I’ll open with obligatory remarks on homeless: 1) they need compassion and support 2) Our capitalist society is inherently unfair and generational poverty can be impossible to escape 3) Reagan and Giuliani and others contributed to the mental health crisis that New Yorkers face everyday.
This morning I transferred from the J to the E at Jamaica, the first stop in Queens at 7:50am. I boarded the first car, noticed several people sleeping, hit with the odor. I moved on to the next one and the next. Same situation in every car.
The conductor made the following announcement every few stops. “We have a homeless situation on this train. Please report to 511. We called the police but no one arrived. Please take photos and report.”
Do we really call 511? We get cell phone reception in like 45 seconds increments. Call after the fact? And then what?
Sure, we can say law enforcement/mental health services should be proactive in addressing these situations but if we’re realistic, is there anything we can do?
submitted by /u/Historical-Tutor8221
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