New York’s 22-month ban on evictions expired last month, leaving tens of thousands of New Yorkers at risk of losing their homes. A disproportionate number of these households are led by single mothers of color, and thousands of girls are now scrambling to keep their children in their homes and out of the shelter system.
New York City cannot afford a tidal wave of evictions and a surge in women and children entering its shelter system. The need for transformative policy solutions to finally end family homelessness is more urgent than ever before. As the future of the pandemic remains uncertain, the stability and safety of women and children must be prioritized.
Our current rental crisis isn’t just a housing issue; it’s an equity issue. Even prior to the pandemic, almost 70% of shelter residents were represented by women with children, most of whom are families of color.
There are tens of heaps more families without a home, living doubled up with pals and relatives. Many are there due to domestic violence, which remains a leading driver of family homelessness in our city.
Yessenia Benitez, a 30-year-old licensed clinical social worker, tries to help a homeless woman sort through some documents near a homeless encampment in the Queens borough of New York, Wednesday, April 14, 2021. (Seth Wenig/AP)
As a Latina woman and former single parent, I’ve witnessed the pain and trauma of homelessness firsthand. I understand what it’s like to live on the verge of eviction; I’ve been homeless twice; I was a teenage parent. My story is not unique in New York City.
There are countless other women like myself fighting every day just to put food on the table for their kids, unsure how to keep a roof over their heads.
A recent report by the Citizens’ Committee for Children found that 41% of women living with children in NYC are not working, compared to 24% of men with children — a lingering effect of remote school and a perpetual child-care challenge.
As a result, women with children face higher risks of losing their homes now that the eviction moratorium has expired and are left to struggle after three in four family shelter applications were rejected just last year.
The effects of homelessness on our city’s children cannot be overstated, reverberating throughout their lives long after they leave shelter. Childhood homelessness also increases the likelihood that a child will experience homelessness as an adult.
We must do everything we can to prevent children and families from losing their homes and help those in shelter find stable housing as quickly as possible. Both New York City and New York State have a unique opportunity to address New York’s historic family homelessness crisis
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In order to truly end family homelessness, more investments must be made.
At the state level, it is important that the Legislature passes and the governor enacts a bill to create the Housing Access Voucher Program, a statewide subsidy program that mirrors Section 8. State leaders must invest $2 billion in unallocated federal pandemic relief to fund the Emergency Rental Assistance Program and ensure that the thousands of households who can not make rent, will not be pushed into homelessness.
Locally, the Adams administration and City Council must work together to promote cross-agency collaboration, data-informed policymaking and transparency, and to ensure that the needs of homeless families are met and that the workforce serving the homeless earns a living wage. Key priorities include.
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