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>> Good evening and welcome.

50 years after Stonewall, what does life look like for LGBTQ+ youth in New York?

The new documentary transports viewers to the Christopher Street.

, a place where homeless Square, black youth have forged community and family.

It shines the light on amazing young people who have been marginalized by society and chronicles how they have created an oasis for themselves, exposing a set of New York many people to north.

Here's a preview.

>> Homeless people come to this area because it is a safe zone.

>> This is where we socialized.

>>: Ask you to do is see me.

>> I have hands up.

♪ >> Joining me now on poverty, justice and economic opportunity is a director.

Welcome.

>> Thank you for having me.

>> Looks try to have you on.

We're joined by a principal participant in the film.

It is so great to have you on the show.

I want to start with an obvious question.

How did the film come to be?

>> this film comes from a personal place.

I'm from North Jersey across the river.

And it up there.

I was really pleased to find a place I was deeply understood.

Give me an assignment.

Living social networks.

In the process of trying to understand where home was, I looked around and realized I was on Christopher Street.

I saw people who look like me and started the process.

To answer the second part of your question, I was hoping to show the importance of public space and how working class community's of public have a language around queer identity.

>> I want to come back to the issue of a place for people who don't have a place.

How did you come to be involved in the film?

>> As you mentioned, Sharon come Roderick and life experiences, for that purpose, I saw they were under the influence, I did not want them to be taken advantage of.

Interrupted his interview and asked what is this for?

They did not know why they would see a camera and make sure it would be used in the proper way.

That is when he followed up and said he would work with me and I think for us, the friendship group because it's traditional they don't interact on camera with participants.

I told them I am transitioning to be a woman, not other.

I need you to be my friend.

Otherwise we would not get the information.

If they have the drive and dedication to do so.

You can still achieve womanhood without assistance and support.

>> You touch on so many themes of the film but one of the things that comes through very clear is the sense of family you both mentioned.

And to refer to yourself as a mama bear, I was wondering how you see family development for young people who gravitate towards Christopher Street.

What are those family bonds like and how are they different?

>> Oftentimes when you're restricted to public housing, because we are dealing with, no time to get in line to make sure you have a bed the next day.

Sleeping at someone's house, just relieving yourself from the woes of the week.

We lean on each other and I always say, blood does not know what I went through yesterday.

You don't know the movie of tomorrow.

They don't know what I did last month and why was hard.

These people around me do.

For me, family are those who witness.

That is going back to check-in to make sure they are still there.

Checking with someone to say I'm still here.

We know that trans lots matter -- lives matter.

Ignorance is running rampant.

Oftentimes, my sisters and brothers are dying by the hands of police or community.

While Black Lives Matter, tomorrow I might not see my sister.

Checking the spaces is one way to know my sister made it through another day.

>> I see you nodding your head.

>> It is such a pleasure to be able to do this.

It's great to hear you on the platform.

That is what home is these people make each other their home by caring about the outcome of hopes and aspirations in turn each other into the family, so that means if I'm outside on the corner, I am just as at home.

The spiritual home makes it easier.

Gives you a base to find tangible support.

>> One of the things I found incredibly moving was the realization that culture a lot of us consume seems to find its genesis within this community, everything from music types, dancing, fashion, language.

All of these things.

I want to get your perspectives on the fact that there is definitely a level of appreciation for the culture that is created.

Does that translate?

>> It's a great question and there is a lot of gray area to explore in answering it area the short answer is, there is clearly a disconnect between the appreciation of the cultural form and quality of life experienced today.

There is some delay between the positive impact and lived experience.

That being said, I believe -- mind you, a huge part of my own thesis as a black artist's although we are queer, we are still part of the overall tradition of black entertainment in America which has always been a site of political agitation and transformation.

When you are denied access to democracy through voting, land ownership, financial opportunity, performance culture becomes the only space through which not only can you be heard, but the people you represent.

Ragtime, jazz, blues, hip-hop, soul music.

So much of the narrative is the narrative of black people.

I think the representation, I look at RuPaul's drag race, that starts with they will create a model, went to crack it open a little bit, they are able to assess through performance.

