[Photo by Steven]
A body was found early this morning near the southeast entrance of Tompkins Square Park on Avenue B and Seventh Street. Readers reported seeing emergency responders as early as 7 a.m.
An emergency responder at the scene told EVG correspondent Steven that the male victim was found next to a tree. There's conflicting information at the moment about the man. One worker said that the man appeared to be at least 50 while another Park regular said that he was a younger traveler. A drug overdose is suspected as the cause of death.
We'll update when there's more information to share.
Updated 7/6
According to Downtown Manhattan Patch, the man was 52 years old. The medical examiner was still waiting for results and investigating the cause of death, a spokesperson from the ME's office said today.
81 comments:
walked past this sad scene this morning and unfortunately got a pretty good view of the man. the body was very stiff, not sure how long it takes to get like that. but the stiffness coupled with the rain made the skin look very old so that might be where the age discrepancy lies. he had a hospital ID bracelet on his wrist. so sad but something like this seemed inevitable with the full on camps being set up by the crusties on heroin all day in the middle of the park. i feel bad for them but i also feel bad for the children and families who want to spend time in the park that their tax money pays for but can't for fear of drug needles and broken beer bottles and garbage everywhere.
RIP stranger
Is it about time to get rid of these heroin users? The park should be a place for children, not for junkies to shoot up...
And sometimes God just likes to die as a junkie.
The time is long overdue to run those drug addicts out of the park. It's not that they're unsightly (which they are) -- it's that they're dangerous, not just to children but to everyone.
Concerned Parent: Have a little sympathy. What makes them "dangerous?" Tompkins Square Park has been a haven for homeless, addicts and the poor for since before you were even fertile. I raised my kids there in the late 1980's and 90's and guess what, they got scholarships to university! All this while learning not to fear people who are different. While learning to be kind to those less fortunate. Why not just stay on your brand new roof deck in your million dollar tenement and leave the park to those who are not afraid. For god sake, its the freaking Lower East Side.
Think of the children!!!!!!!
Sympathy is not due here. Why should parts of the park be no-go areas because there is some high as a kite and likely belligerent bum? Why should we tolerate them pissing and shitting in the park? Why should we have to tolerate their dirty needles in the park? Why should this small number of people be permitted to ruin the park for everyone else? I'm also sick of their apologists too. Nobody has a god given right to sit around, shoot up, piss, shit, and hassle passerbys for money while leaving dirty infected needles around.
What's more, how would the "sympathy" of letting this fiasco continue even be good for them? They clearly need help that they're not getting. I'll not pretend that they're my primary concern, and I care a lot more about the ordinary, honest, hard working citizens that just want to use the park without being hassled, stepping on a used needle, or having to step over their shit and piss, but this guy may be alive today if someone was unsympathetic enough to put him into an institution where we could get some help.
i don't mind the homeless in the area i just wish they would lower my rent so i won't have to join them at some point...
The first goal here should be the get the drugs out of the park. The NYPD is asleep at the switch.
@3:20 I am so sick of comments like yours. Just because someone doesn't want these drug addicts in their park doesn't make them lack sympathy and it sure as hell doesn't make them one of the d bags moving into this neighborhood. Who are you people who are so stuck in the "good old days" when there were shootings and knife murders every night of the week that you think having homeless person shit and drug paraphernalia in the grass instead of flowers and families is the better alternative? Sure I want my kids to see and experience lots of different cultures and races and economic levels (which is prevalent everywhere you turn in NYC), but that doesn't have to include seeing a guy passed out in a pile of neglected dogs with a needle in his arm and his dick hanging out (I actually walked past that scene a couple weeks ago). I don't think they need to see that to get a scholarship. I am also not so keen on the banker brats and bros with the world handed to them on a silver platter inhabiting all the new glass rooftop buildings, but the opposite end of the spectrum is a lot less appealing. I for one work my butt off at 2 different jobs 7 days a week to be able to afford to live in this neighborhood, and I don't appreciate not being able to enjoy a park that my hard earned tax money is paying to keep "clean" when these addicts get to use it as their public toilet. I'd much rather them get help and at least try to contribute to society. A lot of them have chosen this "traveller" druggie lifestyle with this "f*ck the gov't" mentality, yet they are leaching off of the people who are providing the parks and free food and shelters they need to survive. Read this: http://crustypunks.blogspot.com/
Where's the Tower when you need it!?
