Will New York City Renters Get the Right to Be Cool?

By Willy Blackmore | Word In Black Overview: Each year, 350 New Yorkers die from heat stress, and a disproportionate number are Black. Brooklyn’s City Council representative is proposing a “right to a cool home” law, modeled on a 1900s-era law guaranteeing renters heat in the winter. (WIB) – A new bill would require landlords to provide air conditioning in most buildings. Nearly every New Yorker has air conditioning — or at least that’s what the big-picture data tells us. Of the8.3 million people who live in New York City, 91% have access to A/C.& LEARN MORE: The Hottest Year Ever, Again? Yet at least 350 people die from heat-related illnesses in the city every year. Black New Yorkers are more likely to die from heat stress, with death rates two times higher than White New Yorkers,& according to NYC.gov, the city’s information website.& Lincoln Restler, a Brooklyn lawmaker, aims to curb that problem with new legislation that would require landlords to provide air conditioning, similar to a 106-year-old law forcing them to provide heat during the wintertime. “When we looked at the data of who is dying from heat-related illnesses, the single biggest risk factor was not having air...