with this Carapace?
We imagine the Carapace as a collective and protective place of habitation. Faced with the violence of our world, many of us are left behind by economic development and gentrification. We are aware that even our region, a zone of medical deserts, elusive public services, temporary stays, public transportation difficulties, is not immune to the insane rise in rents and real estate prices. We know, of course, that we are not equal when it comes to access to property ownership and rentals. We imagine the Carapace as a place to exist, to live, to rest. We design non-profit housing for temporary, long-term, and short-term stays, where our friends, classmates, and families who need a place to stay for a night, a week, a month, or a year can coexist.
We envisioned La Carapace as an extension of our current experiences, as well as a place of desirable futures, built on a clear foundation of resistance to all forms of domination and discrimination. In the current gloomy context, uniting, self-organizing, and building long-term projects are essential to us. The site will take the legal form of collective and common ownership in order to ensure its long-term viability and to liberate it from the regime of private property and the real estate market.
For now, the form of collective ownership chosen for the Carapace is an owner association along with a user association. These associations guarantee the proper use of the site and, through its statutes and collegial operation, avoids a concentration of decision-making powers. Other existing associations will gravitate around the Carapace for support or for projects.