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The New York City Council held a zoning amendment hearing about Harlem’s One45 development project last week, overseen by Councilmembers Kevin Riley and Yusef Salaam. Public reception of the project is still a bit of a mixed bag.
“My community has, for too often, for too long, been ignored or worse, been vilified. And because of the vilification, they’ve in fact been denied,” said Salaam at the hearing on May 20. “This proposal comes to us at a very pivotal moment. It provides an opportunity to uplift the community by creating quality housing options, local retail, and a much-needed community space and more. But it also brings into question [something] we Harlemites know all too well. The question is, for whom?”
The site is at Lenox Avenue and West 145th Street in Harlem’s Community Board (CB) 10 area. The block currently consists of commercial space; gas stations; empty storefronts; and the headquarters of the National Action Network (NAN) House of Justice, Afrikana, and the Timbuktu Islamic Center.
The proposed certified zoning map amendment, presented at the hearing, differs from plans shown to the community board in the past. It comprises three buildings, creating roughly 968 units with 291 units of permanently income-restricted housing, in accor-
dance with Mandatory Inclusionary Housing (MIH) Option 2 under City of Yes zoning rules. It also emphasizes “family-sized units,” a state-of the-art community center, gathering space, fresh grocer space, and parking. Previous project versions were fewer units altogether, and included a museum and office space for NAN.
This would be Salaam’s first time dealing with the years-long saga of the One45 project and its developer, Bruce Teitelbaum. Salaam mentioned in the hearing that he’s met with Teitelbaum in private to discuss the project before, and said that in sessions with the CB, an “enhanced affordability proposal” with
NAACP’s Mid-Manhattan branch moves ‘home’ to Ethical Culture Society building
By KAREN JUANITA CARRILLO Amsterdam News Staff
When Kyndell A. Reid, president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People’s (NAACP) Mid-Manhattan Branch, was looking for new office space and a meeting location for branch members, a suggestion from Marlene Williamson caught
her attention.
Williamson, a long-term NAACP member, also serves as the director of external partnerships at the social justiceoriented New York Society for Ethical Culture (NYSEC). She knew that, in the past, both organizations had worked together for the same goals.
Williamson decided to spearhead an effort to have the branch move its offices into the
building NYSEC owns on Central Park West.
The NAACP’s Mid-Manhattan Branch needed a new location after selling its former Upper West Side site at 270 West 96th Street in 2021. The Mid-Manhattan Branch covers the area between 34th Street and 110th Street, river to river.
“When the building was sold,” Reid explained, “we were kind of displaced for a
little while. We were working out of other offices, and we were having our meetings at various places. But, in June, there was a reacquaintance with the NAACP and the New York Ethical Society. We got together, and we basically kind of joined and formed a bond at that point, and conversations started happening. Ethical Culture was right there in our catchment area. And based on the history of the New York Society of Ethical Culture, it just made sense to come back to that building.”
Established by Dr. Felix Adler in 1876, NYSEC started as a movement to promote ethical and moral behavior in society, and as Black Civil Rights leaders gained prominence in the early 20th century, the organization hosted influential figures like Booker T. Washington, James Weldon Johnson, and W.E.B. Du Bois and endorsed the creation of the NAACP in 1909.
Following several incidents of civil unrest at the turn of the century, the centennial of Abraham Lincoln’s birth on Feb. 12, 1909, was seen as an opportunity to initiate a new civil rights movement. Oswald Villard, the editor of the New York Evening Post who later became publisher of the Nation magazine, was also a
Fiscal Year 2026 Executive Budget Hearing — Committees on Finance & Culture Affairs, May 21, 2025. (Emil Cohen/NYC Council Media Unit)
York Society for Ethical Culture building. (NYSEC photo)
Solitary confinement does not make prisons safer, say correctional heads in December senate letter
By TANDY LAU Amsterdam News Staff, Report for America Corps Member
From corrections to correcting the record, twelve prison and jail officials and administrators pushed back against Congressional narratives connecting solitary confinement to safety in a letter obtained by the AmNews penned to Sen. Dick Durbin last December.
They maintained that alternative practices providing “meaningful human interaction” are safer for incarcerated people, correctional staff and the general public in response to an April 2024 U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee hearing that the Illinois senator chaired on potentially eliminating solitary confinement in federal facilities. In fact, the letter’s authors —which include a former head of New York State prisons — argue the practice creates, rather than resolves, safety issues.
“During that hearing, several senators on both sides of the aisle perpetuated the myth that solitary is necessary for safety in their comments and questions to the witnesses,” they wrote. “As people with extensive experience and expertise supporting the operations of prisons, jails, and related facilities, we write to correct the record.”
The United Nations’ Mandela Laws defines solitary confinement as 22 hours or more a day “without meaningful human contact.” The bylaws mandate the practice as a last resort “for as short a time as possible and subject to independent review, and only pursuant to the authorization by a competent authority.”
In practice, incarcerated individuals are typically held alone or in pairs behind cell walls, with food and medicine often passed through a slot.
Prolonged solitary confinement, defined by more than 15 consecutive days, is considered torture by the U.N. Additionally, a person’s crime or conviction should not dictate whether they should be confined.
“A lot of correctional officials will just assume that even if solitary confinement is harmful, it’s still something that’s really needed,” said Maria Morris, a senior staff attorney with the ACLU’s National Prison Project. “And it was very important to us to bring out the recognition that a lot of the time it’s not needed [and] done because it’s easier.
“It certainly has a surface appeal to [the] people who are running prisons and jails because it seems like putting the problem out of the way, but quite often, it doesn’t resolve any of the actual problems, and it often exacerbates them significantly.”
Morris says corrections staff employ solitary practices on incarcerated individuals for reasons other than their misconduct.
She points to Arizona prisons separating people who opted into racially-integrated
housing to protect them from gang-related retaliation. People who are transgender also frequently face solitary confinement for their own “protection.”
While the harms towards those subjected to solitary confinement are well-documented and include anxiety, depression and heart disease, the letter also argues that the general public also suffers. The authors point to research finding higher rates of assaults on correctional officers in some solitary confinement units. Returning citizens are more likely to recidivate if they spent time in solitary and even those who do not reoffend may still subject those around them to “their trauma symptoms without any support or resources from the state.”
Retired New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) commissioner Brian Fischer signed the letter. So did Mary Buser, a former Rikers Island assistant mental health chief-turned-author and Steve Martin, who currently monitors New York City jails through a federal judge’s appointment from the Nunez class action lawsuit.
Others among the 12 who signed the letter have experience heading prison and jail systems and mental health services across the country, including a former Massachusetts Department of correction commissioner and an ex-chief psychiatrist for the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction.
“While [solitary confinement] is touted as a measure to stem violence, in actuality it is a perpetuator of violence,” said Buser over email. “Human beings are social creatures, in need of social interaction just as much as the need for food and water. Isolation is highly unnatural, often inducing aber-
rant behavior. When I worked in the Rikers Island solitary confinement unit, I looked in on continual scenes of self-mutilation, bloodstained walls and makeshift nooses.
“The degree of self-harm in solitary is staggering. People who are violent often have poor socialization skills; placing them in isolation is going in the wrong direction, only intensifying the propensity for violence toward themselves and others.”
Buser’s own experience visiting prisons in Colorado — the first state to implement humane alternatives to solitary — informed her on how separating incarcerated people from the general population without isolating them reduced assaults on staff through incentivized additional out-of-cell time.
The letter points to two other examples in San Francisco’s Resolve to Stop the Violence Program (RSVP) and the Merle Cooper program at Clinton Correctional Facility.
Expert witness Dr. James Gilligan testified during the Congressional hearing on how correctional officers initially requested transfers to other jails away from RSVP due to safety concerns. Later on, they requested to be transferred back after the program made the jail “the safest place in the whole correctional system, not just for those who have been incarcerated but also for correction officers.”
Jerome Wright, who co-directs the #HALTSolitary Campaign which successfully pushed bills limiting solitary confinement in New York state, recalls only a few small fights during his time participating in the Merle Cooper program while he was incarcerated.
“I’m gonna be fully transparent with you, there ain’t no angels in there,” said Wright over the phone. “Things happen,
but it never rose to the occasion that it was going to the staff, because there’s no record of it. There [was] minimal, if any, disciplinary force given out for anything, and none for overt violence. Why? Because you were out all day. This is what works, and they know that.”
A recent highly-publicized strike among DOCCS prison staff claimed they faced more dangerous conditions due to the HALT laws restricting the use of solitary confinement.
The state suspended certain programming tied to the legislation in response.
“People incarcerated, family members and numerous studies have all documented for decades that solitary confinement causes irreversible harm and worsens safety for everyone, while there are alternatives proven to reduce violence,” said State Sen. Julia Salazar, the law’s main sponsor in a statement. “That is why we enacted the HALT Solitary Confinement Law to replace solitary with alternative forms of separation.
“With corrections commissioners and administrators reaffirming the overwhelming evidence in this important new letter, it is imperative that New York State fully implement the HALT Solitary Law, and that jurisdictions across the country end this torturous, deadly, and violence-producing practice once and for all.”
A spokesperson for Durbin pointed to his previous statements. The Illinois senior senator held the first congressional hearing on solitary confinement back in 2012 and reintroduced a bill to limit the practice in federal prisons last year. He also pushed to end solitary confinement in immigration detention centers.
“Individuals who violate our laws must be held accountable, but they are also entitled to safe and humane detention that does not violate their fundamental civil and human rights,” said Sen. Durbin in his statement.
“We know that prolonged exposure to solitary confinement can be as profound and permanent as a traumatic brain injury and can result in psychological and physical disabilities.
“Research by experts and testimony from countless people who have spent time in solitary documents how it worsens preexisting medical and mental health conditions and risks causing conditions that didn’t previously exist.”
The letter is published on the digital version of this article which can be found on the Amsterdam News website.
Tandy Lau is a Report for America corps member who writes about public safety for the Amsterdam News. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep him writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visiting https://bit.ly/amnews1.
This Dec. 14, 2019, file photo shows a solitary confinement cell known all as “the bing,” at New York’s Rikers Island jail. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews, File)
Youth Justice Innovation Fund inches closer to law
By TANDY LAU Amsterdam News Staff, Report for America Corps Member
Before Raise the Age laws can fully help Black and Brown youth meet their potential, the legislation must first live up to its own promise.
Seven years have passed since the bill became law preventing New York-based courts from prosecuting 16 and 17 year olds as adults for nonviolent offenses. Raise the Age also means providing them with the appropriate diversion programs. $250 million is set each year to support the law but less than a third has gone to such services so far.
Last week, a bill establishing the Youth Justice Innovation Fund passed the state Senate and would direct $50 million out of the $250 million toward communitybased organizations serving youth up to the age of 25.
“The promise of Raise the Age was that we were going to recognize that adolescents are not adults,” said Julia Davis, a director at the Children’s Defense FundNew York. “And we need to resource communities in ways that support children. The last couple of years tell us so much about what young people need. We’ve seen a mental health crisis for young people. We are still making our way out
of the pandemic.
“Even before Raise the Age [and the] pandemic and other crises, the array of community-based services for young people was pretty thin. That’s why advocates really demanded with Raise the Age that community-based services be part of that implementation.”
The bill’s language points to social justice impact for Black youth, who face five times the juvenile placement rates as white youth in New York state. Programming helps close the gap in key neighborhoods of color through violence interruption, employment services and alternatives to detention.
Despite the struggles to allocate money, Raise the Age is a success according to Davis. Youth arrests have tumbled outside of New York City and while John Jay researchers found an increase in the Big Apple, their findings dispelled correlations to Raise the Age laws.
“Prior to Raise the Age, every 16 and 17 year old was charged as an adult for nonviolent offenses which meant that you could have a permanent criminal record,” said Davis. “There’s a lot of evidence that shows that young people saddled with permanent criminal records are effectively pushed out of school, housing and employment. And those are all drivers of criminal activity.
“One of the reasons Raise the Age passed was because we really shouldn’t be putting 16 and 17 year olds into an adult system, because it can be criminogenic. It can actually produce more criminal activity if it’s not appropriate for their age and stage.”
Raise the Age laws also stopped the justice system from incarcerating youth in adult correctional facilities, including Rikers Island where Kalief Browder was famously held as a youth for the multiyear pre-trial detainment that led to his suicide. The legislation also allows New Yorkers to pursue sealing certain convictions including some felonies if they do not reoffend after a decade.
The fund would be administered by the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services. While the agency does not directly comment on pending legislation, its executive deputy commissioner Joseph Popcun spoke to the AmNews about Project RISE, a statewide effort the Children’s Defense Fund-New York says the Youth Justice Innovation Fund would build upon.
RISE, short for Respond, Invest, Sustain, Empower, funds gun violence prevention programs in 10 municipalities across the state.
“We went into those communities, we set a broad table of local government,
community-based organizations [and] also resident leaders, and asked them, what’s missing from this community that would make it feel safer and stronger? And they identified a variety of different programs, everything from after school programs to mental health services to extracurricular engagement, you name it.
“Through our model, instead of the traditional competitive Request for Application, we’re going to be more of a co-pilot, and provide $2 million to each of these 10 communities, for the organizations receive the money, and then they have to pass through at least 25%, but in many instances more, to the mom and pop grassroots organizations that have never received state dollars before and aren’t really on everyone’s radar.”
As for the Youth Justice Innovation Fund, the bill will now go through the assembly. Harlem’s own Cordell Cleare is the state senate’s sponsor while Long Island’s Michaelle C. Solages introduced the bill to the assembly.
Tandy Lau is a Report for America corps member who writes about public safety for the Amsterdam News. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep him writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visiting https://bit.ly/amnews1.
Main sponsor Cordell Cleare in Albany. (Photo courtesy of NYS Senate Media Services)
Tamara May: ‘I choose to be a part of the solution’
By RAYMOND FERNÁNDEZ Special to the AmNews
For Tamara May, chief operating officer of Amida Care, being a Black New Yorker means choosing to be part of the solution.
“I get to choose if I want to be the problem, or the solution,” she said. “I choose to be a part of the solution.”
It’s a guiding principle that shows up in everything she does –– whether she’s overseeing the operations of a nonprofit health plan serving Medicaid members, mentoring early-career professionals, or leading confidencebuilding workshops through her “Love Myself” program. As COO, Tamara ensures Amida Care runs smoothly on every level –– but for her, the work is never just about infrastructure or spreadsheets.
