Poverty in the midst of wealthEDITORIAL - 05/24/2006
Otros Titulares
Working toward life without diabetes
Trabajando para una vida sin diabetes
The city`s Black, Latino and Asian council members, who happen to represent the city`s poorest districts, met last weekend to develop initiatives to fight poverty.
The number of New Yorkers who receive public assistance is at its lowest level in 40 years, but the number of poor people is at its highest. Twenty percent of New Yorkers live in poverty. That`s 1.8 million people, including 600,000 children.
It`s ironic, given reports of job growth and a booming economy, and given the trappings of wealth and excess that are seen in New York City every day. In his State of the City address earlier this year, Mayor Michael Bloomberg made a commitment to help the poor. He established a commission of distinguished community leaders who will develop strategies to reduce poverty and make recommendations in the coming months.
The mayor`s housing plan calls for the construction of 165,000 units of affordable housing, and targets the poor neighborhoods of Bushwick and Bedford Stuyvesant in Brooklyn, and Melrose in The Bronx.
The city has signed up record numbers of people for food stamps, and accepts applications by mail or fax, and at food pantries and soup kitchens.
Still, there are 600,000 New Yorkers who are eligibile for food stamps but do not recieve them. And the mayor has declined to pursue a federal waiver that would have made it possible for needy, single adults ages 18 to 49 to receive food stamps.
Also, the New York City Housing Authority is asking its tenants, poor New Yorkers, to pay more for services and to pay higher fees to help close a $168 million budget gap.
So there is still much work to be done. We support efforts to use city resources and services to create jobs, build and retain affordable housing, promote economic development and stabilize neighborhoods. In the midst of good fortune, let`s remember those who have not been so fortunate.