By Iain McIntyre.
Evictions were a major problem for the unemployed during the Depression. Between 1930 and 1933 11,000 warrants were served in the Melbourne Court of Petty Sessions and over 5000 evictions carried out. This only accounts for a fraction of the actual number of people put on the street however as thousands more never faced court and many did a midnight flit to avoid paying back rent. Many also removed their furniture and valuables to relatives’ houses to prevent them being repossessed or taken in lieu of monies owed.
Up until the end of 1933 the numbers of evictions rose and courts became increasingly less likely to grant 7-28 day reprieves on the basis of hardship. As with other working class areas Brunswick suffered heavily with one Brunswick real estate agent claiming in 1931 that he and his peers considered up to 3000 locals “undesirable” tenants.
According to historian Charlie Fox most evictions began with the owner or agent ordering the tenants to quit the premises. If they failed to do so the landlord would then apply to the local Court of Petty Sessions for an ejectment warrant. If the tenant was unable to convince the court to delay this then the Court’s bailiff and the owner, as well as the police would then enter the property and remove the tenants and their belongings.
The constant threat of homelessness meant that of all the activities of unemployed activist groups resistance to eviction drew the most community support. Responses to evictions from activists usually took the following form. Local unemployed groups would approach people in danger of eviction and offer to negotiate with landlords. In Brunswick the Australian Labor Party aligned Combined Unemployed Council (CUC) often took on this role and also lobbied the council to find alternative housing. Where negotiations failed the initiative generally passed to the Unemployed Workers Movement (UWM) and other militants who would then employ direct action. A picket would be established and the area would be chalked up with notices and demonstrations held to rally support. On some occasions the picketers would occupy and barricade houses and on others they would take revenge on the owners by trashing their properties.
Hundreds of these anti-eviction protests occurred around the country. No one knows exactly how many took place in Brunswick, but the areas first reported anti-eviction showdown, and on which generated headlines nationally, occurred in Gold Street, Brunswick on 15 July 1930. According to the Brunswick and Coburg Gazette locals declared “Open Season on Bailiffs” after Mrs Ruth Carruthers and her 3 children were confronted by a bailiff who had forced his way into their home. A neighbour, Mrs Watkins, rushed down to Sydney Road where hundreds of unemployed were returning from a march in the city. As the Gazette duly reported the word “bailiff” was like a “red rag to a bull” and the men charged down to Gold Street where they found the Bailiff marking furniture for confiscation. He was quickly bundled out of the house and made a break for the nearest railway station. The real estate agent in charge of the property was also present and he and his clerk were set upon before escaping in their car. By the time the police arrived 300 to 500 men and women had gathered in the street and a whip around had raised enough money to cover the family’s rent for the next few weeks. When asked for her thoughts Mrs Caruthers aptly described the anti-eviction crew as “simply wonderful.”