“We show up for our members,” she said. “This is the first job where there’s this much engagement. I work closely with staff and members alike. My role is not only to make sure they receive care ––but to ensure the health of the organization itself.”
Tamara’s leadership is grounded in years of experience in healthcare operations, Medicaid, and managed care. Before joining Amida Care, she served as Vice President of Operations Delivery & Premium Revenue at EmblemHealth, where she also sat on the compa-
Black New Yorker
sonal and unwavering.
She has a warning about looming Medicaid cuts: “When you start cutting government programs, the money that people use for food goes to other areas –– like expensive medical bills. People seek healthcare less. Everything changes.” She’s especially concerned about mental health access. “How do you keep going to your therapist? How do you keep taking your medication?”
Tamara believes in wellness check-ins, every two weeks, at least. “It can be as simple as having dinner or sitting in the living room watching TV,” she said.
Tamara became a New Yorker eight years ago. Raised in North Hook, Virginia, she explains, “New York is limitless –– complex and simple,” she reflects. “The most loving and supportive human beings are here.”
who I’ve always been.”
Originally, Tamara thought she’d become a lawyer. But once she discovered the business side of healthcare and the ability to work directly with communities, she found her calling.
She now speaks openly about the importance of DEI, especially as it faces increasing scrutiny.“Ensuring the playing field is fair, that everyone has an opportunity and is respected ––that’s DEI,” she said. “But you have to do the work. How many organizations say they’re committed and don’t live up to it?”
One of her proudest efforts is the “Love My Self” program, which fosters self-esteem in underserved communities. At the first workshop, over 40 people attended, many struggling with suicidal thoughts or living in vulnerable conditions.
ny’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Council and served as an executive sponsor for employee resource groups. Her commitment to health equity, particularly for vulnerable populations, is per-
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With an MBA from Old Dominion University and certifications as an executive, life, and wellness coach, Tamara blends strategy with heart. She is also a mother of three daughters, each working in the fields of PR, mental health, and law enforcement. “I’m always the big sister,” she adds. “That’s
“Hearing one another creates a safe haven,” she explained. “This is something necessary for their well-being, something so many communities lack access to.”
To young Black professionals starting in New York, she offers this: “Don’t settle. What you do today impacts what happens tomorrow.”
Tamara May (Provided by Amida Care)
One Long Island family’s hellish journey to foreclosure
By ARIAMA C. LONG Amsterdam News Staff
“My parents are seniors and now you’re putting them out of their home,” said Nina Greene, 44, a retired New York City Police Department (NYPD) police officer who is physically disabled from a line of duty injury. She worked with the city’s evidence collection team, a skillset that has proved useful in her battle to try and keep her family home.
Despite her efforts, the Greene family has lost their years-long struggle to keep their house from foreclosure. Greene claimed that her parents were swept into a scam when they were unable to keep up with mortgage payments or get approved for a loan modification, and were summarily denied help from a long list of servicers that shuffled around the note to their mortgage. The housing courts disagreed and ruled in favor of the banks.
Her father, Larry Greene (Larry G.), 76, a now-retired Port Authority officer, and her mother, Sherry Greene, 75, purchased a two-level multi-family home in Long Island for about $550,000 in 2007. They originally hailed from St. Albans, a mostly Caribbean and African neighborhood in Queens.
The family decided to settle in Freeport, a similar village in Hempstead that is composed of predominantly middle- to upper-middle-class Black and Hispanic households. In 2023, the median property value there was over $470,000, and the homeownership rate was about 70%, according to DataUSA. Jamael Romans, a Black loan officer at United Mortgage Corp. in Woodbury, Long Island, estimated that homes are probably going for well over $700,000 in that area now.
“They have a good school district, so a lot of families want to be in that area,” said Romans. He added that Freeport, Baldwin, Hempstead, Uniondale, Elmont, and Westbury were all areas of middle- to upper-middle-class Black and Brown communities, but it’s also very competitive for first-time homebuyers to break into.
Outside the Greene family home is a lavish tree with pinkish blossoms, and an angel figurine in the yard is shrouded in greenery. Greene doesn’t quite describe that kind of tranquility inside, though. In addition to her and her elderly parents, her brother, his wife, and his newborn daughter also lived in the house. Not to mention their four rescue dogs and one cat.
Tranquil, it probably wasn’t — but it was theirs.
The issues began with their original mortgage holder, Countrywide Financial, said Larry G., who was the main person in charge of making payments on the mortgage at the time. He was denied a loan modification when the company went under and he had a new loan servicer.
“When the crash came [in 2008], I got a notice that Bank of America would be taking over, so I started telling them that I
wanted a new deal as far as the mortgage went, a lower interest rate, and they kept giving me the runaround,” he said.
Since the housing market took an economic nosedive in 2008 at the behest of unscrupulous companies, like Countrywide, the Greene family is far from alone in feeling the impact.
According to the Center for Ethical Organizational Cultures at Auburn University, Countrywide was the largest provider of home loans in the U.S in the early 2000s. It was also the primary provider of home loans to minorities in the nation. The company’s expansive growth was due in large part to subprime loans, a lending method that ultimately led to its and the country’s downfall.
Basically, a subprime loan relies on lending to low-income or non-traditionally qualified borrowers but charges them higher interest rates. One of the tools of these loans is an adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM), where payments may start out low but balloon to exorbitant amounts over time.
Larry G. confirmed that he was paying only the interest on the mortgage, not the principal amount, for the first 10 years. “I didn’t realize, which I should have in the beginning, that the mortgage was a predatory type mortgage,” he said.
Bank of America (BOA) offered to buy Countrywide for $4 billion in 2008 — an acquisition that outlets like NPR called “a never-ending legal and financial night-
mare.” Countrywide was under numerous investigations, including from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), for misconduct and misrepresentation.
In the midst of all that chaos, Larry G. wanted to contest the company’s legal right to his mortgage in court and had stopped making payments because he couldn’t get a much-needed loan modification. In 2013, he went to court in Nassau County to find out who held the note on the mortgage. His total sum then was $417,000, according to court documents.
Meanwhile, BOA’s Countrywide unit had been found liable for defrauding Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that same year. The See FORECLOSURE on page 29
The Greene house, a two-level multi-family home in Freeport, Long Island. (Photo contributed by Nina Greene)
Harlem commemorates ‘Our Shining Black Prince’ on the 100th birthday of Malcolm X
The Harlem community honored Malcolm X with a march and rally. A jazz concert under the direction of Trombonist Craig Harris hon-
ored the centennial birthday of El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz at the Mt. Olive Baptist Church located on Malcolm X Blvd at 120th St.
Gospel gun violence musical sends a message
“Whose Side Are You On?” is a hip hop gospel musical, produced and directed by Dietra Kelsey, the host of Sistah Talk TV Show. The musical, which disparages gang and gun violence, is the story of a 16-year-
old Lamont who must choose between life on the street and a reconnection with God.
The musical ran from April 24th to 27th at Julia de Burgos Performance Arts Center on Lexington Avenue.
(Bill Moore photos)
(Bill Moore photos)
Divine Nine News
D9 Harlem Votes hosts Mayoral Candidates Forum
By SHANA HARMONGOFF Special to the AmNews
The D9 Harlem Votes coalition recently hosted the 2025 NYC Mayoral Candidates Forum to discuss their plans for addressing pressing issues facing New York. This event was held at Mother AME Zion Church in Harlem.
D9 Harlem Votes is a civic engagement coalition powered by members of the Divine Nine Black Greek-letter organizations and is
committed to uplifting the community through political education, advocacy, and mobilization.
Community empowerment, civic engagement, and informed voting were the focus of the forum, which started with Nicole Yearwood, a member of the coalition, describing ranked choice voting and encouraging the audience to be strategic and intentional when casting their ballots this election season.
Kercena Dozier, Erika Ewing, and Drew Gabriel delivered opening remarks, each underscoring the im-
portance of community-led political engagement and voter turnout.
The event moderator was Dr. Basil A. Smikle, Jr., professor of practice and director of the M.S. in Nonprofit Management Program at the Columbia University School of Professional Studies, who is also an MSNBC political analyst. Smikle was assisted by youth moderators Nasiah Anderson, 17; Jada Toliver-Rodriquez, 15; and Kayla Nicole Johnson, 20.
Each candidate addressed critical topics, from public safety and housing to youth investment, education,
and mental health. The event also included an audience Q&A segment, allowing Harlem residents to engage directly with those seeking to lead the city.
The evening featured appearances and remarks from these NYC mayoral candidates (in alphabetical order): Eric Adams; Dr. Selma Bartholomew; Michael Blake; Zohran Mamdani; Zellnor Myrie; Jessica Ramos; Whitney Tilson; and Jim Walden, Esq.
During closing remarks, Drew Gabriel encouraged attendees to take what they learned to the ballot box.
Members of Divine Nine organizations take time for a photo.
Mayoral candidate Jim Walden, Esq., greets youth moderators.
Mayoral candidate Honorable Eric Adams, mayor of New York City. (Harry Watson photos)
Mayoral candidate Dr. Selma Bartholomew speaks.
Mayoral candidate Whitney Tilson answers a question.
Union Matters
FDNY EMS Local 2507 celebrates its 50th anniversary, but still wants
By KAREN JUANITA CARRILLO Amsterdam News Staff
In 1996, when New York City’s Emergency Medical Service (EMS) merged with the Fire Department of New York City (FDNY), it caused a lot of turmoil.
Neither organization truly wanted the merger.
EMS personnel had been part of the Health and Hospitals Corporation. They felt more closely aligned with the medical field, which had nothing to do with firefighting. Firefighters believed their role was solely to combat fires, not to engage in medical duties.
Combining medical and firefighting resources did help strengthen the city’s emergency response capabilities, though: EMS personnel gained improved training and updated equipment, while the FDNY was able to coordinate better and expand its services.
“They started off with a lot of tension and animosity,” Oren Barzilay, president of Local 2507, the union that represents the 4,500 members of the FDNY EMS, told the AmNews. “And as the years grew, the respect for each other got better. But to this day, because of the city’s lack of acknowledging EMTs and paramedics, there’s still a huge pay gap between the two professions, and it creates a lot of division, a lack of respect for the men and women of EMS.”
Wages for EMS workers remain low
The merger was supposed to garner Local 2507 members better pay and benefits, but the average hourly pay for an EMS trainee in New York remains as low as $17.00 an hour. FDNY EMS employees have had uniform status since 2001, which should mean increased bargaining benefits for Local 2507 members, but the union contends the city continues to negotiate wages based on a bargaining system that grants 16% increases for all city employees regardless of base pay. With starting salaries for EMS employees in the $40,000 range, this keeps their wages low.
Local 2507 has an ongoing fed-
eral lawsuit against New York City for discriminatory pay practices in EMS. In its class action lawsuit, Local 2507 claims “the City pays EMS First Responders substantially lower salaries than it does Fire First Responders. Fire First Responders also ‘receive more generous overtime, pension, disability, medical, dental, line of duty death, and educational benefits.’ [T]he differences in compensation result from ‘the pronounced difference in demographics’ between EMS and Fire First Responders: While EMS First Responders are ‘at least 55% nonwhite and approximately 24% female,’ only ‘14% of Fire First Responders are non-white’ and ‘less than 1%’ are female.”
The Amsterdam News sent re-
quests for comments regarding the pay differentials received by Local 2507 members to New York City’s press office, but received no statements from the Mayor’s Office of Management & Budget or the mayor’s press secretary’s office on this subject by press time.
Union members have been trailing away from EMS work because of the low pay, Barzilay insisted. After receiving training for EMS roles, workers will often transition to better-paying positions within other city departments. The union calculates that 30% of its first responders will leave EMS this year. Meanwhile, 911 response times for those who remain with EMS continue to rise.
“We go to every job that the police officer goes to, that the fire-
fighters go to, yet the gap in pay is … we’re not talking about a couple of hundred dollars; we’re talking about tens of thousands of dollars. It’s just very frustrating,” Barzilay said. “Here we are, almost 30 years into the merger, and we’re still second-class citizens in an agency that’s predominantly white, and I have predominantly people of color and women in our union.”
Despite this adversity, FDNY EMS Local 2507 plans to celebrate the 50th anniversary of its founding on May 29. Union members will come together for a gala event at Terrace on the Park in Flushing Meadows, Queens, to commemorate the organization’s inception in 1975 and recognize its first responders. The event is one of
many efforts to show some appreciation for the emergency medical technicians, paramedics, and fire protection inspectors who continue to work for the city yet receive near-poverty wages.
EMT Ashley Diaz, a seven-year FDNY EMS Battalion 43 veteran who had her leg amputated after a car accident but continues to work as an FDNY EMT, will be one of many workers recognized for her dedication to FDNY EMS. State Senator Robert Jackson, who chairs the Civil Service & Pensions Committee, will be honored for being “a strong advocate for the retention and recruitment of EMS professionals and the introduction of hazard pay for these medical first responders in the instance of infectious disease outbreaks.”
FDNY EMS Local 2507 union members have been trailing away from EMS work because of low pay. After receiving training for EMS roles, workers will often transition to better-paying positions in other city departments. (FDNY EMS Local 2507 photo)
Harlem on the Hudson?
We are not sure whether Charles Rangel had a chance to respond to the proposal from the New York Interfaith Commission for Housing Equality to create an Uptown Waterfront Tourist and Financial Project. It crossed our desks at the same time we received an announcement that the esteemed former congressmember had joined the ancestors. In several ways, the project dovetails with Rangel’s Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone (UMEZ) and some of the recent ideas expressed by Rep. Adriano Espaillat, particularly Harlem’s location as the hub of a transportation network.
Moreover, the proposal raises questions about how the Uptown Waterfront intersects with the expansive Hudson River Park, which is nearing completion with plans to conduct research and offer scientific programming about ecology and related matters. What appears unique about this proposed new source of revenue is upgrading the Dyckman Waterfront and a connection to the Edgewater Waterfront, Brooklyn Bridge Park, Jacob Javits Convention Center, and Hudson Yards by an entertainment ferry.