i miss the good ole days of the EV before the bros when the neighborhood was run by crack dealers and heroin junkies and there were no bars to keep me up all night! #thegoodoledays
It's been rebranded the East Village, not LES. It is even the name of the blog. Next it will be Millionaire's Square for old T Square Park.
kind of amazing to see the very different (overall anyway) tone of the comments on a very similar event just three years ago:
http://evgrieve.com/2013/07/reader-report-doa-in-tompkins-square.html
@ANON 320:
Maybe your scholarship winning kids could do something to actually help the "less fortunate" then and get them to be functioning members of society that aren't just pissing their lives away. Who on earth wants a park in the middle of their neighborhood to be considered a place "for those who are not afraid" !?!?! What planet are you living on?! They may not all be dangerous, but some of them are, and most of them have strong, frightening, unfixed dogs that have been known to attack. Regardless of the danger, I also want to be able to sit in the grass in the park that I help maintain and be able to enjoy it without stepping on a needle or sitting in their piss, shit, and trash. There's a lady who I see in there every day doing back breaking landscaping work to make it look nice and then you have these freeloaders who think it's their druggie playground and ruin it. There are plenty of less fortunate people for kids to learn about who are trying to better their lives and raise their families ... this is NOT that.
I walk past this section in the park on a daily basis. This finding is tragic and dreadful. May this man rest in peace. Whatever his demons might have been, if they happened to be drugs or who know's what else, let's not throw the book at him and judge. He is dead. As human beings, we must show our respect. No type of hatred or intolerance will bring him back. Condolences to his loved ones. Life is truly short and uncertain isn't?
According to the comments here there's been a string of attacks by homeless heroin users on children in TSP. Does anyone have any links to news' stories discussing those attacks?
@4:58 True enough, he's dead and there's nothing more that can be done for him or against him. But, there are lot of others like him which are still there, and we're still here. It's not as if the problem died with him.
Your strawman argument isn't going to work. It's not about judgment of someone as a person. There are differences between tolerating people and tolerating actions. People are owed tolerance. Not all of their actions. It's not hateful to say we're tired of used needles, human feces, pissing, and aggressive panhandling and keeping aggressive dogs in the park. Also, yes, I am intolerant of those things, and what of it? Why do you, or why should anyone tolerate it?
Every summer these Crusties and their nomad life invade the Village dirty, aggressive, panhandling usually in a pact of three or more they are not less unfortunate souls they have made free life changing decisions on how to live with no regard to others. Parks are places of rest and recreation not shooting galleries for junkies. Do not pity the junkie it was free choice that took them there and keeps them there
with the needle. I like to see children playing adults reading on benches not filthy people sleeping on the grass needing a taxpayer called ambulance to deal with their overdose.
I have never been so ashamed of the comments on this blog than today. A person died alone and homeless most likely on a park bench in the richest City in the world and hatred spews from people's pens. Concerned parent you are a real estate troll who cares only about property values. Go back to counting your money and let this person rest in peace. I am sad for all those spewing such hatred for their fellow man.
I've got kids in the park every single (f#$@#ng) day - summer vacation and all. There's an occasional pushy too friendly drunk but that's about it for "danger to kids". I worry more, though not much, about off leash dogs as some dogs are so special that they shouldn't have to stay in the dog run especially in the morning.
Big cities are going to have bums, at least during the warm months. I've been around the world (and I can't find my ... eh ...) and found this to be true. In all fairness I've never been to Switzerland but their definition of "warm months" is probably different.
