Op-Ed | The ‘Safe Hotels Act’ will be harmful for newcomers
As not only a small business owner, but as a representative of a vibrant and growing Ukrainian community within the hotel industry, I know first-hand that New York City has long been a beacon of hope and opportunity for people from around the world.
Intro 991, the so-called “Safe Hotels Act” proposed by City Council Member Julie Menin last month, has the potential to crush that hope while eliminating the opportunity offered to our nation’s newcomers by companies like mine.
Since 2022 alone, we have welcomed over 50,000 new residents from places like Ecuador, Colombia, Guatemala, India, Pakistan, and Ukraine. I myself came to this country on May 15, 2015, as a single mother of two, fleeing the war in my homeland, Ukraine.