Image of the Day

VIDEO
Bloomberg and a small party accompanying him were whisked off in
black cars. He missed a greeting from community members in an area still
reeling from Hurricane Sandy, with quickly-lettered signs: “Rockaways in
Health Crisis,” “We Need Safer Housing.” Bloomberg made his way to the
still-shuttered offices of The Wave, the Rockaways weekly newspaper. As
word spread about the stealth visit, a crowd gathered outside hoping to
explain those signs to the mayor: a month after Sandy hit, swamping
homes with seawater, many residents—homeowners and tenants—are still
living without electricity, without heat, without working appliances, with
black mold taking hold of walls and other surfaces. Temporary housing is
desperately needed, absentee landlords must fix their properties.
The mayor emerged behind a row of police, thanked the group, and
was quickly driven away—avoiding a repeat of his November 4 visit when
residents lambasted him for ignoring them.
THE CRISIS AND STATEMENT
Hurricane Sandy is an ongoing tragedy that for many people is only
getting worse. Residents, community organizations and city, state, and
federal agencies must come together to address the IMMEDIATE crisis
that is worsening as the weather gets colder.
A month after Hurricane Sandy, thousands remain without electricity,
heat, water, healthy food, basic healthcare, adequate housing, or even
temporary shelter.
Here is a statement from a group of individuals and residents who
have been working in the affected communities with Occupy Sandy:
1) HOUSING
Long before Sandy hit, New York City already ranked high for
homelessness. Now, tens of thousands of New Yorkers have been
displaced, while many more are living in unsafe, moldy houses. Many
NYCHA residents have been forced to pay full rent while having no heat
and, in some cases, no water or electricity for weeks.
There should be an immediate housing plan that addresses their
needs; it would include: extending the NYCHA rent credit to cover
November and December to account for lost wages and the storm’s true