BY MATT TRACY AND
PAUL SCHINDLER
Borough President Eric Adams
went on a bizarre rant at
the opening of the city’s fi rst affordable
housing development
for LGBTQ seniors on Dec. 17,
when he invoked slavery, and
predicted that incoming residents
would clash with locals
at a nearby public housing complex.
“I think about Frederick
Douglass and the conversation
about fi ghting for the independence
of America,” Adams said.
“He said ‘the arrogance of that
those want me to fi ght for independence
when I’m still a slave.’
I can’t celebrate a building that
is not inclusive.”
The beep’s tirade — which
was heard via an audio recording
obtained by this paper’s sister
publication, Gay City News
— came during a ribbon-cutting
ceremony for Stonewall
House, a newly-erected residential
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building at 112 St. Edwards
Street on land that also
contains NYCHA’s 75-year-old
Ingersoll Houses.
Stonewall House is now
home to seniors 62 years and
older, 77 percent of whom are
people of color. All residents
have incomes below 50 percent
of the city’s area median income,
25 percent of the apartments
were set aside for formerly
homeless seniors, and 54
of the 145 units were reserved
for residents of NYCHA or
those on the waiting list for city
public housing.
At the opening, Adams
griped that he is “concerned
about the diversity” of the new
development and said nearby
residents have complained that
Stonewall House is a “pretty
building on NYCHA property.”
“I don’t want to see beautiful
fl oors like this and lead paint
over there,” he said. “I don’t
want to see rodents over there
and comfort here.”
He did not mention that
many incoming residents are
arriving from NYCHA apartments.
According to Advocacy
& Services for LGBT Elders
(SAGE), which offers social
services from the ground fl oor
of the new developments, less
than 60 percent of the residents
of Stonewall House identify
as LGBTQ, although management
did not screen potential
residents based on sexual orientation
and gender identity, or
ask for such information on applications.
Adams also suggested that
the infl ux of new residents into
the neighborhood would fuel
problems with NYCHA residents,
saying, “If you have a
body of people over there that
feels as though this place here
is not for them, we are going to
have incidents in this community
that will be disruptive.”
Borough President Eric Adams, pictured here at last year’s Gay Pride
Parade, went on a bizarre rant at the opening of an affordable housing
development for LGBTQ seniors on Dec. 17. Photo by Donna Aceto
The Beep’s tirade belies the
housing development’s very
high standard for inclusivity,
which has drawn support from
local tenant leaders, including
Ingersoll Houses Tenant Association
president Darold Burgess,
who spoke enthusiastically
about the social services
offered by SAGE. Furthermore,
hundreds of NYCHA residents
were consulted regarding the
project throughout its multiyear
stages of development.
The borough president’s
comments didn’t end there.
Adams, a former cop, continued
his us-versus-them narrative,
saying that he “didn’t put
on a vest for 22 years to protect
the children and families of this
city to watch us be divided.”
SAGE CEO Michael Adams,
when reached for comment,
reiterated the innovative nature
of the new building and
stressed that it “represents the
very best of what New York City
should be providing in terms of
inclusive housing and providing
services for low-income
New Yorkers.”
What the Beep!
Borough President Adams goes on bizarre rant
to commemorate new housing for queer seniors
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