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| 'I thought it would be easy': one New York family's search for a home | 'I thought it would be easy': one New York family's search for a home |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| On a warm July day, in the shadows of glitzy Times Square, Shakira Crawford cleans the sidewalk in front of Candlewood Suites with bleach and water. Dressed in an ochre uniform, she flashes her Hollywood-esque smile at the guests of this 188-room hotel. She mops, dusts and vacuums the lobby until it’s spotless, and she says her nose bleeds from the cleaning products she uses. | On a warm July day, in the shadows of glitzy Times Square, Shakira Crawford cleans the sidewalk in front of Candlewood Suites with bleach and water. Dressed in an ochre uniform, she flashes her Hollywood-esque smile at the guests of this 188-room hotel. She mops, dusts and vacuums the lobby until it’s spotless, and she says her nose bleeds from the cleaning products she uses. |
| At the end of her shift at 3.30pm, Crawford rushes out and gets on the subway. Half an hour later she emerges on Milford Street, a quiet area lined with family homes and apartment buildings, on the outskirts of Brooklyn. | At the end of her shift at 3.30pm, Crawford rushes out and gets on the subway. Half an hour later she emerges on Milford Street, a quiet area lined with family homes and apartment buildings, on the outskirts of Brooklyn. |
| “I don’t want to be too too excited, but it’s like I can’t hold back my excitement,” she says. | “I don’t want to be too too excited, but it’s like I can’t hold back my excitement,” she says. |
| Crawford, 39, is here to look at an apartment, which she urgently needs. Two miles from here she lives with her three children in a place she never imagined they would end up in: a homeless shelter in East New York. | Crawford, 39, is here to look at an apartment, which she urgently needs. Two miles from here she lives with her three children in a place she never imagined they would end up in: a homeless shelter in East New York. |
| It takes only a few minutes in this quiet, spacious two-bedroom apartment for Crawford to know. | It takes only a few minutes in this quiet, spacious two-bedroom apartment for Crawford to know. |
| “I want it,” she whispers. “All day I had this good feeling that I’m going to love it. And I do.” | “I want it,” she whispers. “All day I had this good feeling that I’m going to love it. And I do.” |
| Since last August, she and her children have been sharing one 500-square-foot room, with a small kitchen, bathroom and two bunk beds at the shelter. | Since last August, she and her children have been sharing one 500-square-foot room, with a small kitchen, bathroom and two bunk beds at the shelter. |
| As she walks through the apartment, Crawford already sees her two boys, Joshua, 13, and Jordan, 11, in one bedroom. She’d remind them to keep it clean. | As she walks through the apartment, Crawford already sees her two boys, Joshua, 13, and Jordan, 11, in one bedroom. She’d remind them to keep it clean. |
| “Because they know I don’t like a messy room,” she says, smiling. | “Because they know I don’t like a messy room,” she says, smiling. |
| Crawford imagines putting up paintings and orange, blue or pink curtains, and a little couch and table in the living room, where the kids could sit and eat. Crawford would cook lamb chops and watch them through the pass-through in the kitchen wall. | Crawford imagines putting up paintings and orange, blue or pink curtains, and a little couch and table in the living room, where the kids could sit and eat. Crawford would cook lamb chops and watch them through the pass-through in the kitchen wall. |
| At the shelter, Crawford keeps toothbrushes and dishes in the fridge to prevent the mice and rats that scamper around from getting to them. | At the shelter, Crawford keeps toothbrushes and dishes in the fridge to prevent the mice and rats that scamper around from getting to them. |
| She applies for the apartment immediately. | She applies for the apartment immediately. |
| “I hope no one wants it,” Crawford says, as she leaves. | “I hope no one wants it,” Crawford says, as she leaves. |
| ••• | ••• |
| Over seven months, the Guardian, in partnership with radio station WNYC, followed Crawford through her apartment search, as she put to the test a multimillion-dollar anti-homelessness program created by the city with the largest homeless population in the nation. | Over seven months, the Guardian, in partnership with radio station WNYC, followed Crawford through her apartment search, as she put to the test a multimillion-dollar anti-homelessness program created by the city with the largest homeless population in the nation. |
