When tragedies hit, we expect answers. We want to know why the tragedy happened, who\u2019s to blame, what could have been done to prevent it. Over the course of the recent brutal cold spell that hit New York City, 18 people died out on the streets \u2013 at least 13 of them for reasons related to hypothermia \u2013 in what is categorically a tragedy. This tragedy has also been cast by the press as one of the first real tests of Mayor Zohran Mamdani\u2019s new administration. And when tragedies become politicized, the facts frequently become collateral damage.<\/p>\n
The question of why so many people died is better understood by looking at why so many people in New York City sleep unsheltered in the first place. Over the last four years, former Mayor Eric Adams responded to the homelessness crisis with a series of high-profile sweeps of encampments that failed to move a single New Yorker into permanent housing from January 2024 to June 2025<\/a> and eroded any goodwill earned with the homeless population. These sweeps failed on multiple levels. First, they were glaringly inhumane \u2013 many unhoused New Yorkers lost the few possessions they had, and the process undermined their trust in city services. They were also ineffective \u2013 they served only to remove people from sight \u2013 and the Adams administration released little to no data about whether the people targeted in these sweeps were connected to housing or had better long-term outcomes.<\/p>\n Some have asserted that these recent tragic deaths from the cold would not have occurred had Mamdani continued the policy of encampment sweeps. But as there is no evidence that any of those who perished from the cold were sleeping in encampments or were individuals who otherwise would have been subject to sweeps, those assertions seem little more than opportunistic attempts to get the city to return to an ineffective and inhumane policy. We fully support the mayor\u2019s decision to end encampment sweeps.<\/p>\n Following four years of failed leadership and cruel policy toward the unhoused under the Adams administration, homeless New Yorkers are too often staying on the street instead of seeking shelter, because the city has failed them time and time again. The work of ending homelessness cannot be accomplished without trust. The Coalition for the Homeless brought the litigation that established the legal right to shelter in New York and continues to serve as the independent monitor of the shelter system. Win is the largest provider of shelters for homeless families in New York. One thing we can say with certainty is that you cannot force somebody to shelter.\u00a0<\/p>\n Before individuals can be effectively offered shelter, they must be met where they are with supportive resources. During the recent Enhanced Code Blue, Mamdani issued new emergency protocols, correctly increasing canvasser patrols to identify individuals in need while commendably adding warming centers, warming buses and more low-barrier shelter beds and taking many other proactive steps to bring people inside to safety. While coordination with canvassers and first-responders must always be improved, this stepped-up approach to identifying and assisting at-risk New Yorkers and connecting them with more ways to come inside is the right move and shows far more responsiveness and nimbleness than previous administrations. We hope it is a sign of more progress to come.\u00a0<\/p>\n Saving lives is the first priority, and while we vehemently opposed Adams\u2019 dramatically increased use of involuntary hospitalizations as a means of removing homeless New Yorkers from public spaces, involuntary hospitalizations for those in imminent danger to themselves or others must sometimes be used as an absolute last resort strategy. We must make every effort to provide what unhoused New Yorkers tell us they want and need to feel safe accepting shelter and services. The city should continue to fast-track more low-barrier Safe Haven<\/a> beds to expand critically needed capacity with resources to help individuals rapidly find stable and permanent housing.<\/p>\n Beyond immediate efforts to help unsheltered homeless New Yorkers find safety, we must invest in solutions that move us closer to ending the homelessness crisis altogether. The mayor can take a critical step toward ending this epidemic today by implementing codified expansions to the CityFHEPS housing voucher program, one of the most powerful tools we have for keeping families housed and helping unhoused families move into permanent housing. Tripling the City\u2019s affordable, rent-stabilized housing stock \u2013 one of Mamdani\u2019s campaign promises<\/a> \u2013 would similarly go a long way to ensuring all New Yorkers are housed safely, humanely and permanently.\u00a0<\/p>\n