“The Valentine’s Committee was very clear in its purpose. It was two things: An affirmative OFFENSE strategy: TAKE BUILDINGS. So we organized groups. People made pamphlets on how to open buildings up. And a bunch of squats opened up all over the place. And there was a DEFENSIVE strategy: ‘EVICTION WATCH.’ Once a month, all the buildings would get together and link up.This group would not constitute itself as an authority over any of your buildings, but would be a place where people could link up. Why go to an Eviction Watch meeting? Because if the cops come to your building, and you shout, and nobody even knows you because you don’t come to any collective meetings, nobody’s going to be able to defend you! And people generally liked to come to the meetings. They were festive occasions. You got to see people from the other buildings. If you needed a buzz-saw, you could find somebody with a buzz-saw. Those first couple of years, that defensive network functioned very effectively, such that we called people out to defend buildings at least a dozen times prior to 1988. In fact, the defense of the park [in August 1988] was due, in part, to the base that had been generated by three years of work [defending our buildings]. That’s why when people shouted ‘Curfew!’ there was immediately a crowd at the park.”

Frank Morales, housing activist

“The first and most basic common goal is to defend the squats. All squatters live in constant fear of invasion and forced eviction from their homes. The ‘eviction watch’ network is designed for mutual protection from the city government and others who would threaten their buildings… The premise of ‘no evictions’ is not only an important base of squatter solidarity. It also offers a potential connection between the squats and the low-income tenants and homeless people living in Loisaida. Squatters have been discussing the expansion of their defensive network to include low-income tenants, mom and pop stores, shantytowns, park residents, and others vulnerable to eviction who might join in a mutual ‘community defense’ to prevent each other’s displacement.”

Andrew Van Kleunen, “The Squatters’ Voices: Is Anyone Listening?”