| Recovered from the recession, safer than ever before, New York City is thriving. But in its underbelly, a vast underclass has developed. Fifty-eight thousand people are homeless, living in the city’s 655 shelters. Today, the real face of the city’s homelessness is not a man begging for change on the street. It’s families with children, headed by single black and Latino mothers. Thirty percent of homeless New Yorkers work, like Crawford. Joshua, Jordan and eight-year-old Julia are among the 23,000 children living in shelters. | Recovered from the recession, safer than ever before, New York City is thriving. But in its underbelly, a vast underclass has developed. Fifty-eight thousand people are homeless, living in the city’s 655 shelters. Today, the real face of the city’s homelessness is not a man begging for change on the street. It’s families with children, headed by single black and Latino mothers. Thirty percent of homeless New Yorkers work, like Crawford. Joshua, Jordan and eight-year-old Julia are among the 23,000 children living in shelters. |
| Related: New York's homeless wait for Bill de Blasio to puts words into action | Related: New York's homeless wait for Bill de Blasio to puts words into action |
| New York is the only major city in America where people have a legal right to shelter, based on court rulings from the 1980s. The shelter mandate has vexed every mayor, Republican and Democrat, since modern homelessness emerged in the city in the 1970s. Finding shelter for every single person and family in need has led the city to a series of blunders over the years: from putting families in decrepit, vermin-infested motels to paying more than $3,000 a month to place them in shoddy apartments run by slumlords. | New York is the only major city in America where people have a legal right to shelter, based on court rulings from the 1980s. The shelter mandate has vexed every mayor, Republican and Democrat, since modern homelessness emerged in the city in the 1970s. Finding shelter for every single person and family in need has led the city to a series of blunders over the years: from putting families in decrepit, vermin-infested motels to paying more than $3,000 a month to place them in shoddy apartments run by slumlords. |
| If there was one mayor thought to be capable of getting the homeless crisis under control, it was the billionaire Michael Bloomberg. In 2004, he pledged to eliminate homelessness in 10 years. Instead, it soared, increasing by 65% by the end of his tenure, with a population of 51,000. | If there was one mayor thought to be capable of getting the homeless crisis under control, it was the billionaire Michael Bloomberg. In 2004, he pledged to eliminate homelessness in 10 years. Instead, it soared, increasing by 65% by the end of his tenure, with a population of 51,000. |
| “We have the highest number of people in shelter in the history of this city,” Bill de Blasio said, just days before assuming the leadership of the city in 2014. “And it simply can’t continue. We will address the problems of the shelter system and we will take a very different approach.” | “We have the highest number of people in shelter in the history of this city,” Bill de Blasio said, just days before assuming the leadership of the city in 2014. “And it simply can’t continue. We will address the problems of the shelter system and we will take a very different approach.” |
| So far the number of homeless under his watch has climbed by 12%. | So far the number of homeless under his watch has climbed by 12%. |
| The centerpiece of de Blasio’s strategy to eventually get homelessness under control is a rental subsidy called Living In Communities (Linc), which Crawford and 15,000 other homeless New Yorkers got. It’s been created to allow them to leave shelters and settle in different communities across the city, thereby drastically reducing the shelter population. | |
| Crawford makes $1,300 a month working full-time as a lobby attendant in a city where an average apartment goes for $3,500. To help her get an apartment, the city gave her a Linc voucher worth $1,500. Every month, for up to five years, the city will cover $1,100 of her rent, and she’ll pay $400 out of her paycheck. When she got the subsidy in February, it felt like hitting the lottery. | Crawford makes $1,300 a month working full-time as a lobby attendant in a city where an average apartment goes for $3,500. To help her get an apartment, the city gave her a Linc voucher worth $1,500. Every month, for up to five years, the city will cover $1,100 of her rent, and she’ll pay $400 out of her paycheck. When she got the subsidy in February, it felt like hitting the lottery. |
| “I was like yeah, hooray!” she said. “I thought it would be easy [to find an apartment].” | “I was like yeah, hooray!” she said. “I thought it would be easy [to find an apartment].” |
| By July, when Crawford went to see the apartment on Milford Street, she realized it wasn’t easy at all. In four months of looking, she was only able to see two apartments and she didn’t get either of them. | |
| She keeps hearing the same thing over and over from brokers: landlords won’t take Linc. It sounds unusual. Why wouldn’t they accept someone like her for whom the city will cover a major portion of the rent for up to five years? | She keeps hearing the same thing over and over from brokers: landlords won’t take Linc. It sounds unusual. Why wouldn’t they accept someone like her for whom the city will cover a major portion of the rent for up to five years? |
