In all that our city is facing with COVID-19, Our homeless brothers and sisters can’t shelter in place, often have nowhere to wash their hands, and even go to the bathroom

Over 21,000 homeless New Yorkers are currently sleeping head-to-toe in dormitory-style shelters. Thousands more New Yorkers impacted by COVID may need to enter shelter in the coming months. As of March 30th, there were 120 cases of COVID-19 reported in 60 different NYC homeless shelters (which can each shelter hundreds of people apiece). Seven homeless New Yorkers have also tested positive while living on the streets. We know that this is only the tip of the iceberg as testing has been grossly inadequate.

Learn more about how to advocate and act HERE and HERE

As we work to be safe while we are out with our masks, the sad reality is that wearing a mask for our black and brown neighbors and more specifically, our black brothers, can brings feelings of being both more and less safe.

This article is a very helpful testimonial to build our understand and empathy of the layers of trauma people in our communities are facing through all of this.

I, a Black man, cannot walk into a store with a bandana covering the greater part of my face if I also expect to walk out of that store. The situation isn’t safe and could lead to unintended attention, and ultimately a life-or-death situation for me. For me, the fear of being mistaken for an armed robber or assailant is greater than the fear of contracting COVID-19.