On Saturday, Dec. 7, New York City joined over 50 cities worldwide to host The World’s Big Sleep Out, a global initiative uniting the world in a universal effort to help fight homelessness. For one night in backyards and iconic locations around the globe, people slept out in unison to create the world’s largest display of solidarity and support for those experiencing homelessness and displacement. The global initiative has raised a cumulative total of over $10 million with 100% of the funds raised from NYC going towards The World’s Big Sleep Out national partner, UNICEF USA, and local New York charity beneficiaries including Robin Hood, Breaking Ground, The Ali Forney Center, and The Coalition for the Homeless.
Hosted by comedian and “The Daily Show with Trevor Noah” correspondent, Dulcé Sloan, New York City’s sleepout took place in the iconic Times Square where acclaimed actor, Will Smith, closed out the evening with a “bedtime story,” performing the hit theme song to the beloved “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” for participants braving the 30-degree temperatures. On stage, Smith recalled his life-changing experience with Chris Gardner, the formerly homeless father whose journey inspired the film “The Pursuit of Happyness,” and the eye-opening moment in which he witnessed the bathroom where Gardner and his son found shelter. Founder of The World’s Big Sleep Out, Josh Littlejohn introduced Smith and acknowledged the unprecedented accomplishment that was currently taking place throughout the world.
“Having worked with homeless people for the last seven years, I know how invisible and forgotten people can feel. What the incredible 60,000 people who slept out all over the world have done tonight is to shine the spotlight on this global issue and show that we care,” said Littlejohn. “I am truly blown away by the response to our campaign, in NYC and all over the world, and am sincerely grateful to every single person who has given up their beds tonight to raise the funds and awareness needed to make an impact. I hope that what happened in this campaign demonstrates a clear mandate for political action to tackle the homelessness crisis in NYC and all over the planet.”
Acclaimed soul duo, The War and Treaty, performed a selection of songs from their hit albums and Jay Buchanan, lead singer of the multi-Grammy nominated group Rival Sons, headlined the evening’s musical portion, singing “Shooting Stars.” Special guests of the evening included: Gale Brewer (Manhattan Borough president), Jumaane Williams (New York City Public Advocate), Caryl M. Stern (president and CEO of UNICEF USA), Mindy Grossman (president & CEO WW (Formerly Weight Watchers), David Sable (senior advisor WPP), Mitchell Modell (CEO Modell’s Sporting Goods), David Giffen (executive director, Coalition for the Homeless), Carl Siciliano (founder & executive director, Ali Forney Center), Brenda Rosen (president & CEO Breaking Ground) and Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, who participated in a satellite sleepout event on the steps of Brooklyn Borough Hall.
CEO & President Mitchell Modell and Modell’s Sporting Goods donated sleeping bags for all Times Square participants to use Saturday night, which will subsequently be distributed through local charity partners to those in need.
In Los Angeles, Meghan Trainor, Ellie Goulding and Ziggy Marley performed for a crowd at the legendary Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena.
Research by the Institute of Global Homelessness shows that figures have reached a new level with more than a 100 million people homeless and displaced around the world. In New York City alone, more people are now homeless than at any time since the Great Depression. Over 62,000 people in New York, including 22,000 kids, will sleep in shelters tonight and the number of homeless people and refugees in cities around the world continues to hit record highs with each passing year.
UNICEF USA serves as the national charity partner of The World’s Big Sleep Out. International partners for the campaign include the Malala Fund, Social Bite and the Institute of Global Homelessness as well as a new charity entitled The World’s Big Sleep Out Trust, which has been established to govern the funds raised throughout the world, while funds raised in the USA will be managed by UNICEF USA. The board of The World’s Big Sleep Out Trust is being chaired by world-renowned homelessness expert Dame Louise Casey DBE.
Other cities and towns that took part in the global initiative include: London (Trafalgar Square), Chicago, New Delhi, Edinburgh, Dublin, Belfast, Vina Del Mar, Madrid, Rijeka, Kharkiv, Brisbane, Manila, Cebu, Amsterdam, Patna, Gaya, Muzaffarpur, Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Visakhapatnam, Guntur, Chennai, Coimbatore, Mumbai, Hong Kong, San Jose (Costa Rica), Malibu, Cardiff, Newcastle, Newport, Brighton, Manchester, Singapore.
The World’s Big Sleep Out has partnered with Red Nose Day and Walgreens to launch a holiday program for children in need. From now through Dec. 24, Walgreens shoppers in California and New Your City will have the opportunity to make a donation to Red Nose Day at the register. 100% of funds received through Walgreens will be donated to the Red Nose Day fund who––in partnership with The World’s Big Sleepout––are funding meals and gifts for homeless children and families this holiday season.
This global event follows the success of Social Bite’s 2017 and 2018 Sleep in the Park events, which were held in Edinburgh, Dundee, Glasgow and Aberdeen in Scotland. The mass fundraiser saw 18,000 people give up their beds, raising a total of over $5 million per year.
