"The politicians should be ashamed Umoja Village had to exist"

Cata hugs Florida International University student Nathaly Charria after a news conference held by former residents and activists at the Umoja site. College students from FIU and the University of Miami spent many hours volunteering at Umoja. They built model shanty towns on their campuses to show solidarity with the Umoja residents. They donated water and canned foods and built a library for the residents and filled it with books. NURI VALLBONA/MIAMI HERALD STAFF

MEAN STREETS A STORY TOLD IN THREE PARTS
Flames ignite activism in homeless man
A fire that ravaged Umoja Village consumed John Cata's belongings -- and set him on a mission to call attention to Miami's affordable-housing crisis.
BY LISA ARTHUR AND NURI VALLBONA
larthur@MiamiHerald.com

Just after daylight on April 26, John Cata knelt in the charred remains of his Umoja Village shanty and picked through the rubble.

Someone had apparently left a candle burning when going out for the night. About midnight, it tipped over and flames raced through the wood and cardboard village. Several propane tanks in the open-air kitchen exploded. The entire village was consumed in less than 20 minutes.
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PART 1: Homeless man fights for place in a new Miami
Video Activist without a home