Central to what the proposal envisions is attracting tourists and the economic clout they might fork over as part of the projected $250 each person spends a day. We have no
With Rikers Island, Eric Adams has made a bad situation worse
By GABRIEL SAYEGH
Elinor R.
clue how this would affect or involve residents, especially those in proximity to the Harlem-on-the-Hudson nexus of the entertainment circuit.
Based on reading the proposal and watching a short video, the project is very impressive. Some of this dream is based on the success of other river creations, in Paris along the river Seine and the Porto in Portugal, among others.
One element is the involvement of Columbia University and the former location of the Fairway supermarket. “I think having a grocery store there honestly better benefits the community driving into New York — it wasn’t necessarily for Harlem locals,” Kai Cogsville, communications director for the commission, told the Columbia Spectator. “I feel like that site should be utilized for real economic development and a chance to celebrate the culture of Harlem and uptown.”
Thus, the proposal which can be accessed at this link
Let us know what you think, and if you feel it’s feasible, as we began a series of questions about the future of the Harlem community and a sundry of development projects.
Tatum: Publisher and Editor in Chief
Damaso Reyes: Executive & Investigative
Editor
Kristin Fayne-Mulroy: Managing Editor
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Siobhan "Sam"
Wilbert A. Tatum
The New York Daily News recently ran an exclusive story with the headline “NYC Mayor Adams exploring abandoning current plan to shut down Rikers Island.” This shouldn’t come as a surprise. Since taking office, the mayor has worked to undermine the plan. The Adams administration has repeatedly bashed the proposal the City Council approved in 2019 to close the jail complex. Despite the mayor’s insistence that he and his team “always follow the law,” they have failed to meet most of the plan’s legal deadlines and benchmarks to close Rikers in 2027, as required by law.
Worse yet, Adams has blown up the centerpiece of the closure plan: reducing the jail population, including the use of safe, proven alternatives to incarceration. For decades, New York City steadily reduced the number of people caged at Rikers while reducing crime rates, showing that less incarceration and a safer city went hand in hand. This progress was due to an array of city and state policy reforms, strong social service infrastructure, and robust community-based action. The plan from 2019 required building on that success to reduce the jail population further, to 3,300. Instead of working to do that, however, Adams pursued a jailfirst approach, locking up even more people in the deadly and chaotic system while cutting the budgets for the very programs that safely reduce jail populations.
The results were predictable: When Adams took office, about 5,400 people were in jail citywide — predominantly Black, brown, and low-income New Yorkers, most of them held pretrial and many with serious mental health concerns. Today, more than 7,400 people are incarcerated — an increase of about 37%, according to the tracking tool from the Data Collaborative for Justice.
Since Adams became mayor, conditions in the jails have gone from bad to much, much worse and nearly 40 people have died
while in Department of Corrections custody. Rikers holds the grim distinction of being New York’s largest mental health institution.
A federal judge has held the city in contempt for its “blatant failure” to comply with court orders related to safety and transparency at the jails and putting people in “unconstitutional danger.” The judge is now considering appointing an independent federal receiver to take control at Rikers. This is an extremely serious and rare intervention of last resort.
While the current City Council has taken some important actions related to Rikers, including banning solitary confinement, it has not held the mayor accountable for closing the jails on time. Instead, in October 2023, Council Speaker Adrienne Adams appointed a powerless commission to “update and enhance” the closure plan. The commission chair, former state Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman, tried to assure the public in interviews and in op-ed penned with Eric Adams that the mayor was committed to closing Rikers, despite ample evidence to the contrary.
The commission finally released its latest report in March, confirming what’s long been evident: Rikers must be closed, but the plan to do so by 2027 is no longer viable. The commission outlined recommendations that, if implemented, could see Rikers close by 2031 or 2032, but
since taking office, the mayor has largely ignored the commission’s recommendations. Last week, he made it clear that he’s not going to start acting on them now. By failing to hold Mayor Adams accountable for closing Rikers by 2027, the City Council has let him run out the clock, leaving it to the next council and possibly a new administration to pick up the pieces.
Many families and communities affected by the horrors of Rikers — including Katal Center members — saw this writing on the wall years ago. That’s why we’re one of several organizations from across the state pushing for Albany to fix the watchdog agency charged with jail and prison oversight in New York, an entity that holds broad powers to investigate and shut down dangerous facilities.
It’s also why we’ve joined with more than 100 organizations calling on the federal court to appoint an independent receiver at Rikers, to improve conditions and save lives until the jail complex is closed.
Adams can foil a plan, but he cannot stop New Yorkers on the long march for justice. As Katal member Ziyadah Amatulmatin said about shutting Rikers, “The people have spoken, and we will not settle for less.”
Gabriel Sayegh is executive director of the Katal Center for Equity, Health, and Justice.
Bennett: Chief Revenue Officer and Head of Advertising
(1984-2009):
The road to Rikers Island. (AP photo)
An aerial view of Harlem. (Gryffindor photo via Wikimedia)
The ‘Lion’ sleeps in peace and power
By HERB BOYD
Of the legendary “Gang of Four” (David Dinkins, Basil Paterson, Percy Sutton, and Charles “The Lion” Rangel), only the latter two were acquaintances who transcended journalistic boundaries. All of them, at one time or another during my generation on the beat for the AmNews, were popular and productive enough to earn coverage in these pages and interviews with me.
My relationship with Sutton and Rangel began on a critical note, each taking exception to something I had written. Sutton chastised me for leaving out some important information that would have given my story more balance and insight. When I was summoned to Rangel’s office in the State Office Building one day many years ago, even before he pointed out an error I had made, it was hard to take my eyes off the huge portrait of J. Raymond Jones, “The Harlem Fox,” his mentor, which added to my consternation.
Relationships that started on a sour note were apparently soon forgotten by these giants of the community, and I made amends by paying closer attention to the details, particularly when an issue pertained to them. After covering Sutton over several decades, I finally found the courage to ask him to write the foreword to my biography of Sugar Ray Robinson, who at one time was one of his clients. One paragraph from that foreword came to mind with the passage of the “Lion of Lenox Avenue” this week.
Sutton wrote, “When I with a large body of help from Congressman Charles Rangel, placed time, money and energy of my own, my family, and my company--Inner City Broadcasting Corpora-
tion — into the rehabilitation of the Apollo Theater in the early 1980s until 1992, some of the intent was to revive a community that had slumped considerably after Sugar Ray’s enterprises were no longer available to inspire. In fact, the Apollo and Sugar Ray can be compared in the sense that each was, for a while, a singular lodestar that drew millions of visitors to Harlem. And during those years in which they existed simultaneously, the allure was undeniable. Thanks, Charlie Rangel; thanks, Harlem; thanks, Sugar Ray and Lady Edna Mae.”
As you can see, Sutton was as gifted a writer as he was an astute entrepreneur and politician. In many ways, Rangel was his equal in words and praise when he wrote the foreword to my manuscript about the history of Harlem. Rangel wrote:
“When Herb asked me to write a Foreword to this book, a veritable compendium of Harlem’s illustrious history and legacy, I accepted without hesitation because he is a friend and a colleague. I have known him for more than a generation, and I’ve followed his reportage, mainly in the Amsterdam News, in the same way he’s covered me over the years. If I am right in my recollection, our first real conversation occurred after I took exception to one of his articles, mostly about his interpretation of an event, which he accepted graciously with a promise to be more precise in the future.
“Well, having said that, Herb has not only been an accurate and prolific re-
porter, he has written several books, many of which are housed at City College library next to my large collection. I am not sure what number ‘Epic Harlem’ is among his books, but given its length and deep dive into the community’’s history and personalities, it will certainly rank among his best.”
This precious piece of praise may have been the last to flow from his generous and thoughtful recognition. As one of his most loyal lieutenants confided, Rangel leaving us on “Memorial Day may have been his way of telling us something,” perhaps something about his own gallantry in battle and how we all must prepare for the inevitable. The “Lion” sleeps in peace and power!
Will NYC stand up to Trump’s education agenda or fall in line?
By MATT GONZALES
The New York City Council quietly postponed an oversight hearing on school integration originally scheduled for February 26. This delay appears to be a direct response to the Trump administration’s February 14 Dear Colleague letter, which provided new guidance on the Supreme Court’s 2023 Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard (SFFA) ruling. This new guidance seeks to significantly broaden the reach of the SFFA ruling beyond the authority of the Department of Education and the Office of Civil Rights. However, the hearing’s postponement — along with Mayor Eric Adams’ recent directive for City officials to avoid criticizing the Trump administration and his willingness to co-
operate with its deportation plans in exchange for support with his own legal troubles –– raises concerns. Many
Graduation Season
CHRISTINA GREER, PH.D.
There is something so special about graduation season. Whether it’s seeing little ones with balloons or middle school students in what looks like their Sunday best, or high school students with their satin caps and gowns in varying bright colors, or college grads in full regalia with tassels representing a myriad of honor societies and organizations they joined during their college years. I love seeing parents and grandparents gleaming with pride at witnessing a new generation supersede them into a new world of academic pursuit.
other family members cannot, and therefore their words hold a special weight as we toast the graduates.
New Yorkers may now question whether the City will continue to stand as a stronghold against the Trump administration’s harmful policies.
Last May marked 70 years since Brown v. Board, prompting reflections on its legacy and the work still needed. In partnership with Nyah Berg of New York Appleseed, I co-authored, From Crests to Valleys: NYC’s Battle for Integration 70 Years After Brown, a report analyzing New York City’s action on school integration. Our analysis found that despite past progress, the city is actually regressing.
Between 2014 and 2019, school integration efforts gained significant momentum. Findings from a 2012 New York Times article exposing New York City
Graduations were always a big deal in my family. My father always said, “A good education is the one thing I can give you that no one can ever take away.” So many families see education as a tool to uplift not just a family, but an entire community and even a race. I love how on graduation day, people take time to really acknowledge all of the work and sacrifice that went into making a dream a reality. I wish we would celebrate the hard work much more along the journey and not just at the destination, I think it would help some people see this sometimes arduous task as a series of several small wins and not just one large successful moment.
We have a tradition in my family where the parents toast the graduate first, then family and friends, and the siblings are the last to say their words of love, wisdom, and congratulations. I have always loved this tradition. I think siblings can sometimes see the highs and lows of school and academic pursuits in ways that parents and
As our education systems are under attack from pre-K all the way through graduate programs, the idea of education is now more important than ever. We may have taken for granted the opportunity to attend a public elementary, middle, or high school or receive a grant or financial aid to attend college. Those ideals are currently under attack and the current administration in Washington, DC is threatening to defund and erase so many ladders of opportunity for school children across the country. We cannot let this happen.
As we think about our future, we must make sure our elected officials know that education is one of the many policy issues that cannot be on the chopping block. I want to continue to see a diverse group of young men and women each May and June in their caps and gowns surrounded by beaming family and friends. I want to continue the possibility of an endless future once someone has accomplished a hard earned goal. Let’s be sure to congratulate our graduates and continue to fight for their futures.
Christina Greer, Ph.D., is an associate professor at Fordham University; author of book “How to Build a Democracy: From Fannie Lou Hamer and Barbara Jordan to Stacey Abrams” and “Black Ethnics: Race, Immigration, and the Pursuit of the American Dream” and is co-host of the podcast FAQ-NYC.
Matt Gonzales
(AmNews archives)
Caribbean Update
Guyana to vote in September. Suriname’s government falls to opposition
By BERT WILKINSON Special to AmNews
The largest and most resource-rich country of the Caribbean Community (Caricom) votes for a new government on September 1 in the latest of a string of elections in the 15-member bloc this year.
President Irfaan Ali used the opportunity of his address late Sunday at celebrations marking 59 years of independence from Britain to announce the date and indicate that parliament will soon be dissolved to make way for the latest general elections in the bloc.
The announcement came just as electoral authorities in neighboring Suriname were counting the votes from polls held in the Dutch-speaking Caribbean nation earlier in the day, on Sunday. Preliminary results have so far indicated that the multiracial National Democratic Party (NDP) might well be the largest single party in the country, with 18 of the 51 seats, narrowly sneaking ahead of the Hindustani-dominated VHP party of President Chan Santokhi with 17. Final results are expected later in the week, but it is clear that negotiations for a multiparty coalition will have to begin in earnest among the major parties because 26 seats are needed to form a government and 34, or two-thirds, to begin the process of choosing a president.
The country has had a history of coalition governments since independence from the Netherlands in 1975, with the last one having four representing Indo
and Afro Surinamese, one traditionally supported by the urban middle class, and the fourth of Maroons, descendants of runaway slaves in the colonial era. Two had abandoned the grouping before the elections, citing rampant and widespread corruption, nepotism, rising inflation, and other problems.
As electoral officials prepare for the final tally, leaders of the NDP and the VHP have both begun to signal a willingness to talk coalition formation, because much is at stake. In early 2028, Suriname will begin production of offshore oil that is likely to bring in billions to the country of just over 600,000 from the prolific Guyana-Suriname basin. Neighboring Guyana earns nearly $9 million per day from oil production, which is expected to almost double with additional oil fields coming on stream in the near two years, taking production to 1 million barrels from around 650,000 daily currently.
“We asked for a mandate, and this is the mandate that the people have given,” Santokhi told reporters. “We must now continue with this. It is up to us to have discussions with other political parties on this basis. The election campaign is over, the battle has been fought. Now we, as leaders, have to see what is good for the country. That is what it is all about now.”
For its part, the NDP, which lost the 2020 elections to a VHP-led grouping, saying no administration will run the country with it on the political and governmental sidelines this time.
The NDP had had two terms in office from 2010, but leader Jenny Geerlings-Simons said the party is happy with its progress, even though 18 seats represent a gain of only two seats from 2020, while the VHP has dropped three or just over 15,000 votes. She said party leadership is already working on what happens in the coming days, meaning coalition formation. If all goes well, Geerlings-Simons could also become the country’s first head of government when the process of electing a leader begins in earnest in the coming days. If she does, she will join Mia Mottley of Barbados, Kamla Persad-Bissessar of Trinidad, and Cora Richardson-Hodge of Anguilla, all attorneys at law.
“We are on the right track,” said the NDP leader and former parliamentary speaker. “There are still a few thousand votes to be counted and we hope that it will continue in our favor, but we will calmly wait for the result. We are happy, because we know how this result came about, but we are where we are now and we will continue from there. This is the first step — and believe me, we are already working on it.”
