Cheryl L. Patterson-Munroe is in her mid-thirties, works as a paralegal, and is raising her three children, ages 16,13 and 2, by herself. She lives in Cambridge, in the Clinton and Prospect Street Apartments, is responsible and says she always pays her rent.

Elaine M. Schuster has donated over $250,000 to the Democratic National Committee, is a personal friend of Hillary Clinton, and has tried to evict Munroe and her children three times.

Why?

"Retaliation," Munroe says.

Munroe has served as the leader of her fellow tenants in protesting huge rent increases, and believes that as a result, she formed the perfect target for Schuster's attack.

"They use me as an example," she says. "They know if I go then all the people I support and all who support me will buckle."

"I'm tired of it. I would like to live in my apartment without going to court every other week."

Munroe is scheduled to appear in court at 9:30 this morning.

She says she is determined not to buckle in her quest for fairness and respect.

"They treat us like peons, without brains and an education," Munroe says. "We might not have millions and billions of dollars in the bank, but we have each other, and we have our children."

"Where's the fairness?" she asks. "We would like to be treated like human beings."

Eviction Free Carols

On Saturday, Munroe gathered with about 100 other Cambridge residents to protest what demonstrators say has become an endemic problem: wanton evictions and heartless rent increases throughout the city.

The Eviction Free Zone (EZF), a 10 year-old organization dedicated to combating housing injustice, coordinated the weekend event.

While organizers say housing injustice is a yearlong problem, they planned the rally to coincide with the holiday season.