| She’s quickly learning that landlords have an unpleasant history of tangling with city subsidies. Bloomberg created a voucher program similar to Linc in 2007. It was funded by the city, state and federal government. Four years later, the state, in the midst of a recession, pulled its share of funding and Bloomberg consequently killed the program. Landlords were left to deal with thousands of tenants who no longer paid rent. | She’s quickly learning that landlords have an unpleasant history of tangling with city subsidies. Bloomberg created a voucher program similar to Linc in 2007. It was funded by the city, state and federal government. Four years later, the state, in the midst of a recession, pulled its share of funding and Bloomberg consequently killed the program. Landlords were left to deal with thousands of tenants who no longer paid rent. |
| “Once they feel that they have been aggrieved, I think their confidence and faith in government declines accordingly,” says Mitchell Posilkin, legal counsel at the Rent Stabilization Association, the largest residential landlord group in the city. “This particular mayor has not given property owners any reason to have confidence or faith that he understands their concerns.” | “Once they feel that they have been aggrieved, I think their confidence and faith in government declines accordingly,” says Mitchell Posilkin, legal counsel at the Rent Stabilization Association, the largest residential landlord group in the city. “This particular mayor has not given property owners any reason to have confidence or faith that he understands their concerns.” |
| ••• | ••• |
| A few days after looking at the apartment on Milford Street, Crawford gets an email from Yuco Management, the company that runs the building. | A few days after looking at the apartment on Milford Street, Crawford gets an email from Yuco Management, the company that runs the building. |
| “I started reading and I saw thank you and unfortunately,” she says. “Oh God. I cried a little.” | “I started reading and I saw thank you and unfortunately,” she says. “Oh God. I cried a little.” |
| Crawford didn’t stand a chance. To be able to move into that apartment she would have needed to make 40 times the rent, $60,000, and have a credit score of at least 700. She makes $17,000 and doesn’t have a credit score because she hasn’t had a credit card or any debt in years. | Crawford didn’t stand a chance. To be able to move into that apartment she would have needed to make 40 times the rent, $60,000, and have a credit score of at least 700. She makes $17,000 and doesn’t have a credit score because she hasn’t had a credit card or any debt in years. |
| In New York City, it’s illegal to reject someone for an apartment just because they have a voucher. Advocates say the financial requirements are a way of getting around that, to preserve the apartment for people who have more money. Yuco Management didn’t return requests for comment. | In New York City, it’s illegal to reject someone for an apartment just because they have a voucher. Advocates say the financial requirements are a way of getting around that, to preserve the apartment for people who have more money. Yuco Management didn’t return requests for comment. |
| Not getting the apartment was a huge disappointment for the kids. | Not getting the apartment was a huge disappointment for the kids. |
| “I was feeling really sad because I wanted the apartment,” says Joshua. | “I was feeling really sad because I wanted the apartment,” says Joshua. |
| At the shelter, he tacked his vision board on the wall. Joshua, an aspiring surgeon with a high top fade haircut, sees big things in his future: a mansion; three red Mazda CX-5s; an “expensive ring” studded with dozens of precious stones. | At the shelter, he tacked his vision board on the wall. Joshua, an aspiring surgeon with a high top fade haircut, sees big things in his future: a mansion; three red Mazda CX-5s; an “expensive ring” studded with dozens of precious stones. |
| While fantasizing about the things he wants in the future, he stays practical when reflecting on his family’s current situation. | While fantasizing about the things he wants in the future, he stays practical when reflecting on his family’s current situation. |
| “As long as we have a bed, that’s it,” he says. “It’s good. For now.” | “As long as we have a bed, that’s it,” he says. “It’s good. For now.” |
| Many kids in shelters struggle in school, but Crawford’s sons have above 90 averages. Still, she notices changes in their behavior: Jordan, always quiet and serious, constantly complains about living in the shelter; Joshua talks back to teachers. Julia is starting to curse. In school, they hide that they live in a homeless shelter. In the pecking order established by their peers, they’re on the lowest rung, after kids who live in their own homes and after those who live in housing projects. They’re “the shelter kids”. | Many kids in shelters struggle in school, but Crawford’s sons have above 90 averages. Still, she notices changes in their behavior: Jordan, always quiet and serious, constantly complains about living in the shelter; Joshua talks back to teachers. Julia is starting to curse. In school, they hide that they live in a homeless shelter. In the pecking order established by their peers, they’re on the lowest rung, after kids who live in their own homes and after those who live in housing projects. They’re “the shelter kids”. |
| The hardest thing is seeing a friend move out of the shelter. | The hardest thing is seeing a friend move out of the shelter. |
