If you have someone who is paying 88 percent of her income on rent, and we have laws that allow a landlord to evict a tenant who falls behind under those circumstances, eviction becomes an inevitability.
Matthew DesmondRead
No moral code or ethical principle, no piece of scripture or holy teaching, can be summoned to defend what we have allowed our country to become.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the failure to uphold moral and ethical standards in society.
Matthew Desmond's quote highlights the deep ethical crisis within society, suggesting that no religious or moral guidance can justify the state of the nation when its values have deteriorated. It asserts that the responsibilities of individuals and leaders are paramount in shaping a nation's character and that complacency in moral and ethical issues leads to a troubling societal outcome.
Themes
MoralEthicsSocietyResponsibilityJustice
In practice
Example use cases
During a debate on social issues, this quote can be used to highlight the importance of ethical standards.
More from Matthew Desmond
All quotes βDo we believe housing is a right and that affordable housing is part of what it should mean to be an American? I say yes.
Matthew DesmondRead
The texture and hardship of poverty and eviction is something that I think left the deepest impression on me, and I hope that I try to convey a little bit of that to the reader.
Matthew DesmondRead
When I was confronted with just the bare facts of poverty and inequality in America, it always disturbed and confused me.
Matthew DesmondRead
Arguably, the families most at need of housing assistance are systematically denied it because they're stamped with an eviction record. Moms and kids are bearing the brunt of those consequences.
Matthew DesmondRead
Moms that get evicted are depressed and have higher rates of depressive symptoms two years later. That has to affect their interactions with their kids and their sense of happiness. You add all that together, and it's just really obvious to me that eviction is a cause, not just a condition, of poverty.
Matthew DesmondRead
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