Uptown’s Ydanis Rodriguez stated: “We knew better. Everyone knew better. Self-quarantining at home is a sensible policy for 3 members families living in 2 bedrooms apartments. However, for those living in over-crowded conditions, this is a negligent and blind proposal that ignores the realities of the vast majority of New Yorkers. We have left those individuals, who are the poorest and the most vulnerable with health pre-existing conditions, to die in their homes. This is why it should be of no surprise that now a large number of those cases arriving to the hospitals are from the people who were told to stay home even though many did not have the capabilities to self-quarantine.
Requiring New Yorkers to go home with COVID-19 related symptoms and risk cross infecting their family was not only bad health policy. Telling those of us who live in overcrowded housing, most of us black and brown people, that we should go back home while sick was tantamount to genocide.
The solution has been clear from the start. We have hotels throughout our city that lie empty. We need to isolate the sick from the general population and monitor them appropriately to ensure their well-being. The answer remains in front of us to see. While there has been an effort to make some rooms available to infected New Yorkers, there are not enough and we need to make the process of obtaining these lodgings more accessible and equitable for the poorest New Yorkers.
I call on the Governor, the Mayor, and President Trump to stop the politics and political squabbles and to fix the situation that has been created by the government by not allocating New Yorkers the proper self-quarantining resources in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Add more rooms. Fill up the rooms. Stop the genocide.”
Spanish
“Lo sabíamos. Todos lo sabían. La auto-cuarentena en el hogar es un mandato sensato para familias de 3 miembros que viven en apartamentos de 2 habitaciones. Sin embargo, para aquellos que comparten su espacio con varias personas, esta es una propuesta negligente y ciega que ignora las realidades de la gran mayoría de los Neoyorquinos. Hemos dejado que esas personas, que son las más pobres y más vulnerables con condiciones preexistentes de salud, mueran en sus hogares. Por eso no debería sorprendernos que ahora un gran número de los casos llegando a los hospitales son de personas a quienes se les dijo que se quedaran en casa, aunque no tuvieran las condiciones para ponerse en cuarentena.
Exigir a los Neoyorquinos que regresen a sus hogares con síntomas relacionados con COVID-19 y poner en riesgo de infección a su familia fue una mala sugerencia. Decirles a aquellos de nosotros que vivimos en viviendas superpobladas, la mayoría de nosotros Latinos y Afroamericanos, que deberíamos volver a casa mientras estamos enfermos equivale a un genocidio.
La solución ha sido clara desde el principio. Tenemos hoteles en toda nuestra ciudad que yacen vacíos. Necesitamos aislar a los enfermos de la población en general y monitorearlos adecuadamente para asegurar su bienestar. La respuesta permanece frente a nosotros para verla Si bien se ha hecho un esfuerzo para poner algunas habitaciones a disposición de los neoyorquinos infectados, no hay suficientes y tenemos que hacer que el proceso para obtener estos alojamientos sea más accesible y equitativo para los Neoyorquinos más pobres.
Pido al Gobernador, al Alcalde y al Presidente Trump que paren los juegos políticos y que solucionen la situación creada por el gobierno al no asignar a los Neoyorquinos los recursos de auto-cuarentena adecuados para evitar la propagación de COVID -19. Añadan más habitaciones. Faciliten las habitaciones. Paren el genocidio “.
Ydanis Rodriguez was elected to the New York City Council in 2009, representing the 10th Council District (Washington Heights, Inwood, and Marble Hill). An educator for 13 years, Ydanis co-founded Gregorio Luperon High School and the Washington Heights Health Academy. As a leading voice at the NYC Council, Ydanis has brought changes in transportation, education, economic development, housing, police reform, healthcare, environmental policy, and ensuring low-income families have an equitable path to middle class.
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