Though Fox News host Brian Kilmeade apologized for comments made last week in which he suggested homeless individuals living with mental health issues be killed with lethal injections if they do not accept help from the government, New York City homeless advocates seethed over a remark they called “devoid of humanity.”
The remarks Kilmeade himself would later call “extremely callous” came on Wednesday on an episode of “Fox and Friends” as he and his co-hosts discussed homelessness and the recent slaying of 23-year-old Ukrainian immigrant Iryna Zarutska, in North Carolina. The suspect in the killing was homeless at the time and has a history of mental health issues.
Co-host Lawrence Jones stated that those living on the streets with mental health disorders should either accept help or be jailed when Kilmeade jumped in.
“Involuntary lethal injection or something,” Kilmeade said bluntly. “Just kill ’em.”
Kilmeade apologizes for ‘extremely callous’ remark
On Sunday morning, Kilmeade apologized for the remarks that went viral over the weekend on social media.
“I wrongly said they should get lethal injections,” on Wednesday, Kilmeade said in a video posted on Fox News. “I apologize for that extremely callous remark. I am obviously aware that not all mentally ill, homeless people act as the perpetrator did in North Carolina – and that so many homeless people deserve our empathy and compassion.”
The attempt to walk the comments back did not sit well with those who have dedicated their lives to helping those in need and those who live on the streets.
New York City is dealing with one of the worst homeless crises in its history at a time when rent levels have reached historic highs. More than 100,000 people are living in shelters across the city, according to the most recent reports.
The city has also been struggling to deal with homeless individuals living on the streets with severe mental illness. The Adams Administration has worked to involuntarily hospitalize individuals deemed a threat to themselves and the public, and connect them with care and services.
Christine Quinn, president and CEO of Win, the largest provider of shelter and supportive services for homeless families with children in New York City, rebuked Kilmeade’s remarks from last week and said he should volunteer in one of her organization’s shelters as penance.
“Rhetoric like this – completely devoid of all humanity – only serves to divide and inflame,” Quinn said. “There is no denying that we are facing surging homelessness and mental health crises in this country that require our full-throttled attention. Instead of settling for reductive and inhumane quips, we should be focused on investing in supportive services to get these individuals the help they need and back on their feet before tragedy strikes. While I’m glad to see Mr. Kilmeade’s apology, I invite him to go a step further and engage in meaningful dialogue with those of us working day-in and day-out to move the needle on these critical issues. Better yet, come volunteer in one of our shelters and see the face of homelessness for yourself – we could always use the help.”
Shams DaBaron, a former homeless New Yorker turned homeless advocate, told amNewYork that he was disturbed by what Kilmeade said on live television. He himself went from sleeping on a bench in Harlem to working with Mayor Eric Adams to address street homelessness. Like Quinn, DaBaron invited Kilmeade to walk the streets with him.
“I was exactly the type of person Kilmeade says should be killed — homeless and struggling with mental health challenges. But I transformed from someone people wanted to erase into someone working to eliminate homelessness itself,” DaBaron said.
The advocate said Kilmeade’s apology does not undo the damage his original words have caused.
“We must reject this rhetoric and embrace real solutions: permanent supportive housing, mental health services, and treating homelessness as the public health crisis it is,” DaBaron said. “If Kilmeade and his co-hosts truly care, I invite them to walk these streets with me and learn from those with lived experience. The ‘solution’ they discussed would have erased me before I could improve my circumstances and become part of the answer. That’s not just callous — it’s anti-American.”
DaBaron also criticized Kilmeade’s co-hosts for staying silent about what he says is a suggestion tantamount to the “final solution.”
Others took to social media to call for Kilmeade’s firing. Former federal prosecutor Elizabeth de la Vega wrote on X: ”I still think he should be fired. TV hosts who casually talking about killing people on tv should not be TV hosts.”
amNewYork reached out to Fox News for comment and is awaiting a response.
