Occupy Sandy petition to Bloomberg

Occupy Sandy Relief has just posted a request on Facebook for petition signatures demanding power restoration for NYC Housing Authority residents.  I know what people's first question is going to be, and that is addressed in the text of the change.org page:

CALL MAYOR BLOOMBERG: THE CITY’S RESPONSE TO OUR NYCHA NEIGHBORS IS UNACCEPTABLE.

Twelve days and counting after Sandy hit on October 29, children, parents, families, the elderly and disabled remain without lights, heat, hot water or power in New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA).

This is true for houses in Gowanus, Red Hook, the Rockaways, Coney Island and elsewhere.

John Rhea, the chairman of NYCHA, told The Huffington Post that he and the organization have been doing the best they could. Unfortunately, he said, these buildings happened to be located in the areas hardest hit by the hurricane. Yet, power in those hard hit areas has been restored –just not in NYCHA housing.

Need more convincing?  Here's a statement from one of the Occupy Sandy volunteers trying to help those trapped in the dark, powerless, heatless, waterless buildings:

Please, Mayor Bloomberg, we beg you to step up and show that you care about all the residents of this city, not just those living on the island of Manhattan. You need to see what's going on for yourself. I truly believe that if you could see the lack of response in these areas that you would be appalled. There are elderly people who have been without water (not even cold water) and power for nearly two weeks. They cannot leave because they are unable to negotiate the many flights of stairs it would require to leave their apartments. We are doing what we can to reach these people but we are volunteers without the resources of government. This cannot continue.

Please do the right thing. The people in city housing should not have to fend for themselves.