Source: CCTV news client
On January 14, local time, the day before the U.S. new York state tenant eviction ban was about to expire on January 15, hundreds of people protested in Midtown Manhattan, New York, demanding that the governor extend the ban to prevent tens of thousands of New Yorkers who could not afford to pay rent from living on the streets.
The organizers of the demonstration said that many locals affected by the epidemic, especially ethnic minorities, could not pay their rent. Failure to extend the ban would leave more than 20,000 New Yorkers homeless, a large proportion of them women and children. In addition, campaign sponsors said that the resumption of evictions would jeopardize the safety of the city of New York.
Protesters say they want the protest to send a message: an extension of the eviction ban and the passage of the Justify Eviction Act to protect millions of New York tenants.
Demonstrators held aloft "Governor Who Will Only Expel" and shouted "Housing is Human Rights, Too," marching from outside the New York Public Library to Governor Hochu's office in New York City, several blocks away, and disrupting local traffic.
About half an hour later, New York City police began operations, demanding that demonstrators leave the roadway to resume traffic, arresting several people at the scene after warnings.
Affected by the epidemic, New York tenants who cannot afford to pay rent have repeatedly been protected by eviction bans, and New York landlords have been asked not to evict tenants. But a growing number of landlords say they haven't received any rent in the two years since the outbreak.
New York Mayor Eric Adams said the day earlier that it was an insult to New York that the state had received only $27 million of the Treasury's $1.1 trillion set aside for emergency assistance. He called on the Treasury Department to immediately inject funds into the New York Emergency Rental Project to solve the housing problem of the people.
Adams said New York City has the highest rents in the nation, with one-third of tenants spending half of their income to pay rent. The federal government must help the people of New York State. At present, four governors of New York, New Jersey, California and Illinois have jointly sent a letter to US President Biden asking the federal government to help solve housing problems everywhere.
It is understood that before the outbreak, about 140,000 families in New York State were required to move out because of rent arrears. In 2020, that number soared to 591,000 households, with more than $1.97 billion in arrears. According to US media reports, since the summer of 2021 alone, New York State has received more than 290,000 rent reduction applications. (CCTV reporter Xu Dezhi)