New York Mayor De Blasio Rejects Homeless Attorney: "I'm doing Exercise"

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio was confronted during his physical training session by activists who demanded more housing for the homeless, pushing him to leave, as he had said : "I do not do it here. I am in full training. "

The mayor's contempt for the lawyer quickly made the headlines, particularly in light of the fact that de Blasio, a former activist himself, ran for mayor on a progressive platform promising to fight against homelessness and inequalities in the city.

A video posted on YouTube shows homeless activist Nathylin Flowers Adesegun, 72, who heads to De Blasio on Friday while he was sitting on a mat in a YMCA in Brooklyn where he s & # 39; He often coached in the morning.

"Of the 300,000 units in your affordable housing program, only 5% will house the homeless," Flowers Adesegun said.

De Blasio shook his hand and said, "I'm doing my training. Sorry, I can not do that now. "

Moments later, he got up to leave with his bodyguard who separated him from Flowers Adesegun. "I do not do that here," said the mayor, as he had shouted his supporters.

Lev Radin / Pacific Press / LightRocket via Getty Images, FILE

"Why not hire more housing for homeless New Yorkers?", Launched activists. "Five percent is not enough for homeless New Yorkers." "We need housing for homeless New Yorkers!"

The meeting was videotaped by the Vocal-NY activist group, of which Flowers Adesegun is a member.

"I am 72 years old and I have been homeless for three years, but he said his morning training was more important to him," Flowers Adesegun told the mayor in a statement. posted on Twitter by Vocal-NY. "We are not asking for much: hire 30,000 units of your housing plan for homeless New Yorkers. Whenever we ask him to do more for homeless New Yorkers, he changes the subject in favor of prevention and the economy – but am I supposed to be homeless? "

The mayor's spokesman said that a gym was not the proper place for such discussions.

"People working in the gym should not be afraid of being recorded every morning in high-profile, filmed political clashes," City Hall spokesman Eric Phillips told the New York Times. "This is not the appropriate place for these discussions and the mayor will not have them."

The mayor's office did not immediately respond to ABC News for a comment.

The coordinator of the Vocal-NY housing campaign said De Blasio's office had made contact after the meeting at the YMCA, and that the group hoped to meet with their representatives soon. Homelessness groups also plan to march on Gracie Mansion, the mayor's residence, later this month.

De Blasio's affordable housing plan targets 300,000 affordable housing units, but advocacy groups say there are not enough efforts to address homelessness and have asked that 10% of these homes be reserved for the homeless.

"We asked the mayor … Will you do that? Do you want to spend 10 percent? And he bluntly said no, "Giselle Routhier, Policy Director for the Homelessness Coalition told ABC News. "What we are really trying to emphasize here is that it goes against these progressive values. He failed about it. "

There are more than 62,000 homeless people in New York, according to the Homelessness Coalition, which also said the homeless rate in the city had reached unprecedented levels since the Great Depression.