A lot has changed in four years...but in many cases, not for the better.
http://nymag.com/news/features/63047/The article was written just over four years ago. It was known back then as Cedar Bridge. And it housed only around forty people.
In four years, it's become less of a "social experiment" and more of a community, the population has doubled (with the all-time high being around 120 residents), and neither Lakewood nor Ocean County isn't much closer to a long-term solution to combat homelessness.
Four years ago, I had to find a new place to live after the bank threatened that foreclosure on the home I'd owned for eighteen years was imminent.
Governor Chris Christie was sworn in as governor almost exactly four years ago, and was recently re-elected. In his recent State of the State address, he touched upon the issue of poverty in New Jersey:
"We have to be willing to play outside the red and blue boxes the media and pundits put us in; we have to be willing to reach out to others who look or speak differently than us; we have to be willing to personally reach out a helping hand to a neighbor suffering from drug addiction, depression or the dignity-stripping loss of a job."
Governor Chris Christie, I challenge you to live those words. Because until you do, that is all they are: WORDS. I challenge you to visit Tent City of Lakewood, NJ despite the Lakewood voting bloc that helped put you in office. I challenge you to speak with the residents and learn all about the far-reaching effects your party's budget cuts have had on the poor.
I say, come out of the comfort zone of your OWN little red box, Governor Christie, and face the REAL "State of the State."
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