Today, Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum seized upon Mayor Bloomberg's comments last week that his administration's failure to reduce homelessness could be explained by the fact that city homeless shelters are "a lot more attractive" to families. She was joined at a press conference by Comptroller William C. Thompson, Jr., Joel Berg, Executive Director of NYCCAH, and Sophia Bryant of Picture the Homeless. Gotbaum said:
“It is clear from the Mayor’s comments that he is totally out of touch with the
city’s homeless population and the experience of living in these shelters. It’s
absurd that he would think anyone would choose to live in a homeless shelter
over permanent housing. Because the administration doesn’t understand the
problems facing homeless New Yorkers, its policies fail to present real
solutions. Policies should be reevaluated to respond to the worsening economy,
the scarcity of jobs and affordable housing, and the reality that recent
strategies have not been working.”
Read the full release
View a videocast of today's event below, or on YouTube:
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