the Voice of
The Communist League of Revolutionary Workers–Internationalist
“The emancipation of the working class will only be achieved by the working class itself.”
— Karl Marx
Apr 4, 2011
Last month, the board of L.A.’s Housing Authority fired its chief executive, Rudolf Montiel. Montiel had asked board members to return part of the $150,000 these thieves spent on themselves for travel and food over the last two years. But, Montiel himself was not aiming to be thrifty to protect the agency’s budget. His yearly compensation package was worth nearly $450,000, including 10 weeks of vacation and a housing allowance.
These people of affluent income and high spending managed a Housing Authority responsible for providing shelter to about 60,000 of Los Angeles’ poorest families.
Last year, the Housing Authority came up with a plan to privatize the city’s public housing stock. Tenants of these housing projects protested the plan since it would increase the rent, making their housing not affordable. Montiel retaliated by trying to evict tenants who dared to protest his and his agency’s schemes.
These events reveal who Montiel, the board members and their friends are: people who get lavish lifestyles paid for by the government under the guise of helping the poor.