Shelter’s a right, but it’s not the destination

Bronx: Recent reporting on New York City’s shelter capacity highlights an important truth: While the right to shelter under Callahan vs. Carey ensures that families are not left on the streets, it does not guarantee timely access to permanent housing.

The right to shelter is a critical legal protection that reflects our city’s commitment to basic human dignity. However, on any given night, thousands of families with children remain in New York City shelters for extended periods due to housing shortages, administrative delays and limited coordination between agencies. Prolonged shelter stays contribute to chronic stress, disrupt children’s education and create barriers to employment for parents. These harms fall disproportionately on Black and Latino families, who are overrepresented in the shelter system. Research also indicates that without adequate post-placement support, many families reenter shelter, reflecting ongoing housing instability.

The policy should not be weakened, but strengthened through improved implementation. New York City should establish mandated time benchmarks for families with children, including required coordination between the Department of Homeless Services and housing subsidy programs to prioritize permanent placement within 90 days whenever possible. The city should also expand community-based stabilization services to reduce shelter recidivism. Shelter should be a short-term bridge to housing, not a revolving door. Strengthening accountability around length of stay and post-exit support would shift the policy from crisis response to long-term stability. Joycelin Rosa Martinez

Categorically criminal

Holliswood: The photo caption on Monday’s front page (“Feds open terror probe,” March 9) says:........

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