HELP FIGHT ILLEGAL EVICTION OF WHEELCHAIR USER

I am a disability activist and writer in need of financial help and solidarity in fighting a sudden illegal eviction.

My landlady decided to sell the property I rent from her and informed me that I have less than a month to move out. When I pointed out that our rental contract states that 3 months notice is required, she cut off my electricity in an act of intimidation.

I live in Spain and spent 24 hours feeling like I was being cooked alive. The bungalow I'm renting has single glazing and no insulation to keep out the summer heat. I spent that day in a state of terror, worried that I was going to have seizures from overheating.

Previous seizures in the last 9 years have left me with broken teeth, dislocated joints and multiple herniated discs in my spine. I covered myself in wet towels and managed to avoid having convulsions, but I still suffered from petit mal seizures which leave me feeling extremely foggy and exhausted for weeks after.

I have honored my side of the rental agreement by paying all my rent and bills on time. My support workers keep the property clean and tidy and I pay a handyman to take care of maintenance and repairs. Therefore I find it extremely offensive that after paying around €33,000 in rent over the past 5 years, my landlady feels it's acceptable to harass both myself and my support worker.

The police have informed my landlady that she is facing criminal charges for cutting my electricity yet that hasn't stopped her from continuing to try and coerce me into leaving the property within weeks.

I face a lot of discrimination when house hunting as the majority of property owners do not want to rent to wheelchair users. Ramp building, drilling holes in walls for grab rails etc. makes them much less likely to rent to me. Finding an accessible property at the height of the tourist season when seasonal rentals take over the market, would be an impossible task.

In 2018 I sold my house in Ireland to enable me to move to a more pain friendly climate as pain medication does nothing for me. I have a degenerative genetic condition called hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and due to that my body either reacts badly or metabalizes pharmaceutical medications too quickly for them to be effective.

Unfortunately the proceeds from my house sale will run out in the coming weeks and I need to ask for some financial help. Both to cover legal and basic living expenses.

I have no partner, no family support and never succeeded in getting access to disability benefits due to medical trauma. Whilst working in Hungary back in 2013 I had spinal surgeries which went very badly wrong, leaving me partially paralyzed from the bellybutton down. The horrendous experience I had during that 3 month stay in hospital led to medical PTSD. I'm simply not capable of getting through the intensive process of fresh medical investigations necessary in order to access disability benefits.

Being disabled is extremely expensive without access to social care or benefits.

I kept working for as long as I could teaching English from my apartment in Hungary but when my condition deteriorated to the point of needing a wheelchair full-time, I returned to Northern Ireland in 2016. My hope was that engaging with medical staff would be easier through my native language in my home country. Unfortunately during my first stay in hospital I went into anaphylactic shock from an allergic reaction to an IV infusion. The brain damage from that and subsequent seizures put an end to me being able to work.

In an effort to try and support myself when the proceeds of my house sale run out, I have been working on a book about the domestic and sectarian violence I experienced growing up in Northern Ireland/North of Ireland during The Troubles. The book has been 5 years in the making. It has been a very long, slow process using a voice to text app as writing in the regular way is a huge struggle for me due to chronic pain and neurological issues.

I need another 3 months for editing and rewrites before self-publishing and getting some income from book sales.

I know 8,000 EUR is a lot to pool from my already supportive community, but if you have the capacity and generosity to help me during this trying time I would be deeply grateful.

Even while navigating disability and hardship, I’ve done my best to stay engaged in my community, advocate for others and offer what I can.

Those close to me know that I’ve always believed in fairness, standing up for what’s right and helping others whenever possible. Now I need to ask for that same help myself.

Thank you for reading, for caring and for being part of my support system. It truly means the world to me right now.

[If you would like to be notified when my book launches please message me your email address through this page. Thank you ]