The pressure for state legislators to approve legislative initiatives to deal with the affordable housing crisis that were left in the pipeline began shortly before the new session opened in Albany.
On Tuesday, January 30, more than 150 immigrants and members of Make the Road New York took to the halls of the Capitol in Albany to urge Governor Kathy Hochul, State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie to redouble efforts on housing solutions real as the current crisis and displacement grows across the state.
During the Day of Action, immigrants shared their experiences as renters, victims of housing discrimination, and shelter residents, among others, while participating in more than a dozen lobbying meetings with members of the Senate. and the Assembly urging them to support the legislation outlined in Make the Road New York 2024’s “Freedom to Stay, Freedom to Prosper” platform.
Platform includes housing solutions such as protections against Good Cause Eviction and the Housing Access Voucher Program, raising taxes on the wealthiest New Yorkers to invest in communities, expanding access to health care to all immigrants through Coverage for All and increase access to unemployment through the Unemployment Bridge Program.
“I am an 11th grade student who for the last two years has been living in a shelter with my mother. Every day I see how hard she works, but it is still not enough,” said young Isabel Ariza. We can’t find a place to rent because the rent is too high. We all deserve access to a safe, affordable home without fear of displacement. Statewide good cause eviction protections and the Housing Access Voucher Program must be passed; “These bills would change the lives of millions of renters across the state, including my mom and me.”
Janitzia Lara, also a member of Make the Road NY, said she has had to face discrimination when looking for housing to rent.
“After being unfairly fired from my job, I lost my apartment and was forced to enter the city’s shelter system, where I have been living for seven months. “I have tried to rent an apartment, but they deny me because I am a trans woman,” said Lara, adding that cases like hers are not isolated, as members of trans and queer communities face disproportionate rates of discrimination when looking for housing.
Support from legislators
The activist group was joined by several elected officials, including Senators Jessica Ramos, Jabari Brisport, Julia Salazar, Gustavo Rivera, Brian Kavanagh, and Assemblymembers Jessica González-Rojas, Linda Rosenthal, Marcela Mitaynes, and Phil Ramos.
“Our laws continue to put working families at risk of displacement, unemployment, homelessness, illness and worse,” said state Sen. Julia Salazar, who represents District 18 and is the lead sponsor of the bill. Good cause. “That is why the need for transformative legislation is so pressing, and transformation in the name of democracy is what Freedom to Stay, Freedom to Thrive is all about.”
For her part, Assemblywoman Jessica González-Rojas expressed that for too long immigrant communities have been left behind and abandoned despite being the ones that kept this state functioning at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“If New York is going to boast of having the Statue of Liberty in our port, we must earn that beacon and provide New York immigrants with their basic needs, including housing, medical care and access to social services,” said the legislator, who represents to District 34.
2024-01-31 14:07:44
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