Housing continues to be a real issue here in Chicago, which is why Schanel’s story is so important to share. In 2021, Schanel toured an apartment and had a few concerns from the start, but the landlord assured her that they would be resolved before she moved in. Schanel signed a year-long lease and began paying rent in August 2021; however, she was not able to move in until October 2021 because of the repairs that the landlord was supposed to make. When Schanel and her two-year-old daughter finally moved in, they discovered nothing had been fixed. Now that they were settled in, she tried to remain positive and make the best of the situation.
That is, until the flooding began in summer of 2022. Schanel was living in a basement unit that was not sealed properly and every time it stormed, her unit flooded. There was even one time she came home to find her dog soaking wet due to the flooding. This was the final straw for her, so she gave her landlord 14 days to fix all of the issues in her apartment, while she withheld her rent. Unfortunately, this set him off and Schanel described him “becoming angry and difficult” at this point. He tried multiple times to do the repairs after 10pm, well after her daughter was asleep. When he could not fix the issues on his schedule, he then put numerous eviction notices on her door. Schanel had not yet been served, but she went ahead and found a new apartment, so she could slowly move her things. One day when she was not home, her landlord keyed into her apartment and threw out the rest of her belongings, including family heirlooms, a bed, clothes for her unborn baby as she was 8 months pregnant at the time, and more. Schanel felt completely violated and defeated, so this is when she contacted Beyond for support.
Collaborating with her Beyond attorney, Schanel forced her landlord to repay the costs of her belongings that were thrown away. When asked about how she feels about her victory, she said, “I feel relieved to be away from that landlord. I felt unsafe there and I feel sorry for the next tenant. It was a draining and never-ending battle.” Schanel is now a mother of 2 young daughters, but this experience has also inspired her to be an advocate for others in housing crises. Here at Beyond, we are proud of Schanel for remaining tenacious and not giving up. She was brave enough to stand up for herself and her family against someone in a position of power and it paid off. Please consider supporting us by making a donation this year, so that we are able to support more community members fight for adequate housing.