Meanwhile in Guyana, like Suriname, whichever party runs the government after September will enjoy billions in oil revenues going forward, since less than 10% of the prolific basin has been explored so far.
In 2025 to date, elections have been held in Anguilla, the Cayman Islands, Belize, Curaçao, Trinidad, and Suriname, while Jamaica, St. Vincent, and Guyana are next on this electoral conveyor belt of the year.
Fact vs. fiction and the Trump immigration data
In the current political landscape, immigration remains a hot-button issue, and no one exploits it quite like Donald Trump. Back in the White House, Trump has once again made bold claims about his administration’s immigration enforcement achievements. But the latest data from the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) exposes a stark disconnect between the Trump administration’s rhetoric and the actual numbers.
In an April 28, 2025, press release celebrating its first 100 days, the Trump administration claimed to have already “surpassed the entirety of Fiscal Year 2024” in immigration enforcement, citing over 151,000 arrests and 135,000 deportations. However, TRAC’s independently verified figures tell a much different story.
Let’s start with deportations. According to ICE’s semi-monthly detention statistics, which TRAC meticulously tracks, the actual number of removals under Trump during his first 98 days — from January 26 to May 3, 2025 — was just 72,179. That’s nearly half the 135,000 removals Trump claimed. In contrast, the Joe Biden administration recorded 271,484 removals in the entirety of Fiscal Year 2024. To put it plainly, Biden’s deportation numbers were nearly four times higher than Trump’s in the comparable time frame. On arrests, which the administration referred to as “book-ins,” the Trump administration reported 151,000 arrests during the same 100-day period. Yet, TRAC data shows only 76,212 arrests, just over half the claimed number. These exaggerations are not minor errors; they are calculated misrepresentations. When examining daily averages — a more accurate measure across different time frames — the picture remains consistent. Under Biden, there were an average of 742 deportations and 759 arrests per day in FY 2024. Trump’s current averages are 737 deporta-
tions and 778 arrests per day. That amounts to just a 1% decrease in deportations and a modest 2% increase in arrests under Trump compared to Biden. Not quite the “skyrocketing” figures the administration touts.
Moreover, the administration has taken steps to obscure these realities. The Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Homeland Security Statistics (OHSS) has failed to publish updated enforcement data since November 2024, a troubling breach of transparency. It wasn’t until after the fanfare of Trump’s “100-day achievements” that ICE quietly released delayed data. TRAC noted that the reports were posted late on a Friday and the following Monday, likely to minimize public scrutiny.
Beyond the numbers, the Trump administration’s focus appears increasingly punitive and political. Immigrants who are complying with legal procedures — attending scheduled ICE check-ins, applying for green cards, or pursuing citizenship — have reported being ambushed and detained. Foreign students have found themselves targeted for express-
ing dissenting views. These are not the hardened criminals Trump claims to be removing. They are law-abiding residents being used as political pawns.
Meanwhile, public messaging has grown more aggressive. The administration now uses scare tactics, urging undocumented immigrants to self-deport to avoid being forcefully removed. Yet, despite military involvement and redeployment of agency staff, Trump’s actual enforcement numbers fail to match his bluster.
This glaring gap between words and actions underlines a fundamental truth: the Trump administration’s immigration spin is more about headlines than results. In the face of misleading narratives, the role of independent data and persistent scrutiny is more crucial than ever. Americans deserve an immigration policy grounded in truth, not theatrics.
Felicia J. Persaud is the publisher of NewsAmericasNow.com, a daily news outlet focused on positive news about Black immigrant communities from the Caribbean and Latin America.
Guyanese President Irfaan Ali. (Commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Irfaan_ Ali_in_2020)
By DAVID YUSUFU KIBINGILA and MONIKA PRONCZUK Associated Press
RUBAYA, Congo (AP) — Nestled in the green hills of Masisi territory in Congo, the artisanal Rubaya mining site hums with the sound of generators, as hundreds of men labor by hand to extract coltan, a key mineral crucial for producing modern electronics and defense technology — and fiercely sought after worldwide.
Rubaya lies in the heart of eastern Congo, a mineral-rich part of the Central African nation which for decades has been ripped apart by violence from government forces and different armed groups, including the Rwanda-backed M23, whose recent resurgence has escalated the conflict, worsening an already acute humanitarian crisis.
As the U.S. spearheads peace talks between Congo and Rwanda, Congo’s President Felix Tshisekedi has sought out a deal with the Trump administration, offering mineral access in return for American support in quelling the insurgency and boosting security.
While details of the deal remain unclear, analysts said Rubaya might be one of the mining sites which fall under its scope.
Eastern Congo has been in and out of crisis for decades. The conflict has created one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises with more than 7 million people displaced, including 100,000 who fled homes this year.
The Rubaya mines have been at the center of the fighting, changing hands between the Congolese government and rebel groups. For over a year now, it has been controlled by the M23 rebels, who earlier this year advanced and seized the strategic city of Goma and Bukavu in a major escalation of the conflict.
Despite the country’s exceptional mineral wealth, over 70% of Congolese live on less than $2.15 a day.
Metals for ‘modern life and military preparedness’
For the men working in the Rubaya’s mines, who rely on the mining for their livelihoods, little has changed over decades of violence.
International News
Congo’s coltan miners dig for world’s tech — and struggle regardless of who is in charge
One of them is Jean Baptiste Bigirimana, who has worked in the mines for seven years.
“I earn $40 a month, but that’s not enough,” he said. “Children need clothes, education and food. When I divide up the money to see how I will take care of my children, I realize it’s not enough,” he said, adding that he doesn’t know where the minerals he mines go once they leave Rubaya.
The mines produce coltan — short for columbite-tantalite — an ore from which the metals tantalum and niobium are extracted. Both are considered critical raw materials by the United States, the European Union, China and Japan. Tantalum is used in mobile phones, computers and automotive electronics, as well as in aircraft engines, missile components and GPS systems. Niobium is used in pipelines, rockets and jet engines.
Congo produced about 40% of the world’s coltan in 2023, according to the U.S. Geological Survey, with Australia, Canada and Brazil being other major suppliers.
The National Energy Emergency executive order, issued by Trump, highlighted the significance of critical minerals — including tan-
talum and niobium — and called for securing U.S. access to ensure both “modern life and military preparedness.”
A
‘murky’
global supply chain
According to a U.N. report, since seizing Rubaya in April last year, the M23 has imposed taxes on the monthly trade and transport of 120 tonnes of coltan, generating at least $800,000 a month. The coltan then is exported to Rwanda, U.N. experts said. But even before M23 seized control of the mine, analysts said that the mineral was sold to Rwanda, the only difference being it was done through Congolese intermediaries.
Experts say that it is not easy to trace how coltan arrives in Western countries.
“The global coltan supply chain is pretty murky,” said Guillaume de Brier, a natural resources researcher at the Antwerp-based International Peace Information Service. “From eastern DRC, coltan is bought by traders, mostly Lebanese or Chinese, who will sell it to exporters based in Rwanda. Exporters will then ship it to the UAE or China, where it will be refined into tantalum and niobium, and sold to West-
ern countries as metals from UAE or China.”
The M23 has previously controlled Rubaya for periods of time, and the U.N. asserted that, even before the takeover of Goma, the group was facilitating the smuggling of these minerals to Rwanda. Since M23 took control of the mine, Rwanda’s official coltan exports have doubled, according to Rwandan official figures.
At times the mines were also under control of the Wazalendo, a militia allied with the Congolese army.
Alexis Twagira said he feels some things have improved under M23.
“I’ve been working in this mine for 13 years, and I’ve worked under the Wazalendo. When they were here, they would harass us, sometimes taking our minerals and demanding money,” he said.
The U.N. has accused both the Congolese army and the M23 rebels of human rights abuses.
‘We can’t continue like this’ Congo is the world’s largest producer of cobalt, a mineral used to make lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles and other products, but U.S. access is complicated by the fact that Chinese companies con-
trol 80% of its Congolese production. Congo also produces gold.
In recent weeks, two U.S. companies opened doors to production in the region. Nathan Trotter, a U.S. firm, signed a letter of intent with Rwanda-based Trinity Metals, which owns Rwanda’s largest tin mine. And KoBold Metals, which uses Artificial Intelligence to further energy transition and is backed by billionaire Bill Gates, brokered a deal to buy Australia’s AVZ Minerals’ interest in Congo’s Manono lithium deposits.
Analysts warn that the implementation of a minerals deal in eastern Congo, if one was to materialize, will face many hurdles — especially with U.S. investors largely abandoning Congo in the last two decades.
“Turning a headline announcement into sustainable progress will require resolving deep suspicions between Rwanda and the DRC,” Chatham House, a research institute, said in a recent report. “A deal will also need to account for complex local political problems of land access and identity, wider security challenges in a region that hosts myriad non-state armed groups, and issues of asset scarcity.”
If the deal were to include Rubaya, where all mining is currently done manually, U.S. companies would have to contend with both security concerns and a severe lack of infrastructure.
“With coltan, you’re dealing with hundreds of thousands of miners, and not just M23, but other socalled auto-defense armed groups and individuals who rely on mining for survival,” said de Brier from the International Peace Information Service. “You have to build all the infrastructure, you have to start from scratch. You will even have to build the roads.”
Bahati Moïse, a trader who resells coltan from Rubaya’s mines, hopes that, regardless who controls the mines, the workers who labor to extract the minerals will finally be valued as much as the resources themselves.
“The whole country, the whole world knows that phones are made from the coltan mined here, but look at the life we live,” he said. “We can’t continue like this.”
Miners work at the D4 Gakombe coltan quarry in Rubaya, Democratic Republic of Congo. (AP Photo/Moses Sawasawa)
Former U.S. Congressman Charles B. Rangel dies at 94
By HERB BOYD Special to the AmNews
Charles Bernard Rangel, the former congressman from Harlem, and the last remaining founder of the Congressional Black Caucus, has died at age 94. Rangel passed away on Monday, May 26, Memorial Day, surrounded by family. He was a native of Harlem, and the lone surviving member of the legendary Gang of Four. He took his reputation as the “Lion of Lenox Avenue” to the House of Representatives in 1971 after defeating the renowned Rev. Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. The apogee of his tenure in Congress was in 2007 when he became chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. In his autobiography, Rangel claimed he never had a bad day since he survived an attack by the Chinese and the North Korean armies when he served in the Korean War, “but it doesn’t mean I haven’t had some heartbreaking expe-
riences,” he wrote, particularly noting the loss of his brother. “Setbacks I’ve had; but bad days, no.”
“Charlie was a transformative leader, he used his political position to elevate the people he represented. He was accessible and always available to anyone who came to him for assistance. He demonstrated that political figures could be honorable and serve as great examples for young people to follow. From Harlem, he made his mark on the country. He will always be remembered as a warrior for justice and equality,” said former NYS State Comptroller H. Carl McCall in a statement to the AmNews.
Former Assemblymember Keith Wright told the AmNews that Rangel was a “political genius and a personal role model. The Harlem community, the state, and the nation are fortunate to have had Charlie Rangel in our lives. His legacy is cemented in perpetuity.”
See story on next page
During an interview with The HistoryMakers in 2018, Rangel recounted his early years coming of age on the streets of Harlem. “I came up from nothing,” he said, “I was a fatherless high school dropout with a gift of living by my wits and hiding my inadequacies behind bravado.” At the age of 22, he said, “I was pushing a hand truck in the gutters of New York’s garment district for a living...Yet somehow, by age 30, I had acquired three degrees in six years, and was a newly minted lawyer admitted to the New York Bar.”
Rangel’s rise from poverty to leadership in Congress began on June 11, 1930 when he was born in Harlem. Raised by his mother, grandfather, and his uncle Herbert, he attended P.S. 89, Junior High School 139, and later DeWitt Clinton High School, where he did well as a student. After dropping out of high school, he enlisted in the U.S. Army. He served during the Korean War and was seriously wounded in combat, and received the Bronze Star and Purple Heart.
On the rise
Upon discharge from the military, Rangel enrolled at New York University, earned his B.A. degree in 1957, and three years later, a law degree from St. John’s University Law School. A working man throughout his life, he was fond of recalling his job as a night desk clerk at the Hotel Theresa, Harlem’s Waldorf-Astoria. “At nights when I worked, it was Grand Central Station for the biggest Black stars of stage and screen, the top athletes, the highest rollers, and all the inevitable low-life hangers-on,” he wrote in his autobiography. In 1961, Attorney General Robert Kennedy appointed Rangel assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York. Six years later, he won election to the New York State Assembly.
But only focusing on his first elected office, he misses two highlights of his life: His marriage to Alma Carter in 1964 and the 54-mile trek he made with others from Selma to Montgomery in 1965.
“I cursed every step of those fifty-four miles, wondering how the hell did I start marching with these redneck national guard troops for an escort,” he wrote. “People in every house we passed along the way called us everything under the sun, and threw things at us. Every store played ‘Bye, Bye Blackbird’ from loudspeakers.” One man, he recalled, asked him if he wanted a shower since they were sleeping in tents scattered around the fields. “We met and climbed into this broken down car on a dirt road,” Rangel continued, “and as this overcrowded car took off in the darkness, we saw that we were being followed. Damn, were we scared. We sped up, turned around, and gave up all thoughts of showering –– all we wanted to do was get back to our group.”
Thanks to the influence of J. Raymond Jones, known as “The Harlem Fox” for his political sagacity, Rangel’s political career was launched, having succeeded Percy Sutton for the 11th A.D. It was also the beginning of a lifelong friendship with Sutton
(AmNews archives)
that later morphed into the forging of the Gang of Four, including Basil Paterson and David Dinkins. With Rep. Powell battling cancer and spending too much time out of the country, Rangel was among a cadre of young politicians who began to talk about unseating the invincible congressman. On several occasions, Rangel was in Powell’s company when he often assembled residents to display his power. Once at the Rooster bar, where Powell held forth, “I’d gone alone, which was stupid,” Rangel admitted in his autobiography. Powell had all of his boosters and fans prepared to voice a chorus of “Yes, Congressman!” “I was still brandnew as a district leader, and I was once again overly impressed with the invitation to meet Adam. But the meeting was all about ‘So... you’re the new guy on the block ... you’re the smart one …’ You’re this and that. I learned a lesson from that meeting, and I remembered everyone who was there.” For the next few years, he said, the meeting haunted him.