| “The next time that’s going to be me,” Joshua says defiantly at the end of July. “Before the summer ends.” | “The next time that’s going to be me,” Joshua says defiantly at the end of July. “Before the summer ends.” |
| ••• | ••• |
| The whole family rallies around that goal: moving out of the shelter before the summer ends and the next school year begins. | The whole family rallies around that goal: moving out of the shelter before the summer ends and the next school year begins. |
| Crawford redoubles her efforts. Whenever she can steal a few minutes at work, she goes to the hotel’s 10th floor and cold-calls brokers from a closet, where she gets the best reception. | |
| When she meets brokers in their offices, each one sounds like he might be able to find her a home. | When she meets brokers in their offices, each one sounds like he might be able to find her a home. |
| “We’re famous in the city,” says a young Orthodox Jewish broker in Borough Park. “Sometimes we’re putting in 10 Linc clients a day.” | “We’re famous in the city,” says a young Orthodox Jewish broker in Borough Park. “Sometimes we’re putting in 10 Linc clients a day.” |
| “If you called earlier, you would be in an apartment now,” says another in Prospect Lefferts Gardens, touting his 17-year experience working with city programs. | “If you called earlier, you would be in an apartment now,” says another in Prospect Lefferts Gardens, touting his 17-year experience working with city programs. |
| But the person Crawford really expects to deliver is the broker who sent her to the apartment on Milford Street that she didn’t get. | But the person Crawford really expects to deliver is the broker who sent her to the apartment on Milford Street that she didn’t get. |
| Over the summer, Crawford and the Guardian visited his office a dozen times. One Saturday in August he invites her to come in again, alone. But when Crawford gets there, she realizes he doesn’t have anything to show her. Instead, she says, he suggests they have sex. | Over the summer, Crawford and the Guardian visited his office a dozen times. One Saturday in August he invites her to come in again, alone. But when Crawford gets there, she realizes he doesn’t have anything to show her. Instead, she says, he suggests they have sex. |
| “In order for him to give me an apartment I’d need to have sex with him,” she says. “That’s how he makes me feel.” | “In order for him to give me an apartment I’d need to have sex with him,” she says. “That’s how he makes me feel.” |
| Crawford says nothing happened that Saturday, but she kept getting lascivious text messages from him. In two messages, from 25 and 26 August, he asks her if she has “a sexy nighty”. The broker declined to comment. | Crawford says nothing happened that Saturday, but she kept getting lascivious text messages from him. In two messages, from 25 and 26 August, he asks her if she has “a sexy nighty”. The broker declined to comment. |
| ••• | ••• |
| Before Crawford was homeless, she had a life in suburban New Jersey, which looked idyllic to her family, friends and neighbors. But behind the walls of their home Crawford says she suffered beatings for more than a decade, something she has in common with a quarter of homeless women. And then her partner ended up in jail and in 2010 got deported to his native Jamaica because of marijuana and weapons possession convictions. | Before Crawford was homeless, she had a life in suburban New Jersey, which looked idyllic to her family, friends and neighbors. But behind the walls of their home Crawford says she suffered beatings for more than a decade, something she has in common with a quarter of homeless women. And then her partner ended up in jail and in 2010 got deported to his native Jamaica because of marijuana and weapons possession convictions. |
| Crawford was also born in Jamaica. She moved to the Bronx with her dad as a child, became a citizen, and graduated from Bronx Regional high school. She had no plans to go back. But the house in New Jersey went into foreclosure and she still wanted her kids to have a father. So she followed her partner to Jamaica and ended up fearing for her life. | Crawford was also born in Jamaica. She moved to the Bronx with her dad as a child, became a citizen, and graduated from Bronx Regional high school. She had no plans to go back. But the house in New Jersey went into foreclosure and she still wanted her kids to have a father. So she followed her partner to Jamaica and ended up fearing for her life. |
| “There’s a latch at the top of the door because I was in the master bedroom,” she says. “I’d lock it and then I would have a hammer underneath my bed.” | “There’s a latch at the top of the door because I was in the master bedroom,” she says. “I’d lock it and then I would have a hammer underneath my bed.” |
| Crawford’s friends collected money and bought her four plane tickets. She and the kids returned to New York last year. With nowhere to go they ended up in the shelter in East New York. | Crawford’s friends collected money and bought her four plane tickets. She and the kids returned to New York last year. With nowhere to go they ended up in the shelter in East New York. |
