In an article published January 3rd, 2025 on MSNBC.com, Division Chief, Dr. Margot Kushel discusses just how dangerous it is to be unsheltered:
"On a New York City subway car in the early morning of Dec. 22, a man set a sleeping woman on fire in a brutal act of senseless violence. Her name was Debrina Kawam; she was a 57-year-old woman experiencing homelessness in New York City, trying to sleep and keep warm on a cold winter day. The story made the front page of many major news outlets. But left unsaid was how frequently people experiencing homelessness are killed — often while sleeping.
According to the most recent data released by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, 771,480 people experienced homelessness on a single night in January 2024, a record and an 18% increase from the prior year. What those numbers do not tell us is the way that violence shapes homeless people’s lives. It is constant and terrifying. "