The on year off year cycle of dope fiends in the East Village - this stopped being the LES decades ago - is insignificant where safety and appearance is concerned. A while back a couple of drunks started drinking on the 9th street corridor and this blog hosted an outraged "return to the 70s/80s!!!!" thread which was nuts given that it was maybe the same 5 guys drinking by the bathrooms. If bumping into the occasional homeless person, dope fiend or crustie kid really bothers newcomers they should go back to car culture. The rest of the US is nicely class segregated by freeways and mall parking lots.
There's an uptick around here of potential crime but that's because so many of the new jack cell phone staring people are completely unaware of their surroundings and because there's so little money for the underclasses who live near subways. If an alchie or dope fiend is bugging you call 911. Take their picture, that'll scare them off.
it is very sad to see the homeless and especially those on drugs in the park. People should not be living on the street and should not be taking drugs. That said, there have not been any incidents involving children. I raised my child in the park in the 70's--very much worse. He is now an inner-city dr--neither afraid nor tolerant of drugs. The person who died was in his 50's--not a crusty or traveler.
Police can arrest those taking drugs. When you see this--please call 911. Our society is clearly failing.
sad but tru. my friend markey died alone and homeless because I was evicted. I was trying to help him, but the woman across the hall, Heather Holmes, got a bug up he ass when she learned I was paying under $400/mo for two apartments combined. So Heather Holes agreed to testify against me and my kids, teenagers who made some noise, but not much, and to say Markey played his guitar in the hall. Heather got on the stand and said "What does HE(markey) have to loose?" I loathe that woman for what she did. We were evicted and markey died on 7th street a few months later. As for the rancid haters in this thread who are suggesting that this poof fellow was harmful to the community, it is highly unlikely he was and in fact their ugly words are the problem. Such people do nothing, are rabidly jealous of us old timer low rent paying people - but ha ha, now I pay nothing, because of the illegalities that were perpetrated upon me and my family. All three of my kids have either graduated or will graduate, are self sustaining and HATE Markey farewell stone is by the Temperance fountain and he is remembered everyday because he wasn't a problem, rather killed by the likes of these e.vil idiots.
Very sad but while we're on the subject of the park, the place is a dump. Garbage everywhere. Why can't Tompkins be maintained? They're spending $900,000 on new playgrounds... How about some new trash cans & staff to remove the garbage??
You moved into the east village, study history
Give the junkies their own corner of the park, keep them there, and regulate their behavior. It's a neighborhood park. They are part of the neighborhood. It will be convenient to have them in one place, where they can be given clean needles and Narcan. Give the shiny new people another corner where they don't have to see the junkies. It will be fine.
Sheesh, parks are meant to be, SHOULD be vital refuges from the urban fabric that surrounds us all the time--and especially for those without resources to get breaks in other ways! To the extent that that function is diminished, its a problem for quality of life in the area. Now, people who have problems with addiction should get help, rather than incarceration, for their drug problems. There needs to be enlightened ways to help folks whose lives are so pushed to the fringe.
These two needs are sometimes in conflict--to fix the park we need to help those with addiction issues.
Didn't have time to read through every single comment here, but read enough of them.
If we want to clean up the park, we should do it as a community. That means more outreach to those with no where else to go. OR - those who feel like they have no where else to go. OR - those on drugs who think this is the best way to live life.
Pastor Phil does an incredible service to our suffering population by feeding them a meal per day at the Trinity Mission right by the park.
I'd like to ask how many on here complaining have supported Pastor Phil? If you haven't and you are worried, then you should go by and buzz the bell at Trinity and go ask how you can help out. These are people. And their lives are filled with pain ... and needles ... and death. If you live in the community, they are your neighbors. And for the person who mentioned it early on - yes, they have been here longer than a lot of us.
I, for one, moved here 7 years ago and I moved into their neighborhood.
I've been amazed at Trinity's hard work.
If you can't volunteer to help, you can donate to the cause. You can donate to the grounds crew. You can take the police a cup of coffee. You can take guys like Guiseppe a cup of coffee too. There are some lovely homeless humans among us and some confused teenagers and a lot of people suffering. Be part of the community. Don't try and make where you moved a place only you could live.
