Giuliani says only homeless people who have broken the law are being arrested

December 6, 1999
Web posted at: 11:42 a.m. EST (1642 GMT)

In this story: 'I'm not a bad parent' Mayor: Only lawbreakers being arrested RELATED STORIES, SITES

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Mayor Rudy Giuliani says his new crackdown on New York City's homeless -- which could separate children from their parents -- is misunderstood by his critics, including demonstrators whose overnight protest ended Monday morning.

Chanting "housing, not hate," homeless people and their supporters Sunday held the first of two rallies and all-night vigils organized to oppose regulations recently announced by Giuliani. Another demonstration was scheduled for Monday night.

Under the plans, which have not yet been implemented, able-bodied, mentally stable homeless adults who stay in city shelters but refuse to work would be forced to leave. "We're looking to engage the homeless and not to enable them in perpetuating their homelessness," said Tony Coles, senior policy adviser to Giuliani.

MESSAGE BOARD Poverty in America    VIDEO CNN's Frank Buckley talks with people on both sides of the issue. Real 28K 80K Windows Media 28K 80K     Homeless in New York City -- 1999 According to the Coalition for the Homeless, about 100,000 people in New York City have experienced homelessness at some time during the year. Of those, about 23,000 people, including 9,000 children, sleep in a New York City shelters on any given night. More information     ALSO Homelessness emerges as campaign issue for Clinton and Giuliani

In addition, children of ejected families would be taken from their parents and placed in foster care. But city officials say that would only happen if a family court judge determines that the children are in danger.

Even so, advocates for the homeless say the impact on homeless children, who have little else to cling to, could be devastating.

"The last piece of stability, their parent, is being threatened to be taken from them as well. I think as a civilized society we can do much better than that," says Arnold Cohen, president of the Partnership for the Homeless.

The regulations, critics say, place undue hardship on many struggling families and persons, and directly violate a 1979 New York Supreme Court ruling that established a legal right to shelter for homeless individuals.

A homeless mother named "Amy" says she shouldn't be targeted because of circumstances out of her control. "I'm not a bad parent. I'm just a parent without a job and without living quarters of my own, but that doesn't make me a bad parent," Amy told CNN.

Nearly 9,000 homeless children sleep in New York City shelters on any given night

Giuliani has also come under fire for ordering police to arrest homeless people who refuse orders to move from the sidewalks.

The mayor's crackdown is already an issue in Republican Giuliani's probable Senate campaign against his likely Democratic opponent, first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, who attacked his new policy in a speech last week.

Giuliani ordered the arrests after a Texas woman suffered severe injuries November 16 when a man, identified by police as homeless, hit her in the head with a brick in broad daylight in midtown Manhattan.

Since then, police, who described the man charged with the attack as a career criminal, have arrested 164 street people on various charges and taken 380 to city-run shelters.

Giuliani, a former U.S. Attorney who has made crime-fighting his major theme as mayor, says only homeless people who have broken the law are being arrested.

"We are not arresting homeless people for just sleeping on the street," he said. "Homeless people can only be arrested for committing crimes."

Protesters rally against Giuliani's new homeless policies

The mayor says Mrs. Clinton doesn't understand the complexity of the issue since she isn't from New York. And he accuses homeless advocates of ignoring a potentially helpful policy.

"Since they are advocating for a problem, if there are things that would make the problem disappear, sometimes unknowingly they continue to advocate and they don't embrace the things that would actually solve the problem," Giuliani said.

City officials also say no city in the United States spends more on the homeless -- $430 million in 1999, an increase of $38 million from last year.

Correspondent Frank Buckley, The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.