“Every time you try to look at a piece of what’s being said here, it opens up a Pandora’s box of questions,” said Beth Haroules, director of disability justice litigation at the New York Civil Liberties Union.
A 2019 plan to expand the Justice Involved Supportive Housing program would satisfy a commitment in former Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Points of Agreement to close the city’s notorious jail on Rikers Island. The existing operators aren’t biting.
While the Department of Social Services says more people were accepted into supportive housing last year than the year prior, a new report shows persistent barriers and rejections, including some that violate the city’s own guidance.
“As we go into an election year, it is vital that New York prioritize passing legislation that will protect immigrants across our state, like the Dignity not Detention Act, and stop using our resources to detain immigrants.”
“New York City is preparing for its first official heatwave of this summer. And while many of us are able to stay inside, limit outside activities, and safely work from home, many of our city’s most vulnerable residents are not as fortunate.”
“Despite the mayor’s repeated statements that he wants to fund more ‘upstream’ services that address the city’s mental health crisis, his agenda, instead, focuses on post-crisis points and increased law enforcement. To effectively address the City’s mental health crisis, the mayor must invest in more preventive and evidenced-based supports.”
“We know that social and emotional skills in schools support academic success. It is crucial that we continue to develop these competencies that contribute to our young people graduating from high school, and thriving in careers and in life. Young people will lose if we hamstring their teachers by letting go of the DESSA.”
“New York City’s Department of Education recommends schools spend just $80.15 per student on arts education—yet school leaders can use that money for other classes and programs, often resulting in the total elimination of arts programming in a school.”
“Out there you are vulnerable. It’s safer in here behind doors,” Kevin, who declined to provide his last name, told City Limits outside the 30th Street Intake Shelter Thursday. He is among several currently or formerly homeless New Yorkers to empathize this week with the late Jordan Neely.
“To most effectively and efficiently address New York City’s mental health challenges, we must focus on our youngest residents and their caregivers.”
City Limits uses investigative journalism through the prism of New York City to identify urban problems, examine their causes, explore solutions, and equip communities to take action.
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