"It all started with a group of women," said Dallas Area Interfaith (DAI) organizer Walker Moore, that "wanted to know what their rights were." With the guidance of DAI, the ladies went on to organize several meetings -- at local churches and in apartments -- to formulate a strategy to address mold, dilapidation and crime.

In November, extra chairs had to be hauled out to accommodate 160 people who gathered at San Juan Diego Catholic Church at a meeting in which they brought specific issues with apartment conditions straight to the police chief and City of Dallas elected officials. They and the audience listened with approval as Mayor Pro Tem Monica Alonzo and Roberto Garcia, a Dallas police senior corporal, vowed to help the residents.

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