Anonymous 2:27 pm and 3:20 pm, bless you both, and thank you for your comments. I'm glad you live in the same neighborhood as I do and feel grateful for your open hearts.
Re: attacks on children (Anon. 5:35), I haven't heard of any, but my kid had a good scare a few weeks back when we were walking through the Southwest corner by the chess tables and someone having a psychotic break got in his face and threatened to kill him. He burst into tears but soon recovered, and lots of people around at the time -- some homeless, some not -- made it clear that they saw it and stood ready to intervene, if necessary. And the fact is that as long as we're (or Cuomo and the New York Senate Republicans are) unwilling to fund supportive housing and the web of other services proven to help the hardcore cases stay indoors and in treatment, it's best to have them cluster in one place, where the agencies that serve them can find them. If you're appalled by this situation, call Cuomo and ask him why he won't fund a comprehensive solution to homelessness, instead preferring to play politics with the homeless and use them as a cudgel to bash de Blasio. And then call Loretta Lynch and ask her why the family behind Purdue Pharmaceuticals (which brought us Oxycontin and thereby the heroin epidemic) aren't rotting in fucking jail instead of lolling around their private Caribbean island or whatever it is they do.
My respect for your words. Thank you.
Amen!
i don't think a single person on here has said anything about these people being dangerous in terms of violent behavior or attacks so i don't know why the haters keep saying that ... the danger they are speaking of is the needles, un-fixed dogs, disease, broken glass, trash, and feces they tend to surround themselves with. I would love to hang out in the park without fear of sitting on a pile of human excrement (or dog excrement since they bring them in areas where dogs are not allowed) - and I've almost done just that the last time I went into the central grassy area. i'd love to see these folks get some help and not be sleeping in the park. does that make me insensitive? you can feel bad that this poor person died alone and homeless and still want the druggies to be removed from the park and given help. I don't see the correlation some of you are making between the people who want a safe clean place for the kids and themselves with some evil person who doesn't care about anyone whose salary is below theres. i guarantee the bros and hoes aren't reading this blog, it's just people who care about the neighborhood and want the best place to live. we all pay way too much money to not be able to enjoy the park.
Both Jenny Adams (@9:15pm) and the commenter at 10:17pm make very valid points.
the intolerance and compassion in prior comments makes me ashamed to call myself an East Villager, NY'er and it's Bloombergs fault.
And FYI, if the transplants with such fat mouths were to read the history of this city they may see a cycle. Then realize ignoring the sick and needy only leads to a much larger social problems.
http://paintingbohemia.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/index1.jpg
Lived here since 2001 and as far as I can remember the corner of 7th and A was the homeless corner, and was easily avoided and mostly the people there were chill just doing there own thing. The group of crusties that congregate in the center are more recent and disturbing, particularly worrisome is that if they are strung out and not particularly attentive to their dogs that could be dangerous. I'm recalling the attacks that happened on humans and other dogs on 2nd ave last year. I think really just using 311 to complain about this would be most effective. If they're hassled enough they'll find a new place to congregate. And the ppl getting fed from Trinity are not these people. The ones getting meals there seem to overall be sweet good natured people just having a tougher time. RIP to the original subject of this post.
@jenny thank you for the information, I hope everyone reading this blog will join in on the effort instead of celebrating the fact that there are homeless drug addicts in the park (woohoo, it makes us old timers look tough!) unfortunately the majority of the crusties are young adults who aren't down on their luck - they come from predominantly white middle class backgrounds outside of NYC and have chosen this vagabond lifestyle and drugs and choose to leech off of taxpayers. just google crusty, you can read all about it. there are some really sad homeless cases of people who truly lost everything and deserve our help, but most of the ones setting up camp in the middle of the park are of the first variety.
Hahahahahhahahshshhs
Oh man these new EV dwellers are hilarious! May he rest in peace. Also do you know where you bought your million dollar listing?
