd.

Community Organizations Have to Talk About Police Violence Directly

It’s easy to quickly refocus the conversation around police violence on the problems our organizations are already set up to fix—here’s why we shouldn’t.
a person hold a #cancelrent sign in spanish.

What Would It Mean to Cancel Rent?

The growing organizing demand raises a host of questions for the affordable housing movement.

Nonprofit Housing Providers Face Down COVID-19

As organizers struggle to get strong eviction moratoriums passed and enforced around the country, there’s one sector where evictions during the pandemic were not...
Rep. Ilhan Omar, who stands at a podium in front of an American flag, has proposed legislation that would cancel rents and individual mortgage payments nationwide to deal with the COVID-19 crisis.

Ilhan Omar Proposes Bill to Cancel Rent, Mortgage Payments During Pandemic

A bill announced today by Rep. Ilhan Omar would release tenants and homeowners from housing payments until the national emergency is lifted, and would make up the losses to landlords and lenders through a federal fund.
HUD Secretary Ben Carson smiles as his folds his hands in front of his chest.

HUD Urged to Make Tenant Income Adjustments Automatic by April 1

Preventing catastrophe when eviction moratoriums lift requires reducing tenants' rent quickly—which advocates say is fully within HUD's power.
A multicolored tent in house's front yard. A sign on the fence says "Moratorium on foreclosures and evictions" and a sign on the house reads "Poor People's Economic Human Rights Campaign"

The Many Fronts of COVID-19 Related Housing Needs and Measures

Stable housing is crucial during a pandemic. Front-line providers and local governments are moving to address the impacts, but they need more federal funds
Close up of a typewriter with the word "Regulations" typed out

Business as Usual: Trump Agencies Resist Calls to Suspend Non-Essential Rulemaking

Congressional leaders and community advocates are calling on HUD and financial regulators to suspend non-essential rulemaking. HUD appears to refuse.
The top portion of a police car with sirens. Is harm reduction policing possible?

Harm Reduction Policing?

Shelterforce spoke with 2019 MacArthur fellow Lisa Daugaard about how her work in homelessness set her on her path, and how diversion programs can build political will to increase support for affordable housing and public health.