I'm still using my rights

I was off to another protest today. The foreclosure defense team met outside a home in the Grandmont section of Detroit. Most of the homes are probably from the 1920s and look to be in good shape. They also look like they have character, missing from my suburban box. This is one of the better parts of Detroit (in contrast to the area three miles south where I helped board up homes). But BofA insisted on foreclosure.

When the dumpster appeared last week, the first sign of eviction, the defense team appeared and drove around the neighborhood picking up leaf bags and filling the dumpster. The eviction team was not pleased, but it caught the attention of BofA. One of our chants today was, "Dumpsters are for leaves, not for BofA thieves." Probably a bit obscure for most people.

Today, after a bit of speaking at the house, about 75 of us walked about a mile to a BofA branch bank, chanting along the way. That let the residents know we were around if they had mortgage troubles. We protested in from of the BofA branch for a while (a tight fit with so many of us and not much space between the building and the street). The homeowners tried to give a letter to the branch manager, but were refused entry into the bank. We shouted our displeasure for a while, then walked back.

Many of the team will serve as witnesses in court on Tuesday morning as the owners make their case that the bank played fast and loose with the facts. Alas, Tuesday is a work day for me.

A button I saw today: "No, you can't take my rights. I'm still using them."

From there I went off to a suburban cinema to see the Metropolitan Opera HD broadcast of the relatively new (only 8 years old) opera The Tempest by composer Thomas Ades. I've heard of him before but haven't heard much of his music. There isn't much memorable melody, but the emotion comes across quite well. The words are taken from Shakespeare, though condensed and updated. I was fascinated by the character Ariel, mostly because her singing was an octave above what I would have expected -- as in really high. It was a great afternoon.