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In case you missed it: street homelessness increased by 55% in NYC from 2019 to 2020.
A thread. (1/)
A thread. (1/)
First, these numbers are from the HOPE annual estimates done Jan each year. The HOPE is widely critiqued, primarily for being an undercount. It is also sensitive to weather. But they are the best/only numbers we have and are widely used. (2/)
This year had good and bad news. Good news: subway homelessness decreased 23%, as highlighted in this press release. (3/) https://www1.nyc.gov/site/dhs/about/press-releases/decrease-in-unsheltered-homelessness-on-the-subways-2020-08-16.page
Bad news: street (non-subway) homelessness increased even more: 55%. (4/) https://www1.nyc.gov/assets/dhs/downloads/pdf/hope-2020-results.pdf
These counts were pre-pandemic. Though HOPE methodology can be critiqued, the results reflect what has been observed on the ground by advocates and others. And it’s quite likely street homelessness may have increased even more during the pandemic. (5/)
With nightly subway shutdowns we have seen 100s of people helped into shelters (good), but undoubtedly others are displaced to the streets. Other people have newly become street homeless due to #COVID19 related factors, something I’ve seen in the ER (and I’m just 1 person). (6/)
This is important to know as we have seen press about some vocal members of some communities angered at new hotels serving people experiencing homelessness in their communities. That anger may be misplaced. (7/)
The angry voices often cite that people are urinating, defecating, or sleeping on the street. These are most likely not people who have a hotel room to go to for these activities instead. People who are homeless make rational decisions, just like everyone. (8/)
The irony (for those protesting hotels in their neighborhood) is that the best solution to street homelessness might be stabilization beds in hotels. See this thread (9/) https://twitter.com/humandotnyc/status/1293973295629467648?s=21 https://twitter.com/humandotnyc/status/1293973295629467648
Side note: I’m also keeping an eye out for the @bxconsortium hospital homeless count report for this year. They always find additional unsheltered people in ERs & hospital waiting rooms each night. (10/) https://healthandhousingconsortium.org/hospital-homeless-count/
TL;DR: homelessness is complex, it’s important to know the data, solutions should be human-driven plus data-driven. (End)
