Melissa Greenspan: ‘We the people’ need to do more to help the homeless
mactrunk
Published: 12/14/2020 4:47:18 PM
I am writing in response to Joel Blumenthal’s Dec. 10 letter about homeless people congregating on the steps of City Hall. While I understand that, as a longtime business owner, Mr. Blumenthal needs to be concerned about the optics of downtown Northampton, and as a citizen of this city I care about it being a welcoming and safe place, I think he sadly misses the true tragedy of this situation.
As noted in the Gazette last Saturday, the federal moratorium on evictions (because of the pandemic) is about to expire, although the pandemic itself is far from over. Thirty-two percent of Massachusetts residents are currently not current on rent or mortgage payments and thus at risk of becoming homeless.