I walk through the park every day and haven't personally seen a needle since the 90s, although I'm usually looking for the Hawks or at the other wildlife. Do people really see needles on the ground regularly or is that just heresay?
@8:58pm
"How about some new trash cans & staff to remove the garbage??"
LOL. TSP has the largest staff per Sq Ft of any park in the city. You can usually see them constructively sweeping dust from in-between paver joints. Enjoy!!
Maybe I thought like you did once, although I hope not. Some people's children grow up and become addicts. Sometimes they die at an unfashionable young age. You are a parent and your reaction to the death of somebody's child is to Run Them Out. Very sad. Addiction is an illness.
The park is a place for everyone. It doesn't matter how much money you have or if you have kids, you're no better than anyone else.
It's easy to spew such hateful, venomous shit anonymously, while hiding behind a screen. I bet you assholes would like to send the homeless to concentration camps... "kill kill kill the poor!"
They are human beings, not vermin. You sure wouldn't want to send them to rehab or be sheltered/fed at the taxpayer's expense, as you're so concerned for the taxpayer grass.
Thank you anon@ 3:20, 7:18, 9:11, 9:15, 10:17, among others.
Children are no exception to this park. It's a public and could of happened anywhere in a NY street. Stop trying to brand what you think a park should be. There is more dog piss and shit you step over. You try living a down and out life with a perfect solution from your thoughts of how to live. Where do the drugs come from anyway? Learn your history. As for institution duhhh majority of them are closed to keep the so called hard working citizens busy.
I am just tired of these crusties.... I called an ambulance three times on one couple who sleeps outside with their pitt bull... They always return the next day and continue to overdose...
And when they pas out, the dog is a danger to EMS...
They should give them free unlimited heroin. The problem will fix itself, naturally. These crusties are mostly harmless unless they are a high and I've seen them get out of hand and yell at people. Why doesn't the NYPD do something and remove them? They don't have a right to break laws in the park.
I never saw a needle on the ground, but I've seen them shoot up in broad daylightdaylight. I've also seen them and their dogs shit in the park.
I was in the park (maybe two weeks ago) when an ambulance and fire trucks responded to an o.d. in the center of the park (where the travelers hang out).
I've seen plenty of shooting up this spring and summer--and not new, either. Last few summers. And last Sunday afternoon, there was quite a bit of crazy going on, enough that this 31-yr. resident of NYC felt not quite up to the challenge of observing it.
I'm sorry that the man died alone. Perhaps if there were regular patrols someone would have found him in time to get help?
Because (Tower comments notwithstanding) what I haven't seen in the park all summer are foot or bike patrols by NYPD.
"The group of crusties that congregate in the center are more recent and disturbing, particularly worrisome is that if they are strung out and not particularly attentive to their dogs that could be dangerous. I'm recalling the attacks that happened on humans and other dogs on 2nd ave last year. I think really just using 311 to complain about this would be most effective. If they're hassled enough they'll find a new place to congregate."
The animal neglect/abuse and danger are by far the worst part of crusty culture, in my view, but this approach doesn't really solve anything. It's just making TSP's problem someone else's problem.
Maybe President Duterte had something to do with this.
I remember when there was a bandshell near 7th street, providing some refuge to the homeless. http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/06/03/a-turning-point-for-the-east-village-20-years-later/?_r=0
In the 46 years that I've been living here, I've never felt afraid in TSP.
Sorry to break it to you but we- the employed taxpayers- already pay for the largest shelter system in the USA. Maybe these folks could use it. Of course theyd rather defecate and shoot up and abuse animals in the park They can also get taxpayer funded treatment in NYC. We also pay for the park. We are paying for all of it. At least let us enjoy a park we are financing. Sorry to burst your righteous bubble with a dose of reality.
Yeah, as a parent, the dirty needles thing terrifies me. I realize it's largely irrational -- I've personally only seen two hypos in the park in eight years of passing through it daily (I've actually seen more than that under the scaffolding around the school on 4th Street over the past year-and-change). I do, however, know of one kid who, seven or eight years back, stuck herself on one playing in the center area. This was before Truvada, so it was truly terrifying for her mom, but she tested negative for all the microbial nasties and she's fine. Substance abuse is a sickness and should be treated as such, but if my kid ever steps on a needle and gets sick, I'm gonna go treat it with a baseball bat.
