Press Statements
November 1, 2023
CONTACT: Joe Loonam, Joseph@vocal-ny.org, 347-409-4650
GOVERNMENT INACTION ON HOUSING AND LANDLORD GREED SQUANDERING NYC CHILDREN’S FUTURE
This Time Last Year, VOCAL-NY Joined Allies in Calling for Immediate Action to House the 119,000 Children Without Stable, Permanent Housing
NEW YORK — In response to new data showing that 1 in 9 children in NYC were homeless during the 2022-2023 school year, VOCAL-NY released this statement, attributable to Elizabeth Mackey, a leader with VOCAL-NY’s Homelessness Union:
“This data from the DOE shows how our children’s futures are being upended by the housing crisis. When politicians saw that over 100k kids were homeless in the 2021-2022 school year, that should have been a wake-up call, and it is sickening that the number has grown by nearly 14% because of their inaction,” said Elizabeth Mackey, Leader with VOCAL-NY. “When I worked at the Administration of Children Services with parents and kids who had been separated by their lack of housing, I learned that nothing can be more destabilizing for a child. I am heartbroken that more and more people are in that tragic situation every year. Governor Hochul and Mayor Adams need to step up – we cannot waste the minds of our children, they are our future.”
BACKGROUND:
VOCAL-NY held a march and rally last November in response to the then-record-breaking rate of homelessness in the 2021-2022 school year. The Governor said addressing the housing crisis was a priority but failed to enact a coherent plan in the 2023 legislative session. The data released today shows that the inability of our leaders to act is forcing more and more children into the traumatizing reality of life without a permanent home.
###