Taking on a legend and establishing his own legacy
On February 20, 1970, Rangel announced his run against Powell, and in doing so, gave up his Assembly seat. As it turned out, Rangel narrowly defeated Powell, never needing the Republican ballot line. “I won the Democratic primary in June by 150 votes,” Rangel said. And he defeated Powell when he took the outcome to the Supreme Court. “All I had to really do,” he said about the contest, “was dominate the vote in my district...and that, you might say, was my margin of victory,” he said. For the first time in its history, Harlem will have a congressional district office. Rangel hit the ground running, having soundly defeated the Republican candidate in the general election. He was hardly in his seat when he became a co-founder of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) in 1971. The CBC was the initial step in solidifying the gains of the civil rights movement. Among the first legislative moves by Rangel was to distance himself from Powell’s shadow with concerted campaigns against drugs. But he was most proud of his three articles against President Nixon, above and beyond the Judiciary Committee, in 1974. In 1983, Rangel became chair of the Select Committee on Narcotics Abuse and Control and was subsequently appointed a deputy whip for the House Democratic leadership, a position he maintained until 1993.
As the consensus on how to address the drug crisis shifted among progressives, Rangel evolved from a stubborn proponent of using prosecution and law enforcement to stomp out the blight to an advocate for reform. In a 1990 article on President Bush’s new drug strategy, the AmNews wrote: “he was concerned that ‘there was nothing in the updated strategy which addresses the root cause of drug abuse.’” He went on to say, “The need to attack the root causes of drug abuse cannot be overlooked.”
A year later, under federal legislation authored by Rangel, President Clinton, the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone
(UMEZ) was created. It was established to assist residents who had the highest concentration of poverty, according to the 1990 Census. No matter the event, the UMEZ was always mentioned among Rangel’s most significant contributions to the Harlem community. But his crowning achievement as a congressman came in 2007 when he became the first African American to chair the House Ways and Means Committee.
Rangel was also a champion for the Caribbean, advocating first for a normalization of relations between the U.S. and Cuba and later for Haitian refugees. In a 1993 article, Rangel told the AmNews, “It is time to end the Cold War in our hemisphere.” Later, adding “Cuba poses no threat at all to the U.S.”
On behalf of Haitian refugees, Rangel said, “The explosive situation in Haiti demands forthright action by our government to protect Haitian refugees in any way possible.” He added, “With the ever-present threat of violence in Haiti, we must put an immediate end to the deportations. It has been an inhumane policy from the start that we practice against no other nationality.”
As chair of the Ways and Means Committee, Rangel led the economic recovery after a terrible recession in 2008. He played a key role in the Democrats’ landmark health care bill, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. During a committee hearing, Rangel said, “We have a moral obligation in terms of the number of people who have lost their homes, gone into bankruptcy as a result of the costs of providing health care.”
For a congressman who often proclaimed he hadn’t had a bad day since being wounded during the Korean War, there, as he admitted, were several setbacks, none more critical than a string of ethics violations, which he was accused of accepting rent-controlled apartments in Harlem at values far below market. When he challenged those charges, it merely exacerbated his situation and led to disclosures of unpaid taxes. The end result of the ongoing dispute, with Rangel denying any wrongdoing, led to his leave of absence a few days before President Obama enacted the Affordable Care Act in 2010. Eventually, the Ethics Committee found he violated almost all of the charges against him and voted 9 to 1 to censure him. The full House voted unanimously to censure the first representative to undergo such treatment in a generation.
During the 2010 election, Rangel, his reputation somewhat blemished, narrowly defeated the challengers in the Democratic primary. Even so, the handwriting was on the wall, his influence diminished, and he was temporarily relieved of full status in Congress, listed as an ex officio member of the Ways and Means Committee. Among his last acts in Congress before retiring after the 114th Congress was as a ranking member of the Subcommittees on Trade.
His long tenure in Congress may have
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come to an end but “Lion of Lenox Avenue,” was not without his prestige in Harlem, particularly at the City College of New York where he helmed the Charles B. Rangel Infrastructure Workforce Initiative, fully prepared to usher in the next generation of skilled professionals to meet the demands of a changing industry. Having served in New York’s 15th Congressional District for nearly half a century, his new office at City College has become an incubator, bridging education and opportunity. It was just another way of perpetuating his leadership, carrying on what he had done previously in Congress on the various committees and subcommittees, with UMEZ, and his determination to upend apartheid in South Africa. Even as he basked in the sun on the beach at Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic with his wife, Alma, who died in 2024, reflecting on his two children and grandchildren, Rangel was ruminating on his legacy and other issues still to be resolved.
At the close of his autobiography, he said, “I’ve spent all of my life preparing this case (his meeting with St. Peter). It will include the Caribbean Basin Initiative, the African Growth and Opportunity Act, the Empowerment Zones, and the Rangel Low-Income Housing Credits, among many other things, in the Congressional Record. And if St. Peter’s not overly impressed with my legislative record, then I’ll just have to tell him that I did the best I could. And if I succeed in getting a room with a view, then I can truly say that I haven’t had a bad time.”
Arts & Entertainment
‘American Sublime’: The broader American art of Amy Sherald on view at the Whitney
By BRENIKA BANKS
Special to the AmNews
As soon as the elevator doors open onto the fifth floor of the Whitney Museum, visitors are immediately greeted with the words “Amy Sherald: American Sublime” boldly printed on the wall. The exhibition, now on display through August 10, has been captivating museum-goers since its opening.
Sherald focuses her visual storytelling by creating portraitist works, with paintings featuring subjects contrasted against various solid-colored backgrounds. The painter and photographer, who attended the Maryland Institute College of Art, refers to herself as an American artist “who portrays Black life … It turns out painting Black people is kind of political.
“We don’t refer to the work of white artists as ‘white art,’ even when their subjects are predominantly white,” said the artist. Sherald’s paintings in the Whitney exhibition display African Americans in causal settings. “My work is part of the broader American narrative,” she shared.
Her “The Girl Next Door, 2019” painting, against a solid green background, highlights a fullfigured dark-skinned woman. Done in oil on canvas, it is intentionally one of the first five of the paintings that visitors see. “Images can change the world,” shared Sherald, who effectively blends painting with photography by isolating her subjects to a minimal yet bold background, avoiding distractions.
Rujeko Hockley, the exhibition’s curator, does an excellent job of drawing audiences in, sharing that American Realism is something the Whitney was very focused on. “People are responding well to the show,” said Hockley. “It traveled from SFMOMA (San Francisco Museum of Modern Art) [and] was then organized at the Whitney.” Hockley has been working on the exhibition for over a year, and it has significantly impacted her growth at the Whitney as a curator. “I’ve really been lucky to continue to have oppor-
“What’s
tunities to grow,” said Hockley, who believes this show is special in many ways, and loved working with Sherald. “She’s a very special person — really a light in this world,” said Hockley.
“Working with Rujeko Hockley was deeply aligned with these intentions,” said Sherald. “Together, we worked to ensure that every
“If
aspect of this show honored the integrity of the portraits.” Sherald is enjoying what she describes as a beautiful and humble experience with her works on display. She appreciates seeing people engrossed with her paintings, and beyond, including the emotions and histories inside them. “The process reflected a shared commitment
to protecting space for broader American narratives to be seen, felt, and remembered on their own terms,” said Sherald. “What’s different about Alice is that she has the most incisive way of telling the truth, 2017” features a woman holding a 35mm film camera. The painting’s label describes the bond between the
camera and the subject as an “intimate relationship between an artist and their tools.” This painting parallels Sherald as a photographer, whose photos are an essential early step in transforming her subjects into paintings. She blends photography into painting authentically, and shared that making large paintings for a museum exhibition is “a dream come true.”
“A Golden Afternoon, 2016” and “What’s precious inside of him does not care to be known by the mind in ways that diminish its presence (All American), 2017” are positioned next to each other. These paintings, and all her pieces, display Sherald’s strategic decision to use gray paint for her African American subjects. Sherald said her works in the exhibition are more than just traditional pieces — they are focused on everyday Black Americans who are very special, being ordinary, yet extraordinary.
Hockley credits Sherald with artistically aligning with many institutional collections. Sherald illustrates that reminders of our history are, in creative and artistic ways, reflected well through this exhibition. “I think what’s most meaningful for me is that people aren’t just ‘looking,’ they’re feeling, remembering, reflecting,” said Sherald. “That’s all I could hope for.”
“The first time I saw Amy Sherald’s beautiful portrait of me, I have to admit, it felt surreal,” said Michelle Obama in the exhibition’s audio. “It’s me through Amy’s eyes — but somehow, it’s me through my eyes, too.” This painting made the former first lady feel proud of her family’s generations who came before her. “My hope is that when people look at this painting, they see that sense of possibility staring back at them.” She hopes viewers of this painting feel braver and stronger, and hope they realize they can be anything. “That’s why I’m so grateful to Amy for the gift of this portrait, and I hope you love it just as much as I do.”
For more info, visit whitney.org.
Continued on next page
“A Golden Afternoon,” 2016 (left) and “What’s precious inside of him does not care to be known by the mind in ways that diminish its presence (All American), 2017” (right) (Brenika Banks photos)
you surrendered to the air, you could ride it, 2019”
different about Alice is that she has the most incisive way of telling the truth, 2017”
The entrance of the “Amy Sherald: American Sublime” exhibition at the Whitney Museum. (Brenika Banks photos)
AmNews reporter Brenika Banks posing with “Michelle La Vaughn Robinson Obama, 2018” “The Girl Next Door, 2019”
A look at Harlem celebrations of Malcolm X’s 100th birthday
By JASON PONTEROTTO
Special to the AmNews
Harlem was the center of much activity celebrating Malcolm X’s 100th birthday during the “Live on Lenox-X Marks the Spot” events on Monday. In the community where the Black liberation leader centered much of his work, several artists and performers gave tribute to Malcolm through concern.
The production was a collaboration between Aquastra Media Productions, Arts and Education Continuum, Social Studies 101, I’d Watch That, Welcome to Harlem, Harlem Jazz Box, Marcus Meets Malcolm, and the Harlem Bomb Shelter.
In the early afternoon, the December 12th organization conducted their 35th annual protest on 125th against any businesses that opted not to close in observance of Malcolm X’s birthday. More than 100 protestors rallied peacefully in front of the Chick-fil-A between Adam Clayton Powell and Frederick Douglass Blvd. before making their way up and down the street. Chairperson Omowale Clay said that more than 90% of the stores on the street had been closed from 1 to 4 p.m., including Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, and H&M. At a rally in front of the Adam Clayton Powell State Office Building, he vowed that they would continue to apply pressure on the restaurant for choosing not to close.
On May 15, the group, based in Brooklyn, worked with City Council leaders, including Althea Stevens in the Bronx and Yusef Salaam in Harlem, to celebrate the centennial and legacy by establishing the first Malcolm X Day in City Hall. Conversely, Clay said they experienced additional hurdles this year in carrying out their annual protest — they were initially told they could not have bullhorns or sound, but they were able to get that reversed.
Throughout the day, Harlemites and other community members could be seen walking around wearing shirts with Malcolm X’s face or images of similar Black
Lenox was officially co-named Malcolm X Boulevard in 1987, where he delivered various speeches. This year’s performances on the avenue kicked off with storytelling and music with Trinidadian drummer Sanga of the Valley at 120th Street, a dance show from the performing arts students at the South Bronx Early College Academy Charter Middle School, an African dance class with Rev. Nafissa Sheriff, and a drummer’s circle between 120th and 119th Streets. Several poetry performances took place,
featuring artists with the Harlem Bomb Shelter and others. The group presented open mic slam poetry at the corners of 116th, 120th, and 125th Streets, accompanied by jazz musicians from the Malcolm Megaphones, a music project created by artist Carrie Mae Weems.
Poets E’Lee James and Seyisayo Iuko, both with the Bomb Shelter, performed pieces about childhood trauma and Black culture. Iuko, who is from Nigeria, said the opportunity to perform on Lenox for Malcolm X was an honor. “For me, it was very
Harlem … walking past and hearing people spitting poems, people dancing,” Iuko said.
“I remember growing up, I used to watch things happening in Harlem and want to be there, and so being folded into that history is such a privilege.”
The festivities on Lenox concluded at Mount Olivet Baptist Church with the Requiem for Malcolm concert, starring trombonist Craig Harris and the Nation of Imagination band, with poetry by Sista Zock, The Artist Anubis, and Ngoma Hill, and a “Memories of Malcolm” tribute from singer and activist Nana Camille Yarbourough.
Further uptown at the former Audubon Ballroom, where Malcolm was assassinated, the Birthday Celebration event from the Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz Center featured various figures in social justice activism and other celebrities in attendance, including Lauryn Hill, Rev. Al Sharpton, Benjamin Crump, and Kyrie Irving.
One of the awardees, Professor Ernest Crim III, has carved a path on social media by teaching about Black history in connection with the ongoing attacks on the community and other marginalized groups.
Calling Malcolm X the most important historical figure in his life, Crim referred to the ceremony as a “wonderful celebration of the African experience.”
“It made me feel at home … at one with our ancestors,” Crim said. “It made me want to continue to do whatever I can to uplift his work and make sure that our kids don’t forget who he is.”
Crim, formerly a classroom educator, began posting history teaching videos on social media as a better way to reach his students, whom he found were distracted. In this period where young Black people are susceptible to misinformation, Crim said, it is important to reach them in whatever way possible.
“We have to go wherever we are, whether that be on the street corners, subways, buses — wherever we can pass that knowledge, that’s where we need to be,” Crim told the Amsterdam News.
freedom figures.
Protestors with the December 12th organization gather in front of Chick-fil-A on 125th Street between Adam Clayton Powell and Frederick Douglass Boulevard, demanding restaurant close in honor of Malcolm X’s birthday, on May 19, 2025.
Saxophonist Jay Rodriguez performing with Will Succeed The Artist on 125th Street and Lenox, May 19, 2025. (Jason Ponterotto photos)
Trinidadian drummer Sanga of the Valley performing with his djembe drum and birimbau for students at South Bronx Early College Academy Charter Middle School at 120th Street and Lenox., May 19, 2025.