| Ten months and no home | Ten months and no home |
| Today, 15 months later, 10 months after she got the rental subsidy, Crawford is still in the same place. She’s been in touch with 60 brokers. She hasn’t turned down any apartments. And she hasn’t found a permanent place to live. | |
| “Am I ever going to find a place?” she wonders. | “Am I ever going to find a place?” she wonders. |
| The voucher program is supposed to be the answer to that question for her and thousands of other homeless New Yorkers. The city, state and federal government are investing $442m over the next five years years in the program. | The voucher program is supposed to be the answer to that question for her and thousands of other homeless New Yorkers. The city, state and federal government are investing $442m over the next five years years in the program. |
| Crawford wishes she could have spent more time looking for an apartment over the previous months, but she thinks others share the responsibility in the failure to find a home. She hoped her case worker at the shelter would be more helpful. | Crawford wishes she could have spent more time looking for an apartment over the previous months, but she thinks others share the responsibility in the failure to find a home. She hoped her case worker at the shelter would be more helpful. |
| “I feel like he could have stepped up more,” she says. “I wish he worked harder with me.” | “I feel like he could have stepped up more,” she says. “I wish he worked harder with me.” |
| The caseworker wouldn’t talk to the Guardian. But the program director at Crawford’s shelter, Robin Brown, says everyone at the shelter, including the caseworker and Crawford, have done their parts. | The caseworker wouldn’t talk to the Guardian. But the program director at Crawford’s shelter, Robin Brown, says everyone at the shelter, including the caseworker and Crawford, have done their parts. |
| “I see her as a person who’s worked very diligently in her apartment search,” says Brown. | “I see her as a person who’s worked very diligently in her apartment search,” says Brown. |
| She thinks the city needs to step up its efforts and convince landlords to participate in the program. | She thinks the city needs to step up its efforts and convince landlords to participate in the program. |
| “If there was more buy-in from the landlords and the brokers and there were more apartments available for low-income housing, for families, you know, those things help,” she says. | “If there was more buy-in from the landlords and the brokers and there were more apartments available for low-income housing, for families, you know, those things help,” she says. |
| The city says the program is doing well, with 3,800 households having moved out of shelters using the voucher since it was introduced last fall. They argue that it will take time for the inflated market to absorb the 7,300 families, including Crawford’s, still stuck in shelters, despite having the voucher in hand. | The city says the program is doing well, with 3,800 households having moved out of shelters using the voucher since it was introduced last fall. They argue that it will take time for the inflated market to absorb the 7,300 families, including Crawford’s, still stuck in shelters, despite having the voucher in hand. |
| “What some brokers and landlords have put this family through is beyond outrageous and the city will prosecute bad actor brokers and landlords like them who break the law,” says Steve Banks, commissioner of the human resources administration, the city’s main welfare agency. “We are reviewing our programs to make them more effective and help more families and individuals find homes.” | “What some brokers and landlords have put this family through is beyond outrageous and the city will prosecute bad actor brokers and landlords like them who break the law,” says Steve Banks, commissioner of the human resources administration, the city’s main welfare agency. “We are reviewing our programs to make them more effective and help more families and individuals find homes.” |
| The disappointments and turmoil Crawford experienced this year have taken an emotional toll. When her 91-year-old grandmother, Madlin Whitfield, calls, she tells her about the hardships of looking for an apartment in New York. But she omits one important fact: that she’s living in the shelter. Whitfield thinks Crawford lives with her brother on Long Island. | The disappointments and turmoil Crawford experienced this year have taken an emotional toll. When her 91-year-old grandmother, Madlin Whitfield, calls, she tells her about the hardships of looking for an apartment in New York. But she omits one important fact: that she’s living in the shelter. Whitfield thinks Crawford lives with her brother on Long Island. |
| ••• | ••• |
| After finishing her shift at the hotel one balmy evening, Crawford decides to reveal her secret. She and the kids make their way to Hering Avenue in the Bronx, lined with one and two-family homes. | After finishing her shift at the hotel one balmy evening, Crawford decides to reveal her secret. She and the kids make their way to Hering Avenue in the Bronx, lined with one and two-family homes. |
