On the morning of May 23, a heavy rainstorm hit New York City, but it didn’t deter thousands of Chinese-American residents from taking to the streets to express their anger at the construction of a homeless shelter next to their homes. Due to the large number of protesters, the City Hall courtyard was not able to accommodate everyone, so the protesters gathered in the adjacent garden. Later, they formed circles around City Hall, chanting slogans and making noise by hitting banners with Mayor Adams’ photo on them, creating quite a commotion.
This protest was organized by State Assemblyman William Colton of Brooklyn and City Council Member Penelope Zhuang from the 43rd district, with the aim of opposing the plan to build a homeless shelter at 86th Street and 25th Avenue. This protest was part of a series of demonstrations that have been ongoing since December last year.
The plan involves constructing a shelter for 150 single homeless individuals at 2501-2511 86th Street, to be operated by a VIP community service organization in the Bronx. The location is in a commercial hub, close to a senior center, a daycare center, a quiet residential neighborhood, as well as Chinese-owned businesses such as schools, supermarkets, restaurants, clinics, and pharmacies.
“We are here to make the city government understand that this shelter is unacceptable to the community!” exclaimed Colton at the rally. “It is not beneficial to the community nor the individuals in the shelter. The only ones benefiting are the developers and operators who are milking millions of taxpayers’ money that could have been used for a solution that benefits everyone.”
Another organizer and representative of the area, Council Member Zhuang, stated, “Our community is sending a clear and resounding message: we must address homelessness by building affordable housing, creating job opportunities, and implementing rehabilitation programs for the homeless, instead of just warehousing them!”
Council Member David Carr expressed his full agreement with the conclusions of the two aforementioned officials. “These shelters benefit no one except for the developers and non-profit organizations profiting off of the poor,” he stated. “They have no interest in solving the homeless crisis; they are just in it for the money.” The massive protest at City Hall was credited to the organizers Zhuang and Colton, who fight tirelessly every day for this cause.
A Chinese retired accountant, Mrs. K.K. Liu, who has lived near the proposed shelter for almost 20 years, said she participates in the resistance efforts every day, including mobilizing people to donate and join protests. “It is tough to have people come out on a Thursday when they are working,” she said. Despite her pessimism about the outcome of the protest, she emphasized the importance of perseverance in the face of powerful opposition.
Mr. Luo, a longtime resident of Brooklyn for 45 years, stated that the construction of a shelter in the area would disrupt community safety and is a terrible idea. The Chinatown community, both in New York and Manhattan’s Lower East Side, has been heavily impacted by homeless shelters. Apart from shelters for the homeless, there are also community prisons, halfway houses, and rehab centers provided by the city government for offenders.
Representatives from Chinatown also participated in the rally. Wang Di from the Great Chinatown Civic Coalition (GCCC) criticized the placement of shelters in communities of color and called out the director of the Department of Homeless Services, Molly Park, for her alleged discriminatory practices. “The agencies that operate these shelters shirk responsibility and refuse to disclose any data!” exclaimed Wang.
Council Member Robert Holden from Queens also joined the rally, condemning the city government for using taxpayers’ money to maintain shelters where residents engage in illegal activities. “The more shelters they build, the more homeless people we see on the streets, all funded by taxpayers’ money!” Holden added.
Thursday’s protest was the latest in a series of demonstrations, with the previous one in March attracting thousands of protesters near the proposed shelter on 86th Street. Additionally, about 52,000 people have signed a petition opposing the project.
According to Council Member Colton, the developer behind the 86th Street location is Tejpal Sandhu, who had previously planned to build a shelter at 2147 Bath Avenue, a proposal that was rejected due to public outcry. Sandhu’s strategy involves initially presenting a “hotel” project at certain locations, then renting them to the government for thousands of dollars per person per month, all funded by taxpayers. In this case, Sandhu submitted documents to the city’s Department of Buildings to construct a “hotel” with 32 rooms and community facilities at the 86th Street site, which has been issued a stop-work order. However, the developer has been quietly continuing construction without approval. For months, Colton and Zhuang have been mobilizing the public against the shelter construction.