Mayor Shunned Homeless Woman After She Broke Gym's Rules, He Says

PARK SLOPE, BROOKLYN -- Mayor Bill de Blasio would not have rebuffed a homeless activist last week had she not broken YMCA rules by taping their encounter, he told NY1 Monday night.

“You are not allowed to film in the place,” de Blasio told NY1 reporter Errol Lewis. “If someone starts filming, I am not going to engage them.”

De Blasio came under fire when video surfaced Friday of 72-year-old Nathylin Flowers Adesegun, an activist who is also homeless, asking him for help at the Ninth Street gym.

The stretching mayor can be seen informing Adesegun that he is "in the middle of doing his workout," before he stands up walks away.

The mayor told NY1 he would have connected Adesegun with a contact at City Hall had she and housing advocates at Vocal NY not attempted to video tape the conversation at the gym, where he said he often speaks with constituents.

De Blasio has since reached out to Vocal NY activists to organize a meeting at City Hall, the grassroots group told Patch.

Photo courtesy of YouTube