© Associated PressChristos Sourovelis comforts his wife, Markela, after their family is made homeless by Philadelphia authorities.
A couple and their two daughters were booted from their home without warning following their son's first-time arrest over $40 worth of drugs. The homeowners were never accused of wrongdoing or charged with a crime.
This nightmare for the Sourovelis family began earlier in 2014, when police barged into the family home to arrest 22-year-old Yanni Sourovelis.
"By the time I got to the door, they had already opened the door, with his hand in, and put a gun to my dog's head," recalled Yanni's mother, Markela, to
CNN.
The police report stated that Yanni was in the bathroom when he was arrested. Officer Woertz "could hear the toilet running" and proceeded to break down the bathroom door to dutifully enforce prohibition laws.
Yanni Sourovelis had no arrests, prior to being caught with the tiny amount of drugs. He was accused of selling heroin from the family's home. His parents stated that they had no knowledge of the alleged illegal activity.
"I'm a working guy. I work every day, six days a week, even seven if I have to," said homeowner Christos Sourovelis. "I didn't know what [Yanni] was doing. I'm not with him 24 hours a day."
Christos Sourovelis said that he built the family's home with his own hands and neither he, nor his wife, have every been charged with a crime.
The family's trauma didn't end with Yanni's arrest. Over a month later, authorities returned to the home and forcibly evicted everyone without warning. Christos, Markela, their two daughters, and their dog were put out into the street that very day.
Comment: Portugal exited its international bailout program in May, regaining its economic sovereignty, which it lost after the European debt crisis. However, the country's GDP is four percent lower than in 2010, a year before it asked for financial help. Although Berlin and Brussels have hailed Portugal's clean exit from its EU bailout, it has not been popular at home. Portugal's high unemployment has forced the workforce to look abroad for work opportunities, increasing emigration. During the past 3 years, the work force has defected for more robust neighboring economies in record numbers. In 2012, this reached a new high of 120,000 émigrés, which was coupled with Portugal's lowest birth rate. While many people are struggling with tough austerity measures, a disproportionate amount of people are getting richer and richer. In Portugal, the top 20 percent make six times more than the bottom 20 percent. And if things start to go south, you can bet the rich will take care of themselves quickly, while the average working stiff still hasn't a clue.
See: Portugal bucks the system and leaves IMF 'bailout' program