This is for the individual who responded to my post @ 6:18 ; I posted on 4:58.
First, I am aware what it means in tolerating something and someone. I am a 41 year old, educated, well traveled, self-sufficient man with a career, home, and life in our beloved neighborhood who wants things to get better for all of us. I realize how frustrating the epidemic is and has been in the east village and how it can often impinge on your daily routine and quality of life. My "strawman" argument, (a word which makes no sense) was based out of respect and honor for a human being who lost his life. You seem to know more about the incident than any of us. I hold no solid information to what happened. Most of us on this thread are merely speculating. What is most intolerable is your lack of empathy and utter disregard for fellow man, which I find offensive and inappropriate. Why mention human excrement, urine, drugs, and homeless people? At the moment, I can't offer a solution to mitigate the growing homeless and/or addict population here in NYC. Do you? Instead of chastising my kind sentiment, why don't you take your intensive words, propel them into action, contact the mayor, propose a plan, and be proactive about a community you claim to care about. Lastly, shame on you!
It's a simple class divide, but I've got to tell you, taxpaying (or 421a-tax-avoiding) RE TROLLS: Tompkins is THERE FOR EVERYONE, you, your RE friends, parents, kids, and the homeless, even if they are addicted. In my 17+ years of living here near the park, I have yet to see one needle. Are there reports of children in danger? No, there are not. Did this recently deceased person trouble anyone? No, there are no records that he did. He is (was) one individual who died because of his addiction; his death should not be used to call attention to whiny parents or RE trolls who are demented enough to think that we need to further INCREASE property values around Tompkins. The EV has a history of TOLERANCE and INCLUSION (read it) and that STILL MEANS EVERYONE. Maybe if some of these parents could put their fucking iShit down for a fucking minute and actually watch or——god forbid——play with their kids, then why would they worry? Or is it the nanny who can't be bothered? Parents are already getting more money to upgrade the playgrounds, which incidentally already take up MOST of the park space in Tompkins that the crusties don't really go anywhere near. I loathe the new people in the neighborhood who can't to use their money or their "genius" to do anything but whine about those less fortunate. I'll be out there soon, and believe me, I won't go quietly into this good night. All you people did is buy up quickly in this popular neighborhood to make a buck later. This is a neighborhood that still has character, but it won't if we're outnumbered by the likes of the RE monied zombie horde from OUT OF STATE. I've never seen so many pink-shirted prepsters. YUCK. Money doesn't buy a soul, bro. Clearly.
A lot of food for thought here. Who ever mentioned Trinity is making a good suggestion. Also, Graffiti Baptist is a walk in help center, of which in similar situations (people in trouble nearby or in the park and not wanting to call nypd) I have found reliable and involved assistance.
It is summer camp time, and with a shift away from shelter being available in squats or being able to crash in less traveled areas, as there is much more complaining when an errant person or two of more shows up on a stoop or in the hallway or on a roof, kids will crash in the park. Most of the kids know where to go for recovery. They aren't going to go. Believe me, the more that people indicate they are pissed off by the crusties hanging out, the more effort they will make to be be visible. I've found them to be a lively and interesting group of kids, they all have their stories, an no doubt are hurt by this person passing.
Wow?? Its the EV/ LES a place notorious for drugs, squatters & homeless. Do some research!the park has always been a haven for this. Lets just make NY as sterile as possible for you dumbass hipsters. Go back to Minnesota.
Atomized anonymous city dwellers,
Grousing about their non-existent community,
at least the junkie has found peace.
A lot of the comments here are disturbing. RIP to this man and condolences to those who cared for him.
As for the people bashing the park. Are you kidding? TSP is more beautiful each year. One gardener in particular has made it so. Many garbage cans were removed to encourage use of the solar-powered trash compactors. There used to be whole sections of the park that were too dirty/dangerous to visit. Not so now.
