Posted on September 9, 2015 by The Editorial Board in The New York Times The New York Times, By The Editorial Board The alarming abundance of people panhandling or bedding down in New York City’s streets and subways this summer has made life more complicated for Mayor Bill de Blasio. It fits neatly into a prebaked narrative about his election, which right-wing critics said foretold the collapse of New York. It has led to ugly responses by commentators and politicians and fed the sense that the mayor has a crisis on his hands. Which he does. But this homeless crisis is considerably older than this mayor’s tenure, and goes deeper than any perceived surge of people in the street, who are only a small fraction of the overall homeless population. Homelessness is a hydra-headed problem tied to soaring rents, income inequality, economic instability, mental illness, addiction and a host of other things.
