The NSW government and the big end of town have used every devious strategy they can to destroy the historic Sydney working class community at Millers Point. Now they’re terrorising elderly and vulnerable residents who are fighting to stay in their homes.

The purpose of the decades-long project to cleanse the area of any remaining working class or socially disadvantaged residents is neatly summed up by local real estate agent Kim Jones of Di Jones Real Estate:

“I think the capital growth will be far more than any other area in Sydney based on where it is”, she told the Sydney Morning Herald. “It is a really exciting place to be right now. I’m excited.” And no wonder – she just sold a tiny workers’ cottage at Millers Point for $1.84 million.

Patricia Corowa, a resident and Indigenous activist, and Paddi O’Leary, also an anti-eviction activist and resident, recently detailed the cruel and calculated tactics employed by the NSW Housing Department to evict the sick and elderly from their homes:

“The removal officers from the department come in and pick people off one by one. They see their vulnerability and they know their backgrounds from their files with the department. So they know who to pick on and they do.”

In the Sirius Building, a purpose-built apartment block that was constructed in the 1970s because the Builders Labourers’ Federation fought to keep public housing in The Rocks, the remaining 11 residents are being bullied into vacating their homes. Many of the residents are elderly women; one is blind. Paddi O’Leary explained:

“They’re feeling intimidated by the security officers who will go into the empty apartments in the Sirius block for instance and open the doors and use the toilets. So imagine if you’re an 80 year-old woman … that would be terrifying … hearing those noises at night. And there is no-one next to you. It’s like a deliberate ploy to isolate people.”

Families and individuals who have lived at Millers Point, some for up to eight generations, have worked, paid their rent, built a community with strong social bonds and fought for their rights to keep public housing. Those who remain are not giving up.

“I will not be moved”, Corowa said.