>> We have done several stories talking about the culture and community that exists within the larger neighborhood.

So much people have heard about, at the same time -- what are your concerns about building a more upper-class neighborhood that sounds so critical to the culture we consume and celebrate?

>> My opinion is it would displace a community that Manhattan receives many grants to support a community a place to stay in the same borough.

As they make it prettier or more uphill, but makes an excuse.

I'm thankful they are cleaning it up but I wish they did not have such a hard stance against those who have always been there even before they had a restaurant or boardwalk, you saw people from the community, all states, towns and countries coming to the meatpacking district.

>> I want to piggyback on that.

When we say words like gentrification, communities whose outside, when we say gentrified, mobilizing a police response, troublesome property values.

Please understand this is invoking police brutality and more than likely it's been directed at people of color.

>> With all of that, with this vibrant, chosen family community that has existed within and around Chelsea Piers for so long, where do you see the support for the larger community?

Is this something -- we have heard, many New Yorkers know that it's part of gay history, and yet, the needs of that community has not necessarily been put front and center for gay rights movements.

>> The whole purpose is to redirect the gay-rights rights movement.

Don't get it twisted.

Marcia P Johnson was a black woman who chose her as the guard.

When we think about HIV and AIDS, it's a chronic lifelong illness, not a death sentence.

We have homeless people, street kids to think for these outcomes.

In my mind, now that it's been done, what is the gay rights movement if it's not dealing with queer, youth homelessness?

What could we call civil rights?

All of these kids were on the street are our kids.

It's not in amorphous problem.

There is no gay community without them going forward.

It's on us, those who have the privilege and space, time for us to do better.

Where's the housing?

Where is the food?

Solving queer youth homelessness , providing help to working-class people of color, I feel like it's left black people behind.

She took all of those hits to the head just so upper-middle-class white men have to do it.

>> It's more so efforts of housing.

It celebrates the community that was founded by another black trans woman named Crystal -- with a 'c.'

They call it houses.

What we need and always needed, people need to provide housing support first to survive in the social construct that was geared towards hetero initiatives.

With that being said, it comes back to houses.

As we celebrate the community, we have to remember everyone who is participating in some way is hanging on to have stability.

It won't be rectified and you won't stop seeing us make noise until we are able to have the one thing to secure housing.

>> I was wondering if you could talk, because people might say, isn't there housing intended for the homeless period, why do you need something separate?

I was wondering if you could speak to that.

>> It's not having something separate.

The problem is, when it comes to the budget they provide, it's not enough to provide that space.

For anyone coming from a shelter, there are stigmas that they are drug addicts or dealing with mental illnesses.

That could be problematic.

The months you are HIV positive, the vouchers you receive are not sufficient enough to get housing in a safe environment.

Given although statistics, that is only one other option so it's more so providing more funding for vouchers in general to have the option to search neighborhoods that are better fitted for our safety and lifestyles.

In my opinion.

>> I agree with everything.

Someone is like why do you need extra housing, you need a historical perspective on housing in New York City and acknowledge there are empty buildings throughout New York City that are just sitting there either for real estate speculators to gentrified or just sitting there, I believe those houses, whoever holds the keys to the gay rights movement in New York City will aggressively move for these empty apartments and put these kids in it.

What makes them different is they are very young.

These kids are between the ages of 14, 15, 16.

Everyone at that age requires help in order to thrive in this community and society.

You can't come out of high school able to live on your own effectively, no one can.

Imagine how difficult it is, not only is it difficult when you don't have biological families to help.

Putting people like that into the shelter system makes homelessness into a prison pipeline, it's almost a guarantee.

These are young people, these are somebody's children.

When I was 16, I was kicked out.

The week before, I was somebody's kid.

I do not know how to get a security deposit.

It could have been devastating.

>> Unfortunately, we have to leave it there.

I will encourage everyone watching to catch the documentary: "Pier Kids," thank you so much for your time to talk about this moving film, thank you so much for joining us on MetroFocus.

>> Thank you.

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