Zohran Mamdani is wrong in believing that dismantling homeless encampments illegally sitting on public and private land is meant to coax people into permanent housing. No, it is meant to dismantle homeless encampments illegally sitting on public and private land. The goal is to end the unsanitary, dangerous and unsightly encampments, which do harm to the squatters camped out, as well as the rest of us. And on that the sweeps have been a major success.
But this is what Mamdani said Thursday in Stuyvesant Square Park (which has no encampments): “If you are not connecting homeless New Yorkers to the housing that they so desperately need, then you cannot deem anything you’re doing to be a success. We are going to take an approach that understands its mission is connecting those New Yorkers to housing, whether it’s supportive housing, whether it’s rental housing, whatever kind of housing it is, because what we have seen is the treatment of homelessness as if it is a natural part of living in this city, when in fact, it’s more often a reflection of a political choice being made.”
Mamdani is also wrong in perhaps believing that this worthwhile initiative started with Mayor Adams, who properly complained last week that his successor’s blunder “turns a blind eye to human suffering” which would “create a quality of life nightmare” and “leaving people to suffer in the cold isn’t just neglectful, it’s a disgrace.”
In truth, the zero-tolerance for the encampments started under Mayor Bill de Blasio, who took down more than 9,000 encampments. Mamdani should ask Dean Fuleihan about that. Fuleihan was first deputy mayor for de Blasio and will have the same job for Mamdani. Adams has been continuing on de Blasio’s progress, with more than twice as many sites, 18,653, cleared. There are now 180 encampments set for dismantlement and that must happen.
While Adams hands over City Hall in 24 days, Kathy Hochul will still be governor and her spokeswoman said, “The governor does not believe that allowing New Yorkers to sleep on sidewalks or under bridges is a humane solution to homelessness. She supports an approach that combines enforcement — including sweeps when needed — with connection to supportive housing and mental health and substance abuse services.”
The sweeps are not about placing people in shelter. The bulk of persons in the encampments are using illegal drugs, like heroin or crack or freebasing, or boozing, which are not allowed in the shelters. So adding more shelter beds or more supported housing spots is irrelevant. Those resources would be rejected, which is why only a tiny number from the encampments have chosen shelter beds.
There are also probably some folks out there with serious mental illness, who haven’t made a competent decision to rough it. Under state law, they can be compelled to be treated. But letting the tents and lean-tos remain will not help the substance addicted or the mentally ill.
Unlike L.A. or San Francisco or Portland, New York City has a right to shelter to anyone in need. Those West Coast cities suffer terribly with encampments, degrading life for the unfortunate living outdoors and the rest of the population. New York cannot come to be like L.A. or San Francisco or Portland with lawless squatting.
There is a federal lawsuit against City Hall that persons in encampments should be given sufficient warning of a dismantlement and that any possessions and material confiscated during the clean ups have to be stored by the city and returned to the owners. But no one is allowed to stake out a cardboard homestead in this great city.
Mamdani should listen to Adams and de Blasio and Hochul and keep the encampments at bay unless he wants to be living in Gracie Mansion with a tent city outside in Carl Schurz Park.
