Via NY Times:
Waves of death and joblessness, hunger and economic depression — all at a scale rarely rivaled in New York City history.
Shootings and homicides have risen from last year. Civil unrest has seldom been higher. And some of those who could afford to leave the pandemic-stricken city have done so: Between March 1 and May 1, some 5 percent of New Yorkers fled town.
And to hear New York’s leaders tell it, they understand why.
“Crime is up, a lot of people have left,” Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo told reporters last month.
“The city,” he said, “is in very troubling times and we are seeing deterioration on a number of levels.”
When New York City has been confronted by crisis, from the near-bankruptcy in the 1970s to the physical and psychic devastation after the Sept. 11 attacks, its recovery has been aided by a civic champion — a leading elected official who can persuade people and businesses to stay, and help convince Washington to do more to speed the city’s recovery.