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Hi John,
Affordable housing isn't a pipeline dream—it's a human right. I know how important it is to have stable housing; why it feels like it is tied to a person's worth. But it's still hard for me to talk about my own experience.
Housing is deeply personal for me and I believe housing should be a right for everyone. Here's why:
When I was 17 years old and still in high school, I moved out of my mother's house. I remember looking at her bedroom window from the UHaul, seeing her silhouette unmoving and uncaring that I was leaving, and getting in the truck and driving to my first apartment.
I was a high schooler living on my own. I was a three sport athlete and a backserver at a local restaurant. My meals were from the lunch room at school or bread I snuck into my pocket from the restaurant. People made fun of me because I was an athlete but far too skinny to be boasting about athleticism. I was paying for rent, food, electricity, TV, gas, groceries....and I didn't even have a high school diploma. But even at 17 years old, I knew I'd been living in a situation that I needed to leave.
During the height of the pandemic, I worked with an unhoused encampment on JFK Parkway. I spoke with residents living there and activists and collaborated with them to form a better picture of what they wanted from our local government.
During this time, a resident of the encampment overdosed and died. Upon learning who had died, I was heartbroken—she had been my friend. When I saw that same friend at a housing protest, I burst into tears. Was I confused? Delusional? We realized that day the names between the person who had died and the person I called my friend had been mixed up. My friend cried when I explained why I was so ecstatic to see her.
She asked:
You really care about me? Even when I don't have a home?
I don't believe in letting people live out in our streets.
As an elected official, I'll work tirelessly to end homelessness. Will you give a contribution today to help support my electability?
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