By From The Editors
A cramped two-person dorm room with a community bathroom may not be considered the lap of luxury, but it is much more high class than where thousands of Long Islanders will sleep in the frigid winter months.
Living in one of the most affluent places in the country, SUVs, cell phones, designer jeans and even iPods have become necessities for students at the University. But if asked to surrender it all- the keys, the high tech gadgets and even the minimal comforts of a dorm, for just one night-would students pass the test?
The University’s chapter of Circle K, a community service organization, posed this question to students last month in hopes of gaining insight into the widespread, yet underexposed, epidemic of homelessness on Long Island.
Approximately 40,000 people throughout Nassau and Suffolk Counties are homeless, according to the Nassau Suffolk Coalition for the Homeless, (NSCH) a non-profit group that promotes awareness of the problem of homelessness and the services available to the needy. More than a quarter of these Long Islanders live out of vacant buildings and abandoned cars. For Circle K’s experiment, students only had to survive one night on the intramural field, equipped with sleeping bags and protected by public safety officers patrolling the University.
Sadly, no more than 40 students showed up to the annual event, prepared to endure the hardships of sleeping outdoors- that was until they heard the weather forecast. With temperatures below freezing, Circle K moved into a cozy room in the Student Center a little after the sleep out began. Even with plenty of heat, some of the students waved the white flag around 1 a.m. and crawled beneath the sheets in their dorm rooms.
Homelessness on Long Island is a serious problem that receives little lip service by local politicians and media. NSCH estimates that approximately three-quartes of Long Island’s homesless are hidden because they are doubled and tripled up with relatives and friends, “moving from one emergency situation to the next.” Circle K should be commended for their attempt to publicize the issue in a creative and personalized way. The intent was there, but ultimately, they failed.
The appeal of this project was its ability to make students uncomfortable in order to provoke them to act, but instead the club cowered in the face of blustery winds. Sleeping outside the entire night in below freezing temperatures would be very difficult, but students could have buddle up, huddled together and spend at least a couple of hours outside before retreating to the Student Center, where they could easily purchase a cup of cocoa and a slice of pizza.
As the temperatures continue to drop, one out of every four Long Islanders will not be able to check into a Holiday Inn or thaw out by a fireplace. Circle K knew it would be cold when they planned the event for the end of November, but they were not prepared to go to the lengths needed to promote their message.
Rosa Parks will go down in history because all Americans admired her for her courage and determination surrender her freedom for the sake of a larger cause. If students truly want to make an impact they need to be willing to push the envelope, test their limits and face the consequences. (Even if they have to deal with a runny nose for a few weeks as a result of sleeping on the cold grass on the soccer field.)
The argument that the group did not want to put students health at risk is valid, yet weak. However, this does not explain why the students could not last in the Student Center throughout the rest of the night.
This event had the potential to captivate the entire campus community and direct people’s attentions to crisis happening in the University’s backyard. Circle K could proudly say they sacrificed and shivered in the name of something much bigger than themselves instead of heading home early and dragging their sleeping bags behind them.