Icons make Queens tour stop at Barclays Center
By DERREL JOHNSON Special to the AmNews
With The Queens Tour at Barclays Center featuring, in alphabetical order: Chaka Khan, Gladys Knight, Patti LaBelle, and Stephanie Mills, many, including me, wondered who would close the show with four women who have made music professionally for more than a century combined. Perhaps it was the sampling of her “Through the Fire” by hip-hop superstar Kanye West for his debut single in 2003, “Through the Wire,” or the popular remakes of her hits “Sweet Thing” on Mary J. Blige’s 1992 debut album “What’s the 411?” and “I’m Every Woman” by Whitney Houston from “The Bodyguard: Original Soundtrack” album, also released in 1992, but Khan was the closing act as the tour stopped at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. And she did not disappoint.
The 10-time Grammy winner performed those three classics and some of her other massive hits, including “Ain’t Nobody,” “Tell Me Something Good,” “What Cha’ Gonna Do For Me,” “I Feel For You,” and “Do You Love What You Feel.”
“It’s so nice to be up here with all my girls, all my women in song, let’s have a hand for everyone,” Khan said to the crowd while greeting them, acknowledging the three legends who performed earlier.
Gladys Knight, who celebrated her 81st birthday on May 28 and began her career with her siblings and other family members as Gladys Knight in the Pips, opened the evening in Brooklyn and performed several of her biggest hits, including “Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye),” “Midnight Train to Georgia,” “Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me,” and “Love Overboard.”
The seven-time Grammy winner, nicknamed the “Empress of Soul,” also performed “That’s What Friends Are For,” her collaboration with fellow icons Dionne
Warwick, Elton John, and Stevie Wonder, and even took the crowd to church by performing the Donnie McClurkin classic “Stand.”
Patti LaBelle, who celebrated her 81st birthday the day of the Barclays Center tour stop, performed many of her biggest hits, including “Isn’t It a Shame,” “My Love, Sweet Love,” and “Love, Need, and Want You.” LaBelle, who began her career with Cindy Birdsong, Nona Hendryx, and Sarah Dash in a group called LaBelle, was joined by one of her male background vocalists, Aaron Marcellus, who performed Michael McDonald’s verse for the duet “On My Own.”
The Philadelphia native left the stage for a wardrobe change and returned to close out her set with “Somebody Loves You Baby (You Know Who It Is),” “If Only You Knew,” and “Lady Marmalade,” complete with crowd participation from men from the audience.
Brooklyn-native Stephanie Mills, the youngest woman on the tour at 68, performed between Knight and LaBelle and brought a lot of energy, powerhouse vocals, and hits to the stage. The Tony and Grammy winner performed “What Cha Gonna Do With My Lovin’,” “(You’re Puttin’) a Rush on Me,” “Something in the Way You Make Me Feel,” “I Have Learned to Respect the Power of Love,” “Never Knew Love Like This Before,” and perhaps the hit she is best known for, “Home.”
If you missed last weekend’s show or want to see it again, tickets are on sale for the tour’s second leg, which will stop at Newark’s Prudential Center on Thursday, September 25. Tickets are on sale now, as well as the final shows of the first leg in Chicago on May 30, Cincinnati on May 31, and Indianapolis on June 1. The second leg kicks off on September 19 in Greensboro, N.C., and will stop in Atlanta, Atlantic City, Cleveland, Detroit, Memphis, Milwaukee, and Washington, D.C, in addition to Newark.
Chaka Khan performs during the Queens Tour (Derrel Johnson photos)
Stephanie Mills watches the crowd during the Queens Tour (Photo courtesy of @Latishamariee for Black Promoters Collective)
Gladys Knight smiles at crowd during the Queens Tour
Kenny Garrett, Mariah Rae wins at the Apollo
Kenny Garrett stands as the most seminal alto saxophonist and composer of his generation. His innovative style reflects John Coltrane and Jackie McLean. Although Garrett’s definitive voice has led him on a journey through spirited shores, splashing in the depths of the African Diaspora, hallmarked by his time with the Duke Ellington Orchestra, Miles Davis, and Chick Corea, which brings a fiery force to the jazz aesthetic.
On May 29–June 1, the NEA Jazz Master will once again return to New York City’s Blue Note jazz club (131 West 3rd Street). More than likely, Garrett and his longtime ensemble will perform music from his album “Sounds from the Ancestors” (Mack Avenue, 2021). In Garrett fashion, the music is a sea of screaming improvisations and Detroit swing that reflects his hometown.
“The concept initially was about trying to get some of the musical sounds that I remembered as a kid growing up — sounds that lift your spirit, from people like John Coltrane, ‘A Love Supreme’; Aretha Franklin, ‘Amazing Grace’; Marvin Gaye, ‘What’s Going On’; and the spiritual side of the church,” Garrett explained in a Blue Note press release. “When I started to think about them, I realized it was the spirit from my ancestors.”
Ideally, crazy electronics will light up his Blue Note engagement when Garrett breaks out with tunes from his current album and first electronic collaboration with producer/instrumentalist Syoy, “Who Killed AI?” (Mack Avenue, 2024). The alto player will be joined by his talented ensemble: percussionist Rudy Bird; vocals and percussion by Melvis Santa; drummer Michael Ode; bassist Jeremiah Edwards; and pianist/keyboardist Keith Brown.
Two shows each night, at 8 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. For reservations, visit bluenotejazz.com or call 212475-8692.
For me, the Apollo Theater represents a vivid recollection of sitting in the world-famous music hall, as a little kid with my mother, on a weekday afternoon at one
of the matinees (there were six shows per day). I was much more interested in playing with my toy horse than experiencing history in the moment of legends like Pearl Bailey, Nat King Cole, Arthur Prysock, and Sarah Vaughan, performing right before my eyes.
As a high school student, hanging out at Apollo Amateur Nights was hilarious, hollering until our lungs were sore from shouting “BOOOOOOO!” just for the fun of it. Most recently, though, I attended the 90th season of Amateur Night, not to boo, but to loudly shout out cheers for Harlem’s bright young performer Mariah Rae, who performed in the Child Star segment. Thankfully, I was encouraged to make it to this inspiring event by one of Rae’s
greatest supporters: her aunt and dedicated Harlem physician, Dr. Marlene Taylor.
Rae’s two young competitors (a vocalist and singer/guitarist) proved to be quite talented, but her rendition of “Rise Up,” hitting all those high notes, tipped the applause meter in her favor. The 10-year-old, dressed in a red sequined gown that flared slightly at the hem, was a perfect balance between elegance and youthful flair. The youngster was quite modest about her win, with big smiles and a bow.
“I was extremely proud of Mariah,” said her mother, Masha Taylor. “Watching her perform on the world-famous Apollo Theater stage was surreal. She was poised, confident, and sounded amazing.”
Perfecting her vocal talent over the last few years has kept little Mariah on the go. Earlier this year, she captured the leading role in the award-winning musical stage play “Underground,” was a featured singer during Harlem Week 2024, and performed at NYFW’s Met Gala “A Night in Tanzania” (2024).
As a young honor-roll student with an A average, Rae’s singing is just a small part of her afterschool activities. She won first place in the Alex Trebek Spelling Bee in 2024, and that same year, she earned a scholarship to the Harlem School of the Arts to join the Natalie Cole Choir. She and her 12-year-old brother Philip are avid readers and creative writers. They both take piano lessons and
compose their own music. The world is in need of their future influential contributions, but for the moment, Rae is busy with her school work and activities, as she looks forward to the Apollo Theater Amateur Night Semi-Finals on June 11. Come out to yell and holler to take this aspiring young singer to the finals on June 25. The winner of the Amateur Night Child Star category will receive $5,000 and follow the tradition of such legendary former winners as Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Luther Vandross, Dee Dee Simon, and H.E.R. Make sure to be present to cheer Harlem’s bright little star Mariah Rae to the finals and beyond. For tickets, visit apollotheaer. org/amateur night.
Kenny Garrett (Jonathan Chimene photos)
Mariah Rae (Marlene Taylor photos)
‘And Just Like That…’ celebrates Season 3 in NYC
By MAGRIRA
Special to the AmNews
Oh, New York. There’s something special about seeing our city through the lens of film and television — and few series have captured it like “Sex and the City”, its feature films, and now the rebooted look at its iconic characters in “And Just Like That…”
To celebrate, the cast of “And Just Like That…” spent their party budget in the very city where they film — and where the story has always lived. On Wednesday night, the Crane Club played host to the Season Three kickoff party, uniting longtime cast members, newcomers, producers, and guests for an evening that was both a celebration and a statement: the show is evolving.
Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon, and Kristin Davis were joined by Sarita Choudhury and Nicole Ari Parker to toast the new season — one that continues to explore friendship, identity, and reinvention in midlife. A continuation of “Sex and the City”, the series has never avoided change. But Season Three marks a more
deliberate break from nostalgia.
“Even the familiar characters are going through new things,” said showrunner Michael Patrick King. “This season isn’t about returning to something. It’s about who these women are now.”
Inside the party, guests enjoyed “Summer in the City” cocktails, a live performance from Mario Cantone (returning as Anthony), and a packed dance floor thanks to DJ Tokyo Rose. Choudhury and King closed out the night dancing together in a circle — fitting for a show rooted in connection, even as the dynamic shifts.
Of course, not everything is staying the same. Sara Ramirez, who portrayed Che Diaz, will not return. Karen Pittman, who played Columbia Law professor Nya Wallace, also exits due to scheduling conflicts. Stepping in are Rosie O’Donnell, Patti LuPone, and Cheri Oteri — veteran performers signaling a more grounded, character-driven season ahead.
Since the launch of Season Two, “And Just Like That…” has become Max’s most-watched returning original. “It’s the number one Max Original overall,” said Sarah
Aubrey, the network’s head of original content. “Audiences are showing up for these characters again.”
But popularity hasn’t stopped the series from confronting real change. The 2021 death of Willie Garson, who played fan favorite Stanford Blatch, marked the close of one era. Kim Cattrall’s
absence continues to hover.
Still, the show presses forward — offering an honest portrayal of aging, shifting relationships, and adult reinvention.
Cast members spotted at the Crane Club included Cathy Ang, Niall Cunningham, Christopher Jackson, Sebastiano Pigazzi, Alexa
Swinton, Armin Amiri, Alexander Bello, Pat Bowie, Deborah S. Craig, Spike Einbinder, Julie Halston, Paulo Hernandez-Farella, Elijah Jacob, Bonnie Jean Milligan, Carolyn Michelle Smith, Mariah Strongin, Katerina Tannenbaum, and Daphne Zelle.
Executive producers Julie Rottenberg, Elisa Zuritsky, Susan Fales-Hill, and John Melfi were also in attendance, mingling with designer Prabal Gurung, producer Debra Martin Chase, writer Evan Ross Katz, and actors Matthew Broderick, Sherri Shepherd, and Nicky Hilton.
With production wrapped and the May 29 premiere locked in, Season Three promises new storylines and deeper questions. Carrie is writing again. Miranda and Charlotte are rethinking their lives. And for the first time, the city itself might no longer be the main character –– age might be.
“And Just Like That…” isn’t trying to be what it was. It’s trying to be honest about what it is.
Season Three premieres May 29, 2025, on Max. New episodes will stream on Thursdays, with the finale airing August 14.
Christopher Jackson (David Jon Photography photos)
Mario Cantone and Sarita Choudhury Sarita Choudhury
Nicole Ari Parker and husband Boris Kodjoe
The Truth About School Policing
Despite post-George Floyd promises to prioritize student wellness and
By QUINTESSA WILLIAMS Word In Black
care, Black kids face more policing than in 2020
In the spring of 2020, a video of George Floyd being murdered by a Minneapolis police officer went viral. And then — something unprecedented happened: millions filled the streets, marching and demanding the defunding of police, community-centered care, and an acknowledgement that Black lives truly matter — not just on the streets, but in classrooms and school hallways.
School districts responded, too. Publicly vowing to remove armed officers and replace them with counselors, mental health supports, and restorative justice programs. It seemed like the start of a fundamental shift — an end to the criminalization of Black children, and the beginning of a caring, holistic approach to student safety.
But five years later, data on cops in schools reveals that not only have many districts failed to fulfill their promises, but the scope of policing in schools has expanded into surveillance and AI-driven systems that, according to experts, disproportionately police Black kids.
“The question of what has or hasn’t changed in school policing since the murder of George Floyd is more than a policy question — it’s a moral audit,” Dr. David Kirkland, education scholar and CEO of forwardED, tells Word In Black. “And five years later, the receipts are sobering.”
Broken Promises
In the immediate aftermath of Floyd’s murder, many school districts nationwide either terminated or significantly reduced their school police programs.
“The rise in alternative school police actors began after George Floyd’s murder,” explains Dr. Terry Allen, an assistant professor of law at the University of Southern California Gould School of Law. “Yet by 2022, many districts that initially removed police from schools reversed their decisions and reintroduced them.”
Out of 8 predominantly Black school districts, Chicago Public Schools is the only one to have fully removed police from schools. According to the district’s 2024 evaluation report, removing school police led to measurable gains: reduced suspensions, improved attendance, and improved school climate.
Other large city-based districts, such as New York City, Los Angeles Unified, and Detroit, introduced some reforms — including budget cuts, renaming roles, or reallocating responsibilities — but none removed police entirely.
However, other urban districts, particularly in the South, have doubled down on policing. Atlanta Public Schools, where
more than 70% of students are Black, increased its police force from 132 to 177 officers — adding 45 new positions in 2024 alone. Baltimore City and DeKalb County maintained or expanded their school policing presence. In Florida, the state mandates requiring armed officers in every school have made reforms in districts like MiamiDade County nearly impossible.
This failure to meaningfully reform, Allen said, largely stems from a lack of investment in real alternatives. “Alternatives without the proper training risk becoming just another new form of policing,” he said. “The goal should have always been to create a community of care.”
Kirkland also points to troubling evidence from a 2023 Advancement Project and Alliance for Educational Justice report, which documented over 280 incidents of police violence against students, nearly 60% involving Black youth. In New York City alone, over 90% of school-based arrests involved Black students, despite accounting for only a quarter of the student population.
“These incidents aren’t isolated — they’re systemic,” he adds. “We’re not policing danger. We’re policing identity. And that identity — Blackness — has become suspect in the very spaces it should be safe.”
