Homeless parents entering the shelter system looking to reunite with their children have got a long

[justaprogressive]

hard road

Amalia Montanez was separated from her daughter when homelessness forced her into New York City’s shelter system. Her daughter, at the same time, was placed into foster care. Seven years later, Amalia and her daughter were eligible for reunification. However, the process to be reunited has proven difficult.

While Montanez has gone through the proper channels and been offered stable housing several times, none of the apartments have been large enough to accommodate both her and her daughter. Even if the apartment was large enough, her daughter would not be allowed to stay with her. Amalia has worked on the reunification for months, but still has not been reunited with her daughter.

“I want to be with my daughter 24/7, but I can't. I miss doing stuff with her. I can’t do the little things that I used to do with her because she's not with me all the time. She's growing up so I'm missing milestones that she's reaching.” Montanez told New York Nonprofit Media.

The Institute for Community Living, an organization that helps New Yorkers with behavioral health challenges, released a policy paper titled “Barriers to Reunification,” detailing the problems faced by parents like Amalia. The paper includes solutions that can be implemented by city government to improve the systems and make reunification easier for these parents and their children.

https://www.nynmedia.com/news/2023/08/homeless-parents-entering-shelter-system-looking-reunite-their-children-have-got-long-hard-road/389693/