I'd rather fight than have to pray: NYC cuts 50% of homeless youth services

It has been about a month since the Bloomberg administration has announced it will make a 50% cut of $1.5 million to youth shelter bed programs in New York City.  Funny thing is that this month it was also announced that New York City will see a budget surplus of $1.7 billion.  Oh and you know that CityTime scandal that lost the city $80 million?  Yeah, Bloomberg insists there is no turning back and the city must continue to spend money on the project with no accountability.  So maybe someone can enlighten me on why exactly New York City's homeless children were picked to lose 50% of their funding mid-fiscal year.

LGBTQ homeless youth consist of 40% of all homeless youth in New York City and are among the most vulnerable and the least likely to receive private donor funding.  With organizations like Catholic Charities and other religious organizations which make large donations to homeless youth services, LGBTQ youth are specifically discriminated against. 

The Covenant House had a special guest for Christmas Eve this year….Archbishop Dolan.  I’m sure he opened his arms to share the love and grace of God with that transgender young girl that was kicked out of her home because her parents subscribed to the exact hatred Dolan insists on spewing and afflicting against the entire LGBTQ community.

In September, presidential candidate hopeful Michael Bloomberg appeared on NBC News “Education Nation” summit to announce corporate programs and initiatives to improve New York City’s school system.  Not more than two months later the heavily controversial appointment of corporate executive Cathie Black as school chancellor was announced.  With a Mayor and a city that believes in “No Child Left Behind” and with all these efforts to partner with corporations and business executives to run the city school system like a Fortune 500 company, how can such smart business people miss such a simple truth?  How exactly do they expect our kids to succeed in school when they slept in the park last night?

There was once a woman that stood up for the disenfranchised; her name was Mary Harris “Mother” Jones.  She was considered an angel by some and an agitator by all.  She once said, “pray for the dead and fight like hell for the living.”  13 homeless children die on the street of the United States a day.  It’s estimated that there are 15,000 to 30,000 homeless youth in New York City.  Do we need 4,745 kids to die on the streets this year for Bloomberg to restore funding?  I’d rather fight than have to pray.

About two years ago, at approximately 6am, I walked to the subway station to go to work.  I typically saw a homeless person or two on my commute.  This particular morning there was a paramedic poking and probing at a man as he lay unconscious on the sidewalk.  The paramedic looked at his colleague and said (as I walked by), fucking frozen to death.  I doubt those calls get any easier for paramedics, but imagine when the frozen body is a child.  I’d rather fight than have to pray.

This Sunday, New York City saw 20 inches of snow and windchills that dipped below zero degrees.  God only knows how many young souls we lost this weekend.  Now imagine that number double with the 50% fewer beds to shelter these kids. I’d rather fight than have to pray.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg needs to be shamed; he cannot silently get away with allowing our kids die, or simply live, on these streets.  We must stand up and be the voices and the strength for our community's MOST disenfranchised.  We must demand that our kids get a fair shake at life.  There are alternative budget cuts that are more appropriate, there is also additional funding that can be recovered by landlords that collect rent from the city without any official contracts.  If you are interested in taking action in New York City, please email me at: Natasha.Equality@gmail.com