From Badges to Cameras
Some districts that reduced or removed officers didn’t replace them with counselors or restorative programs — they replaced them with AI tools and surveillance software.
“The consequences of policing, whether through surveillance or physical presence, yield the same outcomes,” said Clarence Okoh, civil rights attorney and senior associate at the Center on Privacy & Technology at Georgetown Law School. “Students still face contact with the criminal legal system — it just may happen through a screen now instead of in the hallway.”
Okoh describes the new surveillance as “policing in disguise” and said that the software intended to support students’ mental health has become a tool of criminalization, where, in some districts, police can access student records in ways that expand discipline beyond school hours.
“Surveillance is easier than care,” he said. “It’s easier to punish a kid than to actually invest in their wellness or academic success.”
A Double Pandemic
Experts note that Black students have endured not just one pandemic, but two. COVID-19 ravaged their communities, stripping many of their caregivers, and their stability. At the same time, the trauma of Floyd’s murder — and the backlash against racial justice efforts — deepened
the mental and emotional damage. But instead of schools responding with support, most chose to increase policing.
“COVID-19 was one of the single largest traumatic moments in recent American history,” Okoh said. “We saw the loss of caregivers — parents, grandparents, coaches, essential figures in young people’s lives. Our society brushed this aside, pushing students back into schools without addressing their mental health. That neglect fueled more disciplinary issues, which districts chose to handle with policing rather than healing.”
Dr. Allen agrees, adding that schools faced barriers, too: “The pandemic made it difficult for practitioners to complete professional development and training in alternative safety models. This might explain the backlash and retrenchment we’re seeing,” he said.
A Blueprint for Healing
While the data is stark, experts say alternatives do exist — and some are working — like the results seen in Chicago and the stu-
dent-led organizing by groups like the Black Organizing Project in Oakland, CA. But replicating them requires vision and resources.
Allen proposes a “School Governance Model” inspired by emergency medical systems with trained, non-sworn professionals focused on mental health, traumainformed care, and academic support. “We must replace the infrastructure, not just the actors,” he said.
“Just as we built infrastructure to police kids, we can build infrastructure to care for them,” Okoh adds. “That means rethinking safety entirely — investing in telehealth, peer support, culturally competent staff, and programs that prevent harm rather than react to it.”
And ultimately, at the heart of the issue, Kirkland said, it’s about values and what kind of world we want to build for Black children.
“If we truly believe Black lives matter, then Black childhood must matter — not just in theory, but in practice, in policy, and in budget. Our children deserve more than to be merely protected from violence — they deserve to be protected for possibility.”
The protest took place simultaneously as the immigration hearing of the Syrian-born Palestinian refugee was being held
By LEYRIAN COLÓN SANTIAGO Special to the AmNews
On a rainy day in New York City, hundreds of protesters rallied for the release of detained Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil during his immigration hearing on Thursday afternoon.
Khalil, a legal permanent resident and Columbia University graduate who has been held in a Louisiana jail since March 8, was the first person arrested under President Donald Trump’s promised crackdown on pro-Palestinian protesters. He is one of the few remaining in custody as his case moves through both immigration and federal court.
“With our movement and in the process, they have gone and proven what everyone who has ever fought for liberation in this country has known for centuries, which is that the United States is not a democracy,” said Ju-Hyun Park of Nodutdol for Korean Community Development. “This country is an empire run by a ruling class dictatorship that will crack our skulls, disappear parents from their homes, and commit genocide to preserve their privileges and power.”
The demonstration, which also brought together members of the New York City Chapter of the Palestinian Youth Movement and the Palestinian Feminist Collective at Foley Square, included city residents.
“I think in the face of so much cracking down and arresting and deportations, it’s more important now to continue to show up because a lot of people are more scared,” said Ari, a city resident who participated in the protest.
While the protest continued in Foley Square, other demonstrators traveled to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Detention Center in Jena, Louisiana, to show solidarity with Khalil during the immigration hearing.
Despite calls for Khalil’s release, an immigration judge in Louisiana on Thursday denied a request to terminate his deportation proceedings after his attorneys argued
that he was arrested illegally and without a warrant more than two months ago.
“We just walked out of the courtroom and it was so heartwarming to hear you guys’ voices and all the support. I know you guys traveled from so far and people came from across different states,” said Noor Abdalla, Mahmoud’s wife, in a video posted on social media after the hearing in Louisiana. “You guys are incredible and the support means a lot to me and Mahmoud.”
Even though the White House has backed off from cancelling hundreds of student visas, Khalil’s case continues. The session ended on Thursday evening without a ruling from the judge after the presentation of testimonies and Khalil took the stand in his own defense.
Judge Jamee Comans asked lawyers to submit written closing arguments by June 2 to decide whether Khalil should be deported or allowed to remain in the country.
Continued from page 13
segregation were furthered by a groundbreaking 2014 UCLA report on New York State segregation spurring policy and advocacy action. Longstanding integration advocates at New York Appleseed were joined by emerging youth-led groups such as IntegrateNYC and Teens Take Charge, the New York State Education Department (NYSED) launched a grant program to fund school diversity and culturally responsive education initiatives, and NYC electeds began the passage of new laws and policies that furthered diversity initiatives and programming across public schools. Despite significant momentum between 2014 and 2020, due largely to the COVID-19 pandemic, addressing segregation fell by the wayside.
In 2021, New York City elected Eric Adams as mayor. Since then, his administration has largely dismissed, and at times opposed efforts to combat school segregation.
Under Adams and former Chancellor David Banks, the city reversed key policies aimed at reducing segregation in selective pro-
grams, reinstating middle school screening, reversing equitable changes to high school admissions for screened programs, doubling down on inequitable gifted education models, and threatening or repealing entirely, funding for key programming such as restorative justice and the K-12 culturally responsive curriculum titled Mosaic.
And while many principals and superintendents prioritized integration efforts within their schools and districts, the lack of urgency from centralized City leadership –– and the absence of meaningful support –– significantly slowed progress. The silence on this issue is particularly deafening in the face of dangerous national rhetoric and the Trump administration’s recent executive orders on K-12 education signaling a broader push against diversity and inclusion efforts, threatening local initiatives, and reinforcing segregationist policies.
While the delay of the oversight hearing does not spark optimism, I am hopeful the City Council sets a new date and invites the many students, parents, educators, and community members who have spent time preparing testimony to attend. Despite being under a system of Mayoral Control, the City Council does have the
power to make an impact on school segregation. In November 2019, the Council passed Local Law 1552, requiring the creation of district diversity working groups in each community school district. However, this law has never been implemented or enforced.
During the same session, additional legislation was proposed: Public Advocate Jumaane Williams sought to codify the School Diversity Advisory Group, former Education Chair and Councilmember Mark Treyger introduced a bill to mandate reporting on NYC public school staff demographics, and former Council Member –– now Comptroller and mayoral candidate –– Brad Lander proposed expanding reporting under the School Diversity Accountability Act.
The City Council has a crucial role to play in advancing school integration, but meaningful action requires follow-through on these commitments.
This year’s mayoral election presents a crucial opportunity for New York City to elect a leader committed to addressing the lasting harms of segregation in our schools, and protecting our most vulnerable community members from the Trump agenda. Mayoral candidates are beginning to articulate their positions on this and other issues, and voters need to demand clear plans for action.
It is also essential for elected leaders to assure New Yorkers that we will be protected from the Trump agenda. Instead of complying in advance, we need to double down on investments in the important work of diversity, equity, and inclusion. NYC was once a national leader in integration and educational justice –– it must reclaim that role, especially in the face of the Trump administration’s attacks on public education.
Matt Gonzales, CEO of Liberation Spaces LLC, is a former teacher, community organizer, researcher, and policy expert based in NYC.
American public schools are more segregated today than in the 1960s, fueling deepening divisions along race, class, identity, and politics. Project 2025 represents a federal assault on public education and the most vulnerable students and communities served in our schools. Now more than ever, we need City leadership unafraid to protect our public schools, and to tackle the historic divisions like school segregation that have brought us to this moment.
People protested for release of Mahmoud Khalil from New York City while first immigration hearing was taking place in Louisiana. Dozens protest at Foley Square for Mahmoud Khalil’s release
federal government had sought $864 million from BOA for losses from defective loans that Countrywide sold, but ended up with a massive settlement.
Larry G.’s lawyer at the time said that BOA legally had five or six years to prove they held the mortgage and resolve the case. In the interim, the Greene family loan was assigned to a series of other servicers, first to GreenTree Loan Servicing, another servicer whose parent company, Walter Investment Management Corp. (WAC), merged with another WAC subsidiary, Ditech Mortgage Corp in 2014. Washington outlets reported in 2016 that GreenTree had failed to honor many of the loan modifications in place when BOA sold them loans, leaving people frustrated and in debt.
The Greene family loan went to the U.S. Bank National Association, which had bought two of BOA’s securitization and trust businesses in 2010. Now it’s been with Rushmore Loan Management Services, LLC/Mr. Cooper, a registered service mark of Nationstar Mortgage LLC, since 2021, according to court documents.
“Mortgages … don’t stay within the same company over the life of the loan. The money has to continuously circulate within the economy,” said Romans. “That’s just the way it goes. And a new servicer is
gonna handle the mortgage, because typically mortgage companies don’t handle servicing. Servicing is in charge of paying the property taxes, the home insurance, the principal and interest. If you had a great loan officer, they would have an operations team, and they will always know who the servicer is being transferred to.”
After years of back and forth, the Greenes were ruled against in their initial case and filed for appeal in 2019. The family kept trying to get a loan modification with each servicer and kept getting denied, they said. By 2020, the COVID-19 crisis had severely delayed all court proceedings. When they resumed, the payments the Greenes owed had snowballed. According to documents, they had to pay more than $900,000 ($962,283.15) with interest at the note rate from March 1, 2011 to July 30, 2022. This figure does not include additional court and attorney fees.
The Greene family tried switching lawyers twice to file new motions and get a loan modification, but they were ultimately dismissed. They said they were told by Rushmore that they were short of qualifying for a loan modification by about $14 a month. Their home was foreclosed on and was set for the auction block in December 2024. The court also ruled for the dismissal of any future arguments that could be made in the case.
In a last-minute bid, Sherry G. decided to file for bankruptcy that month to stave off the auction until at least after the hol-
Speeding ruins lives. Slow down.
idays. An auction can’t move forward until a bankruptcy case is concluded. “My mom thought this was her forever home,” said Greene. “She was just trying to do whatever she could do to hold it off, to see if we could find someone to help us, or whatever, and that didn’t pan out.”
Greene also tried filing complaints with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the New York State Attorney General’s office, and Senator Siela A. Bynoe’s office.
“I think what happened is this problem was so widespread — trillions of dollars in mortgages throughout the country,” said Larry G. “And I think the problem with them holding everybody to the law is that it would have been such a huge economic blow that the courts stopped holding them to the letter of the law and people slipped through the cracks. And all the stuff I was hearing about, I imagine a lot of people just gave up and stopped fighting and maybe never even put up a fight.”
The Greene family’s bankruptcy case wrapped up last month and the auction date was resumed for June 30, 2025. To circumvent that, the Greene family opted for a short sale.
Romans said a short sale is when a real estate broker comes in to work with the city to sell the home and negotiates a price, usually under value, to help relocate the occupants. These are more than likely cash buyers, which helps the house sell faster, he said.
“If a mortgage has become unaffordable for a person, it’s best to reach out to the mortgage company and let them know that you’re going through a financial hardship and you want to at least place a forbearance on your mortgage, where they pause the mortgage payment for at least three months and it won’t negatively affect their credit score,” advised Romans. “Throughout that time, you can focus on a game plan, or you can split the mortgage in two and make a payment twice in a month, or do a loan modification.”
Romans added that with foresight, the Greene family might have had an opportunity for a cash-out refinancing option.
“Especially in this case — their home was in Long Island in the Freeport area. The homes are very high value,” he said. “If they were able to catch it in time and they knew they were tight on funds, they could’ve attempted to refinance, took out enough money that they needed to be able to get back in a more comfortable position.”
BOA’s senior vice president of media relations confirmed via email that Amsterdam News’ inquiry was received and said that her team was “still investigating” the inquiry and couldn’t get an official statement by press time. In the interim, she pointed to the publicly available legal court documents for clarity.
The media relations team Highwire Public Relations also confirmed receipt of the Amsterdam News inquiry via email, and said they were “looking into this” as well.
Religion & Spirituality
How Evangelical pastors provide spiritual comfort in crisis-hit Venezuela
By MARÍA TERESA HERNÁNDEZ and CRISTIAN HERNÁNDEZ Associated Press
CARACAS, Venezuela — “Can I bring my gun into the worship service?”
The question presented Venezuelan pastor Fernanda Eglé with a dilemma. Agreeing might have endangered parishioners at her evangelical church in Caracas. But what if dismissing the gang member pulled him farther from God?
“It was risky, but this was God’s plan,” Eglé said. “He knew these people’s hearts, their need for change. So I created a ‘service for criminals,’ intending they would come.”
Many pastors like Eglé provide spiritual guidance in Venezuelan slums affected by crime, drug addiction and gangs. Their task has proven challenging amid the 12-year crisis that stemmed from a drop in oil prices, corruption and government mismanagement.
The economic collapse has forced millions to emigrate since Nicolás Maduro took power in 2013. And despite official claims of decreasing inflation levels in 2024, he declared an “economic emergency” in April, granting himself powers to implement extraordinary measures.
“Working in these communities has been difficult,” Eglé said. “But we need to keep up our work.”
How big is the evangelical community in Venezuela?
Reliable statistics are hard to come by since official figures have not been issued in more than a decade, but academic experts and community members contend the number of evangelicals in Venezuela has grown in recent decades, just as it has in other Latin American countries.
The region’s string of social, political and economic crises is a key driver of that growth, said David Smilde, professor of sociology at Tulane University in New Orleans.
The second issue driving communities to evangelical churches might be the Catholic Church’s priest shortage, which means fewer faith leaders are now serving larger groups of people, said Smilde. With less stringent rules for clergy, evangelical churches can more quickly step into that void.
As for Venezuelans, many find themselves on the margins of survival. “This is a context in which participation in evangelical churches can provide strength, focus and a social network for mutual support,” Smilde said.
