Erica and Galen
Philadelphia, PA
Economic Human Rights Violations of UDHR Articles 23 and 25

Galen, Erica, and their three children moved to Philadelphia from Richmond, Virginia, this past summer. Back in Richmond, Galen had worked on a factory floor assembling shopping carts. Struggling to provide for his family, he worked in "sweatbox" conditions with little pay and no benefits. Without a stable source of income for the family, Erica moved to Philadelphia in June 1997 to live with her aunt. Erica's aunt was providing housing for almost all of her family. There were a total of twenty-one individuals living in one house. Galen remained in Virginia hoping things might improve, but finally decided to move to Philadelphia and to reunite with his family and look for work. Galen, Erica, and their children moved to South Philly at the end of October to live with Galen's sister. They were living in a one-bedroom apartment with three adults and five children. Erica had applied for Section 8 five years before and was still on the waiting list.

When she moved to Philadelphia, Erica encountered many obstacles with the welfare system. There was a court injunction on a Pennsylvania policy which stated that for twelve months an individual would only be given the amount of benefits they received in their previous state of residence. While the cost of living is more expensive in Pennsylvania, Erica and her children were receiving Virginia level benefits, which are lower.

Once in Philadelphia, Galen began looking for a job. After inquiring with several places, Dunkin' Donuts promised him a position. Thinking that a stable paycheck would be coming his way, he and Erica went to purchase winter clothes for their kids. As three weeks passed with no word from Dunkin' Donuts, Galen began to worry about money for food and other necessities.

Galen and Erica had to move out of the apartment because it was so overcrowded. They realized that they could not afford to pay rent and they decided to move into KWRU's Human Rights House. At this point their two oldest daughters had been to three different schools within three months.

Galen continued his search for a good job with benefits but was forced to take a job at an industrial laundry. He received $6 an hour which is not enough money to raise a family. There are no benefits for the job until he is accepted as a "full-time" employee six months after beginning. He actually works more than full-time now but still does not have job security or benefits for his family.