An article in the Times on Tuesday about the plight of the poor in New York City is still gathering lots of comments and discussion on Twitter.
The article profile one woman who lives in a shelter with her daughter, while working two minimum wage jobs. Rent for a one bedroom apartment in a bad neighborhood costs about $1,000 per month. As we know, McDonald’s wages don’t cover $1,000 per month rent. So, this woman, plus many others like her, end up living in shelters.
Shelters aren’t great for the people who live there. They are also very expensive to run. Like more than rent.
Now the number of shelter residents hovers around 50,000, according to the city’s Department of Homeless Services. More than 9,000 are single adults and more than 40,000 other residents are in families, including 21,600 children. The average monthly cost for the government to shelter a family is more than $3,000; the cost for a single person is more than $2,300.
The comments on the article are fascinating. Worth a read.
Apt. 11d 