When faced with the threat of losing essential resources – like housing, healthcare, or safety – access to effective legal advocacy is paramount. The legal system is full of complexities. Yet, it also serves as a vital support system, providing tools to secure stability and empowering individuals to rebuild their lives.
Rose Adams | Photo by Greg Clark, Good Miami Project
“The move-out order had a larger impact than just relocating families. Residents were panicked. They were anxious, and some of them just moved into the first thing they found that would accept the voucher,” reflects Rose Adams on the chaos that engulfed her community nearly five years ago.
As the president of the Annie Coleman 14 resident council, Rose Adams witnessed the displacement firsthand. In 2019, Miami-Dade County informed the residents of the public housing complex in Brownsville that they had to move. The official cause? Substandard living conditions and rampant crime.
“At the time, crime was not a big issue in our area. Yes, we had those moments, but during the displacement period, we weren't seeing a spike in incidents. We asked the county, Why not work with the residents to bring more resources and programming to improve the area instead of tearing our community apart? They chose a whole other route. They just totally disregarded the residents and destroyed a whole community. And the effects are still felt today because those buildings are still standing vacant.”
The Annie Coleman 14 in Brownsville was named after Annie M. Coleman, a prominent local civil rights advocate Photo by Greg Clark, Good Miami Project
Rose Adams was among the few who refused to accept the voucher. Now, she resides in Miami Gardens but still twice per week visits Annie Coleman 14, surrounded by empty buildings, to meet their board and displaced tenants. Her advocacy has expanded to a broader mission: ensuring that her community, and others like it, have the knowledge and tools to defend their rights. Protection from eviction is what tenants need most.
“I fight because I am a resident, on behalf of other residents, because the issues we face – whether in public housing or with community development – could happen to any of us. It’s about informing and educating people so they can be empowered to advocate for themselves, just as I’ve learned to do.”
Photo by Greg Clark, Good Miami Project
Public housing, like Annie Coleman 14, is owned and operated by the government - often a housing authority or, in this case, Miami-Dade County. When the County decided to close Annie Coleman 14, it offered Section 8 vouchers to the families.
The Housing Choice Voucher Program was initially designed to help low-income families by subsidizing at least 70% of rent in privately owned buildings. As rents continue to skyrocket and the housing crisis deepens, the program has struggled to keep pace with demand, making it difficult for families to find places to use their vouchers and failing to consistently provide stable and affordable housing for those it was meant to serve. For many families, abrupt relocation brings new financial burdens, leaving them vulnerable to unscrupulous landlords and instability.
This was the situation for Annie Coleman 14 residents, but that changed when Rose received support from the Legal Services of Greater Miami.
"They have been just like our angel, Mr. Hearne and his team,” emphasizes Rose Adams. “We were able to secure a tenant relocation agreement with the County with Legal Services’ assistance, and that was a major milestone. Nothing like this has ever been done."
Legal Services of Greater Miami is a nonprofit with a long legacy. For more than five decades, the passionate team of attorneys has provided free civil legal services to low-income residents of Miami-Dade and Monroe Counties.
“One of the paramount things that Legal Services does for residents is protecting them from eviction. This is crucial because, unfortunately, some landlords can be unscrupulous, or residents may need more time to relocate. Often, 60 days isn’t enough to find a new place, coordinate with public housing, secure payments, and get approval to move in. This is where Legal Services steps in, mediating and protecting residents during the process,” adds Rose.
One of the biggest initiatives toward that protection is the Eviction Diversion Program, which was launched as a pilot program in 2023 with $3.1 million in total funding and was recently renewed for another year. The core goal is to assist hundreds of at-risk tenants and their families, and to assess the impact of legal representation on the housing stability of the residents served.
Legal Services of Greater Miami works with five community-based nonprofits to provide advocacy, outreach, and awareness of tenants’ rights. The cohort of subgrant awardees include Cuban American Bar Association Pro Bono Legal Services, Community Justice Project, Miami Workers Center, Haitian Lawyers Association, and the Wilkie D. Ferguson, Jr., Bar Association.
“Legal Services helps tenants navigate systems that aren't designed for most people. These legal systems often chew up and spit out those without legal representation which means eviction and homelessness for most families. You really have to know the law to defend an eviction. One of the strengths of our organization is our long history and expertise in tenants’ rights, which allows us to achieve good outcomes for communities that are often overlooked and taken advantage of,” states Jeffrey M. Hearne, Chief Advocacy Officer.
For more than 20 years, Jeffrey, originally from Texas, has advocated for vulnerable communities. At Legal Services of Greater Miami, he oversees the firm's significant litigation and strategically guides the firm’s advocacy across all practice areas. Keeping people in their homes is a cause that reflects both his expertise and passion.
“Ensuring housing stability is really important to a family’s success. Priority is often given to homeowners, and tenants’ homes are considered less valuable because they rent rather than own. However, this shouldn’t be the case. As the number of renters grows, it’s important that we recognize that a home is a home, whether it’s rented or owned. We need to ensure that there are supports for renters to have and maintain stable housing.”
Jeffrey M. Hearne & Monica Vigues-Pitan, Legal Services of Greater Miami
Photo by Greg Clark, Good Miami Project
While Miami-Dade County has doubled its investment in affordable and workforce housing projects since 2021 and continues to receive federal development grants, the gap remains vast. According to the most recent report from Miami Homes For All, the city alone faces a staggering shortage of more than 90,000 affordable housing units. Their analysis indicates a need for approximately $1.5 billion in gap funding to develop 101 projects that would yield about 14,000 affordable homes.
The Eviction Lab at Princeton, which tracks housing trends, reports that evictions are up in South Florida. Within one 12-month period, they recorded more than 23,000 evictions in Miami and Fort Lauderdale. According to their latest report, updated on March 1, 2024, Miami alone saw 9,737 eviction filings – a 5% increase compared to previous years. Each of these numbers represents a real person or family grappling with housing insecurity, often in urgent need of legal support.
“You're going to meet people on their worst day. We listen to them, we hear them, and we do our best to advocate for them. For the most part, we consider it an incredible privilege to be in this position – to get paid to do work we're passionate about. I'm truly grateful for our team. From legal secretaries to attorneys, to those in finance who may not even have client contact. Everybody is really mission-driven,” states Monica Vigues-Pitan, CEO of Legal Services of Greater Miami.
Monica speaks with immense pride and gratitude about her journey and work. A class of 2003 graduate of the University of Miami School of Law, she recognized early on that her mission was to advocate for better opportunities for underserved communities. Driven by a deep sense of justice, Monica has dedicated her career to ensuring that everyone, regardless of their background, has access to vital resources. Under her guidance, Legal Services of Greater Miami has expanded its reach and effectiveness, transforming the lives of many. Between 2023 and 2024, Legal Services increased representation in housing cases by over 81%.
Their impact even extends beyond housing issues. Several years ago, West Kendall Baptist Hospital and Legal Services of Greater Miami launched Medical-Legal Partnership Miami-Dade. This collaboration between doctors and lawyers will enable healthcare staff to refer patients for legal assessments and advocacy when a non-medical obstacle is identified as adversely affecting the patients’ overall health.
“What truly drives me is the belief that everyone should have equal access to opportunity. This means that people should determine their own lives, not be limited by the circumstances or zip codes they were born into,” says Monica.
“I believe that just because an issue doesn’t affect you directly or personally, it doesn’t mean it doesn’t impact you. Our community thrives when everyone is doing better.”
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