John Oliver warned Sunday of a “COVID-related catastrophe that’s actually just around the corner” ― and it’s evictions. (See the video above.)
The problem had already reached crisis levels, but the next few months could see the largest number of eviction cases ever, according to a report on “Last Week Tonight.”
Stimulus checks, unemployment insurance and eviction moratoriums are running their course amid the coronavirus pandemic, leaving millions vulnerable when it comes time to pay the rent this month.
Evictions are on the list of things you don’t want to see on the rise, Oliver said, “right up at the top, tied of course with Larry King’s penis. That thing going up is just not what our current situation requires.”
Oliver’s grim forecast includes evictions via Zoom (ironic, he noted, because Zoom is being used “because it’s not safe for people to leave their homes”) and an even greater strain on people of color — he pointed out that Black households are twice as likely as white households to face eviction.
Many Americans will not be immune from getting the boot when the rent comes due this week.
The comedian noted that long-term solutions to affordable housing must become a priority. Only then “can we all get on with our miserable lives,” he said, jokingly quoting a Scrooge-like landlord in the segment above.
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