"In all souls, as in all houses, beyond the façade lies a hidden interior."
— RAUL BRANDÃO
In the picturesque Alfama district of Lisbon, Carla da Cunha and her family wonder where they will go when they are eventually forced out of their apartment – possibly as early as this September – thanks to the onward march of gentrification.
Carla and her husband make and sell artisan crafts at local fairs to support themselves and their two daughters, aged 7 and 15. They live in a building sold to investors who intend to convert the homes into apartments for short-term rental, and there are thousands more like them.
At least 1,700 families were evicted from their homes in Lisbon last year, according to the Portuguese Order of Lawyers. As a result, thousands of people have signed the Morar em Lisboa (Living in Lisbon) petition which calls on the government to amend the rental law to provide mechanisms to discourage property speculation and introduce quotas for more affordable rents.
Words featured in an article about people fighting evictions and zooming rents as old Lisbon gentrifies.