SAVE LAVA FROM ATTEMPTED BUILDING TAKEOVER
Donation protected
As some of you may have heard, over the last month two former members of the LAVA collective have attempted to seize control of the building and community center. Banned for numerous reasons including misogynist and homophobic behavior toward collective and community members, renting space without approval and pocketing the money, etc, these former members first changed the locks on the entire building, refused to let anyone into the common areas or their own offices, and then resorted to calling the police on members of the collective in order to maintain their control.
Luckily, their bid to take the building for themselves has failed and the LAVA collective is now able to access the building. However, because these former members have chosen to involve police, LAVA is unable to bar them from entering the space as well - and if they see an opportunity, they may attempt another lockout.
In addition to creating an unsafe situation by involving the police and refusing to leave, thereby preventing the collective from hosting our regular fundraising events, the people occupying the building have been running space heaters 24/7, leading to a $900 peco bill. This bill is in the name of the collective and we are really not sure how to get out of paying for it.
That's why LAVA is in dire need of financial support - in order to serve them with a notice to vacate (these former members do not live in the building or in west philly), we need advice from a lawyer so that the people in question will not be able to call the police again once they are successfully removed from the space.
Please donate what you can and share this campaign so that we can get advice from a lawyer, as well as do vital work on the space to make sure we pass L&I inspections which are happening as a result of the two people in question calling the police.
The good news is we found a lawyer who is willing to help us resolve the situation and lava should be back to a functioning community space within a month.
Thank you!
Luckily, their bid to take the building for themselves has failed and the LAVA collective is now able to access the building. However, because these former members have chosen to involve police, LAVA is unable to bar them from entering the space as well - and if they see an opportunity, they may attempt another lockout.
In addition to creating an unsafe situation by involving the police and refusing to leave, thereby preventing the collective from hosting our regular fundraising events, the people occupying the building have been running space heaters 24/7, leading to a $900 peco bill. This bill is in the name of the collective and we are really not sure how to get out of paying for it.
That's why LAVA is in dire need of financial support - in order to serve them with a notice to vacate (these former members do not live in the building or in west philly), we need advice from a lawyer so that the people in question will not be able to call the police again once they are successfully removed from the space.
Please donate what you can and share this campaign so that we can get advice from a lawyer, as well as do vital work on the space to make sure we pass L&I inspections which are happening as a result of the two people in question calling the police.
The good news is we found a lawyer who is willing to help us resolve the situation and lava should be back to a functioning community space within a month.
Thank you!
Organizer
Dan Kuliscioff
Organizer
Philadelphia, PA