We can devolve into partisan hackery or we could be civil and rational and admit that even proclaimed progressives and liberals don't really like having to deal with mental illness and extreme poverty. This is not the first time this has happened, section 8 housing in affluent areas (read: areas with good schools and positive role models around) gets blocked no matter the number of liberal votes cast.
I find it fascinating that when low income housing is finally approved anytime, there's always some background attempt to locate it specifically in a high income area just so it can create a backlash.
Let me ask something...if a person is low income, they generally have to live, work and even shop IN that low income area, yes?
So, thinking of New York, for instance, if a bunch of poor people grow up in Far Rockaway, they wind up going to school in Far Rockaway, they work somewhere around Far Rockaway, and they shop in Far Rockaway.
How much sense does it make to locate more low income housing in Woodmere? They're not going to be able to afford to shop there, most of the schools in Woodmere are private or chartered, most of the employment in Woodmere is snooty, boutique, high end expensive, and the public transportation in the area is dismal and slow, which means if they don't have cars, getting back and forth to their jobs in Far Rockaway becomes an enormous expense.
So, it's not just that the wealthy folks are doing the NIMBY thing, it's the fact that sticking the low income housing in the NIMBY areas isn't going to do much good for the people who need it the most anyway.
It's a political poke in the eye, and that's all it is.
Speaking locally, now that L.A. has finally completed the Expo Line of its urban light rail, it is feasible for low income residents in South L.A. and downtown to seek employment on the West Side because it is economical for them to commute by urban light rail back and forth to and from the West Side, whereas trying to cram some low income housing on the West Side, where even an 1100 sq. ft crackerbox 2 BR shack is going to cost 750 thousand bucks, would be absurd.
Yes, we had to listen to all the wealthy suburbanites whine and cry NIMBY as the Expo Line got planned.
They won the round on the proposed "Subway to the Sea" so the Expo Line isn't a subway, it's commuter light rail instead, but it works and does the job.
One of the results is, parts of South L.A. are now getting a little more calm, no not everywhere but bit by bit, employment is slowly improving and there's a wee bit of easing on the congestion.