Anonymous quoth:
I worry more, though not much, about off leash dogs as some dogs are so special that they shouldn't have to stay in the dog run especially in the morning.
I get really bent out of shape about all the people who have to run their dogs on open fields; several years ago, when First Run was getting its new surface and was off limits, we were given an alternate field to run our dogs on. It became a mudhole in pretty short order because—guess what, people? If everybody did, that's what you get!
(However, I don't allow my dog on the grass anyway because Parks tends to douse everything green in this city with Roundup, an herbicide based on Agent Orange.)
These people have zero interest in getting help or getting clean. They are happy just the way they are. This notion that these are tortured souls is absurd. They can go to the shelter intake 24/7 if they want to get off the street. But you cant spend all your time panhandling, shoplifting, harassing pedestrians , abusing animals etc . The city has a shelter system. These folks are free to use it. NYC has many public and private resources available. These junkies have zero interest in any of that- maybe because most of them aren't from here, have no intention of staying here, aren't from poor or minority households and don't care one iota about the park or anyone other than themselves and the dealers. Free food and needles only compounds the problem. I know when longtime residents try to improve THEIR park its like horrible man. You mean working class people from various racial/ethnic backgrounds who have lived here for generations
wanting a relatively safe, needle and feces free park to take their kids too is somehow bad? This notion that homeless, junkies and squatters somehow brings 'character' to the area is ridiculous. it didn't bring 'character' to the place 35 years ago either.
Where are all the animal rights people ? The park is full of animals being abused. Its super hot out. Are these animals getting enough food, water, shade etc? Are the animal folks afraid to be seen as 'mean' for suggesting that homeless junkies shouldn't have pets? Its ridiculous. The treatment of horses in Central Park was/is a huge issue. The animal abuse by these people is far worse and far more prevalent. Where is PETA on this? If you cant house and feed yourself why are you dragging a pit bull from NYC to SF to Seattle (aka Freeattle) to Portland and back again? Are these dogs stolen? Does anybody care?
That gardener kills herself keeping the park exceedingly well-manicured and yet people still treat it like a dump, leaving their garbage wherever they please.
For many of these people, and I'm not singling out the street urchins either, the world is their astray. But why should we be surprised that they have no respect for their environment when they clearly have no respect for their own bodies? And, yeah, I'm pointing at people who OD on park benches as well. Still cleaning up their fucking messes for them even after they're gone.
Anonymous 11:42 -- I am from Minnesota, and I resent your implication that I am wholesome because of it. I came to the Lower East Side in the 80s, homeless and addicted to methadone, in order to join the squatters movement. I'm still here. Maybe you should go back to Iowa.
I agree. Some of these comments are down right twisted and sick. A man is dead. Plain and simple. He was still young if I am right. What if this man was your father, uncle, brother, husband, cousin, next door neighbor, or friend? Would your attitude change then? Might some of you have an ounce of compassion for this person? Stop making this conversation into a political and social agenda against the disadvantaged, mentally ill and homeless. Let's appreciate and respect one another. Damn't.
Yeah... It's no fun stepping over things and people that are kinda icky... But I moved here because it is EXACTLY what it is. The stomping grounds of all kinds of scofflaws, outlaws, and creatives. Not because it's kid-friendly. (In fact, it's really great to be able to live in a part of the city that hasn't been Disney-fied.)
Where were this persons family/friends? Thats a more revelant question. So the idea that junkies shouldnt be allowed to take over a public park is a ' political and social agenda' against them? These folks in TSP arent mentally ill or disadvantaged and they choose to be homeless. When winter comes theyll be off to LA or Seattle or Portland. Is it negative to want people to go into shelters and rehabs?
i say BRING IT ON. Bring on more transients, more drug-addled, more mess, anything but more rich entitled families with small little bratty entitled children. The new faux rich stroller set is downright disturbing and they take up way too much park space. They need to stay penned in their 'children boxes' and stop trying to mix it up downtown style.
