Positions on Social Issues

Housing, Hunger/Homelessness, Integration

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Housing; Urban Renewal

Convention actions in 1963, 1965, each year from 1970 through 1974, and 1978 recognized a continuing shortage of decent housing for low-income and middle-income families in all parts of the Diocese, but especially in New York City. Support was voted for a comprehensive New York City housing code centrally administered; for urban renewal "based on considerations of further social justice as well as improving the municipality's physical plant and economic vigor;" for a moratorium on the demolition of sound housing structures that might be rehabilitated; for repeal in New York City of the Vacancy Decontrol Law and the Maximum Base Rent Law; for a variety of laws and programs designed to spur rehabilitation of old housing as well as construction of new; and for a variety of laws and programs seeking to enforce or foster integration in housing and urban renewal. The 1970 resolution led to the creation of the Episcopal Housing Corporation of the Diocese. A 1983 Convention resolution called for New York City executive and legislative action to halt all single-room occupancy hotel conversions and all condominium conversions; to increase the number of tenants needed for co-op conversion to 51%; to set new requirements for renovation and for new construction to ensure the inclusion of low- and moderate-income units, and priority for displaced tenants; and speed the process through which abandoned buildings are taken over.


Hunger at Home and Abroad; Homelessness

Congregations and Churchpeople were urged by the Conventions of 1978, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1984, and 1986 to initiate and support feeding programs for the hungry in their communities, and to contribute to the Presiding Bishop's Fund for World Relief to help feed the hungry in other countries. Each resolution called for parish programs to foster an understanding of the causes of domestic and world hunger. Each affirmed that feeding the hungry and housing the homeless were Christian priorities. Each called on Churchpeople (in the words of the 1984 resolution) "to establish a continuing relationship with their senators and representatives at both state and national levels, to remind them that feeding hungry people and eliminating the causes of hunger at home and abroad is a constant concern; and (in the words of the 1982 resolution) should be "a major priority of our government." (See also Advocacy.)


Integration

In addition to adopting a variety of resolutions on specific civil rights measures, Convention has given support to achieving quality integrated education in New York City (1964), to active promotion of racial integration in housing and urban renewal (1963 and 1972), and to efforts to end apartheid in South Africa (1965).

 

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