Blog / Community Lawyering Project

Join us for a previously recorded Breaking Bread conversation series on housing justice in DC, including dialogue on protecting tenants’ rights, affordable housing development and preservation, public housing redevelopment, and more.

It feels good to be rewarded for your hard work, especially when it’s benefiting the community.  Congratulations to Rebecca Lindhurst, she was selected by The District of Columbia Bar Foundation as the 2021 Jerrold Scoutt Prize recipient. It’s awarded to attorneys who have a history of working in the nonprofit sector, especially those providing direct services to low-income communities. Rebecca is a Managing Attorney for Bread for the City’s housing practice and Community Lawyering Project and has worked for the organization since 2002.  I interviewed Rebecca about receiving this award and why her community work is important for residents in DC.

Many people in Washington D.C. are still struggling to find a consistent income to pay their rent and people still need assistance because of the pandemic. Last month, Bread for the City attorney, Jack Meaney  the Festival of Tenants, a community event held by the Cancel Rent Coalition in D.C., where there were informational booths, community activities, and resources for tenants. The event was held in Ward 5 to target Councilmember Kenyan R. McDuffie, who has not yet pledged his support for the coalition’s demands.

Allison does amazing work in our Legal Clinic, specializing in Family Law, Public Benefits, and Language Access. I had the opportunity to speak with Allison about her work in the community and being a 2020 Legal Services Award Recipient.

Children’s Law Center and Bread for the City co-hosted this event during D.C. Pro Bono Week (October 2020) to discuss our respective legal services work East of the Anacostia River and to highlight the importance of pro bono in serving our D.C. neighbors.

On Thursday, October 1st, Amy Gellatly, Supervising Attorney at Bread for the City, was recognized for her incredible work in the community. American University Washington College of Law presented Gellatly with the Peter M. Cicchino Award for Outstanding Advocacy in the Public Interest.

BFC attorney Samantha Beckett questions whether DC’s policy is aligned with DC’s stated values on affordable housing, and she calls for long-term housing solutions for families experiencing homelessness.

BFC Managing Attorney Rebecca Lindhurst testified on Thursday, April 19th to the DC City Council regarding the proposal to sever functions of the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs and create a new Department of Buildings. Part of the function that will move is the division managing tenant inspections. Advocates are concerned that (even with the severing of the agency) tenants will still face the same problems with getting inspections and having the agency follow through and properly enforce the housing code. Lindhurst’s testimony focuses on a specific Tenant Protection Division.