Queens KKK members cheer homeless shelter arson

The Far Right's long-running demonization of those less fortunate can be deadly. Why society tolerates it is a mystery.

This week, there was a public hearing in Queens about plans for a new homeless shelter. The Ku Klux Klan flooded the hearing and shouted down local residents and public officials who favored the shelter. When a woman said she supported burning down the shelter, KKK members cheered.

This hearing came only a few days after 4 homeless men were bludgeoned to death in Manhattan.

The vitriol was initially cheered on by right-wing City Council member Robert Holden. Later, he said he was "disappointed with how this meeting is being portrayed" because of it - but it was partly his fault for having encouraged it. The meeting deteriorated so much that members of a tenants' union who supported the shelter had to be escorted out by police for their own safety.

On the other hand, if you want to fight homelessness, shelters aren't as effective as affordable housing. But everyone knows damn well that those who oppose the shelter would be the first to oppose affordable housing too.

(Source: https://gothamist.com/news/angry-queens-residents-shout-down-plans-for-homeless-shelter-i-hope-someone-burns-it-down)