| Crawford’s grandma, her dad, her aunt, and the aunt’s daughter and boyfriend, live here, in a three-bedroom home they own. Crawford knocks on the door, giddy and with a big smile on her face. | Crawford’s grandma, her dad, her aunt, and the aunt’s daughter and boyfriend, live here, in a three-bedroom home they own. Crawford knocks on the door, giddy and with a big smile on her face. |
| “Hi, Dad!” | “Hi, Dad!” |
| “What’s up, girl?” | “What’s up, girl?” |
| But Crawford isn’t close to her dad. She’s here to see the petite woman dressed in a pink sweater and jeans – her grandma. They haven’t seen each other in over a year. | But Crawford isn’t close to her dad. She’s here to see the petite woman dressed in a pink sweater and jeans – her grandma. They haven’t seen each other in over a year. |
| Whitfield moved to the US from Jamaica in her 50s, became a citizen and brought her five children and two grandkids, including Crawford, from Jamaica. | Whitfield moved to the US from Jamaica in her 50s, became a citizen and brought her five children and two grandkids, including Crawford, from Jamaica. |
| “I didn’t leave anyone behind,” she says. | “I didn’t leave anyone behind,” she says. |
| Despite the large family, Crawford’s childhood wasn’t easy. Her mother left her when she was two in the care of a woman who looked after kids whose parents worked in the US. From the time she was five, Crawford worked, scrubbing floors with a coconut husk, plucking chickens, cooking. She was always hungry and the punishment for transgressions was severe: whippings with a tambourine tree stick and getting locked up in an outdoor bathroom with no light or food. | Despite the large family, Crawford’s childhood wasn’t easy. Her mother left her when she was two in the care of a woman who looked after kids whose parents worked in the US. From the time she was five, Crawford worked, scrubbing floors with a coconut husk, plucking chickens, cooking. She was always hungry and the punishment for transgressions was severe: whippings with a tambourine tree stick and getting locked up in an outdoor bathroom with no light or food. |
| Her grandma saved her from all that. Now Crawford pulls her into a bedroom. | Her grandma saved her from all that. Now Crawford pulls her into a bedroom. |
| “We’re not really staying with Chris because we’re in a shelter.” | “We’re not really staying with Chris because we’re in a shelter.” |
| “Oh, Shaki.” | “Oh, Shaki.” |
| “But it’s OK.” | “But it’s OK.” |
| “God is really rough on you, Shaki.” | “God is really rough on you, Shaki.” |
| In this lovely house, with a flat-screen TV, paintings, a chandelier, and a water dispenser, Crawford doesn’t admit just how rough. Four generations of women; Whitfield, her daughter and Crawford’s aunt, Sharon Solomon, Crawford, and her daughter Julia gather in the yellow-painted kitchen. Once Julia realizes her mother is going to talk about the shelter, she covers her ears and leaves. | In this lovely house, with a flat-screen TV, paintings, a chandelier, and a water dispenser, Crawford doesn’t admit just how rough. Four generations of women; Whitfield, her daughter and Crawford’s aunt, Sharon Solomon, Crawford, and her daughter Julia gather in the yellow-painted kitchen. Once Julia realizes her mother is going to talk about the shelter, she covers her ears and leaves. |
| Crawford tells her secret matter-of-factly, but she eliminates the hard parts. There’s no mention of the rats and mice that keep her awake or the fights between residents that break out constantly. | Crawford tells her secret matter-of-factly, but she eliminates the hard parts. There’s no mention of the rats and mice that keep her awake or the fights between residents that break out constantly. |
| “It’s like a studio setting,” Crawford says. “They give you tables and kitchen, fridge, they give us drawers and bunk beds.” | “It’s like a studio setting,” Crawford says. “They give you tables and kitchen, fridge, they give us drawers and bunk beds.” |
| “Shaki, God will see you through,” says the grandma. | “Shaki, God will see you through,” says the grandma. |
| “Dennis have a place,” says the aunt, remembering a family friend who rents. They promise to reach out to their pastor, friends and neighbors to ask about apartments. | |
| As it gets late, Crawford’s dad, who kept to himself all night and watched a basketball game, nudges her to leave. The kids are sleepy. She goes reluctantly, knowing the house isn’t big enough for them all. But Crawford wishes her family had tried. She gets on the subway with the children after midnight, and they head back to the shelter in East New York. | As it gets late, Crawford’s dad, who kept to himself all night and watched a basketball game, nudges her to leave. The kids are sleepy. She goes reluctantly, knowing the house isn’t big enough for them all. But Crawford wishes her family had tried. She gets on the subway with the children after midnight, and they head back to the shelter in East New York. |
| “It’s my life and nobody else’s,” she says. “Got to take charge of it.” | “It’s my life and nobody else’s,” she says. “Got to take charge of it.” |
| Published in partnership with WNYC Radio, which produced a three-part audio series on Crawford. Listen below. | Published in partnership with WNYC Radio, which produced a three-part audio series on Crawford. Listen below. |