Guys like 9:53 are the best argument in favor of gentrification. Guys like that, who would rather see a park become a shooting gallery and toilet, are the very personification of blight. If I'd have to choose between living next to someone like that and a trust funder, I'll take the trust funder, no question.
I might be wrong, but:
If the churches stopped giving free food right next to the park it'd be a different place. "Give a man a fish..." I'd really like to see that stopped and see them open up a job skills center instead.
Drugs abound in the EV area from high to low..RIP to anyone who dies such a sad death.
The people in TSP dont want jobs. In the past Ive had some rough times and gotten services at the Bowery Mission and NYC Rescue Mission. Never saw a crusty there during the summer or any time actually. Showers, beds and clothes are available. All the help one needs is already there and waiting. I got a suit for interviews, haircuts and new glasses. If you have the desire there are great people who are happy to help. Giving out food in the park only enables the addicts and helps the rats.
@ 1:43: Yeah, you're the expert on what everyone wants. Those days you spent getting help makes you an expert on homelessness; you're likely another troll who just wants to contribute to rhetoric that demonizes the HOMELESS. STFU already. Again, just to re-iterate: TOMPKINS SQUARE PARK IS FOR EVERYONE: You, me, kids, parents, homeless, drug-addled, whatever. THIS IS NYC FOR FUCKS SAKE. Want free of homelessness? Go behind your gated community of like-minded asshats and STAY OUT OF THE PARK IF IT BUGS YOU SO MUCH.
Its not hard to figure put what people want when they do the same thing day after day. I stay out of the park because I spent too much time there getting food- especially on weekends. Ever been homeless? I never claimed to be an expert. I didnt say anything about the park not being for everyone. I pointed out the reality. Is that demonizing people? The facts are what they are. Go volunteer at the missions. No crusty animal abusers go there. My gated community is 300sq feet and Im grateful for a bed and a private shower and a door that locks. Legit criticism isnt demonization. 'Rhetoric that demonizes the homeless'. Whatever. 'This is NYC for fucks sake' What does that mean? Why are you so upset? The free food and needles are still available right? SMH.
@10:42 He's not a troll. He's pointing out the painfully obvious and standing up for the decent, normal, working people and retirees that want to use the park without having to step over broken glass, human feces, strung out junkies, and unattended pit-bulls. And I'll stand with him.
The homeless really do defacate and urinate all over the park. They do leave needles in it. They do have unleashed half-feral dogs in it. They do aggressively panhandle in it. If you can't see that, then maybe you have a reality problem. 1:43 doesn't have to shut up, nor do I. Nor do we have to stay out of the park. We, and our families play by the rules. We don't shit, piss, or shoot up in the park. We need to get the police, which we pay with our tax dollars to do their jobs and enforce our rules.
Also, thank you for pointing out that this is NYC. How helpful of you. Let me do you one better. It's also NYC of 2016, not 1985. Meaning its not a crime ridden toilet anymore. Look pretty much anywhere else downtown, midtown, UES or UWS. It's not like this. It's not because they're richer. Even in the LES, which has a good pocket of working class people to the eastern and southern reaches, you don't have this problem. It's a nice place. It's because the people care about their community and don't tolerate this. Neither should we.
The baby carriage mentality is killing our neighborhood! Transplant them back in the suburbs where they belong!!!
Some of the comments here make me ashamed to live in this neighborhood. Using this man's death as an excuse to spew hatred is disgusting. You don't know anything about this man except how he died. Who are you to judge? People of all classes die from drugs. At least show this man some respect in death. RIP.
@5:11 - you seem to see so many awful things in the park. Are you documenting these things and reporting them? Do any of the people here claiming to see needles all over the park, defecating homeless and wild dogs photographing these things? If not, why not?
If someone dies in a park they are not necessarily homeless.
If someone dies of an overdose they are not necessarily a junkie.
Whether by accident or intention a young man has died,
assumptions and judgement will not change this.
You don't know his story.
RIP
God Bless you. A friend of mine died there August 20th
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