OHIO
Daily Kos
By Walter Einenkel
Bishop Richard Lennon is known for going in and fixing Catholic diocese problems. He began in Massachusetts and was promoted to Apostolic Administrator after Cardinal Bernard Francis Law resigned his position as Archbishop of Boston. This meant that Bishop Lennon oversaw a lot of the fallout surrounding sexual abuse and coverups in the Catholic Church. Many people believe Bishop Richard Lennon is a guilty party to the behind-the-scenes machinations of the Massachusetts Catholic Diocese. In 2006 Pope Benedict the scary XVI appointed Lennon to head Cleveland’s Diocese. He’s been closing, and consolidating the Catholic Church’s presence in Cleveland sicne his arrival. But the other day, residents in a low-income area of Cleveland got some terrible news connected with the Catholic Diocese.
About two weeks ago, families who live in at least nine homes on the street got hand-delivered letters that started this way: “This is to advise you that the Most Rev. Richard G. Lennon, Bishop of the Diocese of Cleveland, owns the property in which you reside.”
The letter went on to explain that due to rising expenses, each of their rents would go up by about $400 in the next two months. (Read the letter here or below.)
That’s between an 80 and 180 percent increase, depending on what the tenants pay currently for the apartments or single-family homes.
Obviously, most of the residents can’t pay that kind of increase. Most people, whatever their financial station in life cannot fit that kind of monthly increase into their budgets. More unfortunate than the Catholic Church’s clear disregard for social inequality, is the fact that under Ohio law, these renters are out of luck. Executive Director of the Cleveland Tenants Organization, Angela Shuckhosee:
“Unfortunately, there’s nothing to stop that,” she said. “But it is unconscionable.”
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