Organizers in Paterson call for more shelters after man dies sleeping in freezing temperatures
Advocates and community members gathered at a church to honor the life of Allen Higgins.
Organizers in Paterson commemorated Homeless Persons' Memorial Day on Sunday with a service for an unhoused man who advocates said died from exposure to freezing temperatures while sleeping outside.
They also called for more resources this winter to prevent further deaths.
Advocates and community members gathered at a church to honor the life of Allen Higgins.
"We have many Allens as a direct result of serving my community at the drop-in center. I hear the stories where my peers come in and they talk about someone that they lost the day before, the night before," said Emily Rolon, general manager of Ruby's Vision, a group that helps the city's unhoused population. "These are stories that aren't really heard of where they need to be heard."
"We have a large population of people experiencing homelessness, and there's not a lot of people going to the warming center. So, there's a big disparity," said Zellie Thomas, an organizer at Black Lives Matter Paterson.
Passaic County offers warming shelters when temperatures drop to freezing, with one usually stationed in Paterson.
"It's such a far walk for so many people. It's almost a two-mile walk. In the freezing winter, people aren't going to do that," Zellie said. "So, in order to save lives, we shuttle people to the warming center."
Community members who knew Higgins told News 12 it's not only cold that unhoused people endure.
One man said he was set on fire when sleeping outside.
"I was sleeping. I woke up engulfed in flames. I have the scars here. I have second degree burns all over my chest and my arm. I was sleeping. I wasn't bothering anybody," he said.
