He does it for those still left behind.
Eduardo Ventura can be found most Sundays camped at East 9th Street and Avenue B, though he now lives in a safe haven. Ventura is there now, huddled under scaffolding where he once slept, to help other unhoused New Yorkers while also raising awareness for what he says are deplorable conditions inside the shelter system.
Ventura has been on all sides of the homelessness crisis; he has tasted the comforts of a home and huddled in the freezing cold while being street homeless before finding a safe haven where he now resides.
However, he cites his time in the NYC shelter system as the worst experience of all.
“It’s not a condition for nobody to live in,” Ventura told amNewYork Metro. “When I was in a shelter the problem is the security is not enough. You cannot leave your property. It’s dirty, the condition of the bathroom… it’s no condition for nobody.”
In an effort to underscore the state of the shelter system, every Sunday, Ventura returns to his old patch of sidewalk and decorates the area with signs asking passersby to consider what it is like to be unhoused.
Perhaps most significant of all, he also posted photographs that allegedly shows the deplorably environment found within New York shelters. The images depict crowded conditions, items strewn about, and, most shockingly of all, ceilings completely destroyed.
For Ventura this is a message he wants to ensure he spreads in hopes of raising awareness and putting eyes on what the city’s most vulnerable face.
“For now, we do it every Sunday,” Ventura said. “We used to do it every day when I was [street] homeless.”
In addition to denouncing what he calls a cruel and uncaring system, he also uses the space on weekends to take donations such as food, clothing, and other supplies to aid homeless individuals as well as newly-arrived migrants.
“A lot of the migrants stopped by here when I was homeless here to pick up stuff. They still pass through this area, so it is easier for me to help them out,” Ventura said.
With tables set up, and despite having very little to his own name, the homeless man accepts donations in order to help others. One female East Village resident who asked to remain anonymous says she passes by the area often and is proud she is able to help a neighbor.
“I just feel like it’s my responsibility to be kind and help people,” she said. “Other people don’t treat people like Eduardo nicely and that makes it even more important.”
Ventura says he is always seeking more donations and can be found under the scaffolding most Sundays.
Meanwhile, DSS says that they believe accommodations such as safe heavens work from some New Yorkers like Ventura, something they say the administration has invested extensively into.
“This Administration has made unprecedented investments in specialized beds and intensified the city’s 24X7 outreach efforts for New Yorkers experiencing homelessness on our streets and subways. We have doubled outreach staffing and aggressively expanded Safe Haven and stabilization bed capacity to meet the unique needs of New Yorkers experiencing unsheltered homelessness,” a DSS spokesperson said. “Thanks to this comprehensive continuum of care we more than doubled permanent housing placements from Safe Havens and stabilization beds –connecting nearly 1,000 New Yorkers who were experiencing unsheltered homelessness to permanent housing in FY23 alone. We look forward to building on this progress as part of our efforts to meeting vulnerable New Yorkers where they are.”
