Protest was not arresting
Sit-in takes aim at crisis of homeless
What’s a city councilman have to do to get arrested in this town?
City Council members and advocates for the homeless demonstrated for more than an hour at City Hall on Tuesday, blocking doorways in an effort to be arrested that was ultimately unsuccessful.
The hands-off approach from the NYPD comes days after furor erupted over the department’s chaotic arrest of Jazmine Headley, a woman who sat down on the floor of a public benefits office in Brooklyn and whose son was wrenched from her arms by police.
“Apparently in de Blasio’s New York, sitting on the floor doesn’t always get you arrested,” City Coucilman Jumaane Williams (D-Brooklyn), who recently went to trial after being arrested during a protest, said.
Williams and Councilman Rafael Salamanca both participated in the protest, billed as a “teach-in” at which advocates shouted out information about how many New Yorkers are homeless.
The advocates and elected officials want Mayor de Blasio to set aside 10% of the units in his affordable housing plan, or 30,000 apartments, for the homeless. There are more than 60,000 people sleeping in the city’s shelters each night. The mayor’s plan currently sets aside just 5% of units for the homeless.
“It’s obvious that his housing plan is not adequately going to address the homeless crisis in the City of New York,” said Salamanca, who called the mayor “blinded on this issue.”
Hizzoner has refused to entertain the proposal from the advocates — insisting his affordable housing plan needs to be for all New Yorkers and arguing that his efforts to get the homeless out of shelters have been working.
The mayor even shot down a request to discuss the proposal from Nathylin Flowers Adesegun, 72, an activist who is homeless herself and approached de Blasio about it at his gym.
She was among those trying to get arrested Tuesday.
“He’s comfortable with his approach,” Adesegun said. “There are 63,000 people sleeping in shelters every night. I’m one of the 63,000 homeless in shelters.”
Salamanca, a Democrat representing the South Bronx, has introduced legislation that would require rental housing developers getting any city financial assistance to set aside at least 15% of the units they build for homeless individuals and families.
The demonstrators first sought to block the entrance to the mayor’s wing of City Hall. When police didn’t budge to arrest them, they tried the front door. When that didn’t work, they split up and blocked all three doors to City Hall’s main entrance. But the police assigned to City Hall didn’t react.