The Whitworthian

Issue date: 11/13/07 Last Updated: 11/17/07

About 50 Washington State political candidates and government officials received a letter drafted by 68 Whitworth and Gonzaga University college students addressing the low-income housing situation in Spokane Oct. 25.

Several students including junior Breanne Durham, co-director of Whitworth's Communities in Crisis, helped draft and revise the letter, Durham said in an e-mail. (Read the full low-income housing letter)

The letter commended Spokane government officials for relocating and providing housing vouchers for many of the displaced tenants, but challenged local government officials to do more.

“We believe that [the local government’s] measures are short term solutions inadequate to resolve the increasing need for affordable housing for low income residents of Spokane,” according to the letter. “We ask for a greater commitment in the City of Spokane budget to support the construction and maintaining of low-income housing units in the downtown area.”

Officials have not responded to the letters, Durham said. However, at least five of the Whitworth students who signed the letter approached candidates at candidate forums in Spokane on Oct. 23 and 25, provoking some positive dialogue, Durham said in an e-mail interview.

"Each of the four candidates took turns stating their stance and plan for improvement in the area of low-income housing," Durham said, "It was encouraging to hear that most of them were taking the issue seriously and had productive ideas of ways to make change."

After hearing Center for Justice speaker Breean Beggs address the Communities in Crisis group at an Oct. 16 meeting, Durham said she and other students wanted to take action.

“I do believe that students can and do have a voice in politics, especially at the city level,” Durham said in an e-mail interview. “We have the choice as Whitworth students to be invested in Spokane while we are living here or to not be invested.”

Contact Grady Locklear at grady.locklear@whitworthian.com.

Page 1 of 1

Article Tools

The Whitworthian encourages readers to comment on any content on the whitworthian.com. Article comments can be posted by anyone. The opinions expressed are not necessarily the opinion of The Whitworthian, its editors or its staff. The Whitworthian strives to monitor and delete comments with profanity, advertisements, obscenity, plagiarism, personal attacks, threats of violence or that violate the law or common decency. However, since The Whitworthian does not control user submitted statements, we cannot promise that readers will not find offensive or inaccurate comments on occasion.

For this reason, The Whitworthian asks readers to be responsible and respectful in any comments posted. The responsibility for statements posted lies with the person submitting the comment, not the whitworthian.com. Readers are also encouraged to report questionable comments by e-mailing editor@whitworthian.com.