Despite the statistical void, the U.S. State Department’s 2023 report on religious freedom estimated that 96% of the Venezuelan population is Catholic — though that may not reflect the rise in evangelicals.
Sociologist Enrique Alí González esti-
mates that the current religious affiliation would be 82%-84% Catholic and 10%-12% evangelical with other faiths accounting for the rest. He based those numbers on his own field work and data from one of the most recent demographic assessments, which was led by the Andrés Bello Catholic University in Caracas in 2016.
A pastor’s role among the people
Like Eglé, pastor José Luis Villamizar encourages Venezuelans to embrace the Gospel as a path to change course.
“We have managed to get people who used to be hitmen away from that lifestyle,” Villamizar said.
Also based in Caracas, Villamizar founded his evangelical church at his house during the pandemic. At first he ministered from a window. As lockdown receded, he took his work to the streets.
Both he and Eglé visit elderly people and Venezuelans lacking basic care on a regular basis.
Mostly dependent on donations or their savings, they deliver food, medicines and clothing. Prayers and religious lectures are followed by recreational activities, financial workshops and barbershop days.
“We joke around, we paint the women’s nails, we try everything to make life a little easier,” Eglé said. “To lift some of the burden of loneliness and depression.”
A welcoming church
At Eglé’s sanctuary, gang members eventually agreed to leave their weapons at the entrance.
“I spoke to many of them and asked: What led you to this life?” Eglé said. “And when they told me their stories, I wept with them.”
Villamizar’s congregation finds temporary homes for those willing to start over and embrace the Gospel. His team monitors their behavior. And like Eglé, he offers support until they find a job and regain self-reliance.
“If we don’t help them get out of their situation, they’ll end up in the same circumstances,” he said.
Maduro has openly associated with evangelicals
In 2023, the president launched a program called “My well-equipped church” to improve evangelical churches with government funding. Some pastors accept the help. Others prefer to find their own means.
Eglé recalled a contribution that helped her acquire chairs and a house that she later turned into a sanctuary. Villamizar opted to remain fully independent.
“They have offered us help, but if the church of God gets tangled in politics, one ends up in debt,” he said. “I prefer Him to provide and, to this day, He has fulfilled.”
Maduro’s outreach to evangelical groups has had little effect on gaining the president more supporters, said Smilde. Politicians are mistaken if they think the structure of independent evangelical churches mirror the hierarchical nature of the Catholic Church, he added.
“The possibilities for politically mobilizing evangelicals is widely misunderstood in Venezuela and consistently overestimated,”
Smilde said.
“A year ago there was a lot of concern in Venezuela about Maduro’s outreach to evangelicals being a factor in the election, but it was not, despite considerable effort on his part.”
What Venezuelans find in their evangelical church
Israel Guerra was raised Catholic, but a spiritual crisis led him to become evangelical.
“I made the transition because in Catholicism I never felt supported nor that God loved me,” said Guerra, who attends a Caracas megachurch.
He, too, has noticed the expansion of evangelical churches in Venezuela and says people find them approachable.
“More than being places listing rules to enter heaven, they’re a place of refuge,” he said. “They are safe places for the poor and the rich alike, for former gang members and entrepreneurs.”
Not all congregations are as open or welcoming, said Génesis Díaz, born to evangelical pastors in a church requiring its members to follow strict rules. But their proliferation is nonetheless evident to her.
As a missionary and Christian content creator visiting Caracas congregations on a regular basis, Díaz said she has seen up to 20 evangelical churches in neighborhoods where a single Catholic church stands.
“Venezuela is a Christian, religious country,” she said. “While there are things we have forgotten and bad people are around, there is a very strong awakening towards God.”
Pastor Fernanda Eglé prays at her Resurrection evangelical church in Caracas, Venezuela. (AP Photo/Cristian Hernandez)
Harlem One45
Continued from page 2
591 affordable units was presented to the public. He questioned why the certified plan in the hearing was so different. In addition, the MIH targets used for about 97 of the 291 “affordable” units is far out of range for the average salaried person in the district, said Salaam.
“I want to strongly reiterate my position that 291 affordable units is definitely too low,” said Salaam.
The objective is affordability, but without a “significant government subsidy,” another plan wouldn’t be viable, said Teitelbaum. At the moment, the project is all “at-risk dollars” and private investment, he added.
Salaam also questioned how Teitelbaum
NAACP
Continued from page 2
NYSEC member. Villard was enlisted to write the “Call” for a national conference to promote racial equality.
Villard, notes Dr. Richard Koral, the current leader of NYSEC, “not only had the chops to write a moving petition that called for a movement, but he also had the capacity to really generate a lot of interest for it through his newspaper. Fifty three prominent people in New York City
could rebuild trust with the community after a contentious history with CB 10 and Salaam’s predecessor, former Councilmember Kristin Richardson Jordan. She and the community board voted against the original building plans in 2022, demanding more affordable housing be included for Harlem residents. Teitelbaum, in response, placed a potentially environmentally harmful truck depot in the open lot in 2023, which Richardson Jordan and residents vehemently protested against. It closed in early 2025.
“In retrospect, it was a mistake,” said Teitelbaum at the hearing. “I would not do it again, and I apologize for it.”
In a sort of penance, Teitelbaum has cleaned up the site and allowed a handful of community nonprofits, like Afrikana, to use it for free over the past three years, he said. Adama Bah, Afrikana’s chief executive
signed it, including several New York Society Ethical Culture leaders. And when it was formed, several Ethical Culture leaders were part of the founding group and then on the first board of trustees for the NAACP.
“There was a lot of movement within our society at that time to support this new organization. And over the years, there’s been a lot of cooperation and a lot of commonalities in things that we’ve done. One other leader in the mid-20th century, who was the vice president of the national
director and founder, testified to this in the public comment portion of the hearing.
“I worked from that space and provided invaluable services to thousands of local residents and newly arrived immigrants, and continue to do so today. This would not be possible without the accommodation Bruce gave us,” said Bah. “I have no written deal with him now nor any legal agreement about what happens when One45 gets built, only his word that there will be space for groups like Africana that serve the community, and he has always kept his word.”
Other residents and advocates publicly voiced concerns about the height of the proposed buildings in the community and further gentrifying the neighborhood.
“Let me say it plainly that this is not a development; this is displacement, respectfully,” said Sheena Benjamin, a
NAACP, James Weldon Johnson, co-wrote ‘Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing.’ He was also a member of the Ethical Culture movement for many years and on our board. So, there was a lot of mutuality in olden times. What drove Marlene [Williamson to push for the two groups to relink] was that a lot of these connections had kind of attenuated. We weren’t really in each other’s conversations enough. It was her idea to bring us together, and we realized the mutual opportunities that were before us. And that’s why we did this move.”
Harlem native and mother. “I’m here on behalf of my church. I am more than willing to work with you in any way, shape, form, or fashion to help this go forward — if it even advances. At this moment, where it stands now, this does not benefit Harlem.”
Tanesha Grant, executive director of Parents Supporting Parents New York, said that her group refuses to sign off on a housing plan that doesn’t include more affordability. “I wanna say that the community supports development that addresses the need for affordable housing. The enhanced affordable plan that was presented does this,” testified Grant.
“This is about making sure that there is a significant amount of deeply affordable and supportive housing built on this One45 project, and we are deeply committed to that goal.”
The NAACP and NYSEC have already begun working together due to their similar committee-based governing structures. Williamson notes that, “After we had a big celebratory reacquaintance, we put together an agenda to see how we were going to work together moving forward. And since our committees are similar, we have several committees dedicated to increasing voter participation because we do a lot of work with the three campuses of NYCHA’s Amsterdam Houses. So, we’ve already started to collaborate.”
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Supreme Court of New York, New York County, Liberty Mutual Insurance Company v. Yvonne M. Murphy and Beacon Eldercare, Inc., Index No.: 650816/2025. The foregoing summons is served upon you by publication pursuant to an Order of the Honorable Robert R. Reed, J.S.C., dated April 30, 2025 and duly entered on April 30, 2025 in the office of the Clerk of the County of New York, State of New York.
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DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONAL TRUST COMPANY, AS TRUSTEE FOR GSAA HOME EQUITY TRUST 2004-10 ASSET-BACKED CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2004-10, -against-
JACQUELINE MORROW A/K/A JACQUELINE CREIGHTNEY, INDIVIDUALLY AND AS HEIR AND DISTRIBUTEE AND EXECUTOR OF THE ESTATE OF TYRONE MORROW, ET AL.
NOTICE OF SALE
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN pursuant to a Final Judgment of Foreclosure entered in the Office of the Clerk of the County of New York on February 6, 2025, wherein DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONAL TRUST COMPANY, AS TRUSTEE FOR GSAA HOME EQUITY TRUST 200410 ASSET-BACKED CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2004-10 is the Plaintiff and JACQUELINE MORROW A/K/A JACQUELINE CREIGHTNEY, INDIVIDUALLY AND AS HEIR AND DISTRIBUTEE AND EXECUTOR OF THE ESTATE OF TYRONE MORROW, ET AL. are the Defendant(s). I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the NEW YORK COUNTY CIVIL SUPREME COURTHOUSE, ROOM 130, 60 CENTRE STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10007, on June 11, 2025 at 2:15PM, premises known as 301/311 CATHEDRAL PKWY, APT/UNIT 2 A/K/A 2 FREDERICK DOUGLASS CIR A/K/A 7 FREDERICK DOUGLASS CIR A/K/A 300/318 W 111 ST A/K/A 2031/2039 FREDERICK DOUGLASS BLVD A/K/A 301/311 W 110 ST, APT/UNIT 2V, NEW YORK, NY 10026; and the following tax map identification: 1846-1038.
THE CONDOMINIUM UNIT (THE "HOME”) KNOWN AS HOME NO. 2V IN ONE OF THE BUILDINGS COMPRISING TOWERS ON THE PARK CONDOMINIUM AND BY THE STREET ADDRESS OF 301 CATHEDRAL PARKWAY, BOROUGH OF MANHATTAN, CITY, COUNTY AND STATE OF NEW YORK, SAID HOME BEING DESIGNATED AND DESCRIBED AS HOME NO. 2V IN A CERTAIN DECLARATION DATED MARCH 2, 1988, MADE BY FREDERICK DOUGLAS ASSOCIATES UNDER ARTICLE 9-B OF THE NEW YORK REAL PROPERTY LAW,
TOGETHER WITH A .1349 PERCENT UNDIVIDED INTEREST IN THE COMMON ELEMENTS OF THE CONDOMINIUM HEREINAFTER DESCRIBED IN SAID DECLARATION.
THE LAND UPON WHICH THE BUILDING CONTAINING THE UNIT IS ERECTED IS DESCRIBED AS FOLLOWS:
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Stoller & Pileggi LLC Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 05/05/2025. Office location: NY County. SSNY has been designated as an agent upon whom process against it may be served & shall mail to: 407 E. 91st St., Apt. 5E, New York, NY 10128. Purpose: Any lawful act.
Notice of Qualification of HERMETIC HOLDINGS LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/22/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 04/15/25. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 122072543. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of the State of DE, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF New York , Wilmington Savings Fund Society, FSB, Not in its Individual Capacity but Solely as Trustee of MFA 2021-INV2 Trust , Plaintiff, vs . 414 East 115 LLC , ET AL., Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale and Decision + Order on Motion duly entered on January 14, 2025 , I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at Room 130 of the New York County Courtroom, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY 10007 on June 11, 2025 at 2:15 p.m., premises known as 414 East 115th Street, New York, NY 10029. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City and State of New York, Block 1708 and Lot 142. Approximate amount of judgment is $1,800,390.76 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index #850427/2023.
Tom R. Kleinberger, Esq., Referee Friedman Vartolo LLP, 85 Broad Street, Suite 501, New York, New York 10004, Attorneys for Plaintiff Firm File No.: 224262-2
NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK: COUNTY OF NEW YORK. HANOVER BANK. Pltf v. STOCKBRIDGE EQUITIES CORP , et al., Defts. Index No. 850003/2023 pursuant to the Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated March 5, 2025 and entered on March 6, 2025, I will sell at public auction at the New York County Courthouse, at the Courthouse located at 60 Centre Street, New York, New York, room 130 on July 2, 2025 at 2:15 p.m., prem. k/a 5 East 124th Street, New York, New York (Block 1749, Lot 6). Approx. amt of judgment is $ 3,017,025.15, plus costs, attorneys’ fees in the amount of $75,000 and interest. Sold subject to terms and conditions of filed judgment and terms of sale. George Papazis Esq., Referee. Jacobowitz Newman Tversky LLP, Attys. for Plaintiff’s assignee, Uncle A LLC, 377 Pearsall Ave., Ste C, Cedarhurst, NY.
Notice of Qualification of P. DREAMS 8805 LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/29/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 02/03/25. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co. (CSC), 80 State St., Albany, NY 122072543. DE addr. of LLC: c/o CSC, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 3, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
NOTICE OF SALE
SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF NEW YORK , mary djurasevic , Plaintiff, vs . marcy ellin boucher, a/k/a marcy ellen boucher, a/k/a marcy e. boucher a/k/a marcy boucher ET AL. , Defendant(s).
Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly filed on February 6, 2025, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Supreme Court, Room 130, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on June 25, 2025 at 2:15 p.m., premises known as 406 West 25 th Street, New York, N.Y. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of New York, County of New York, City and State of New York, Block 722 and Lot 45. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index # 850003/2024.
Jeffrey R. Miller, Esq., Referee Law Offices of Morrison Cohen LLP, Joaquin Ezcurra, Esq., 909 Third Avenue, 27 th Floor, New York, NY 10022-4784, (212) 735-8600
Notice of qualification of EC A2 SLIHC Taxpayer LLC (“LLC”). Application for Authority filed with the Secy. of State of New York (“SSNY”) on March 13, 2025. Office location: New York County. Principal business location: 505 Eighth Avenue, 5th Floor, New York, New York 10018. LLC formed in Delaware (“DE”) on February 28, 2025. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: EC A2 SLIHC Taxpayer LLC, c/o Common Ground Management Corporation d/b/a Breaking Ground Management, 505 Eighth Avenue, 5th Floor, New York, New York 10018. DE address of LLC: EC A2 SLIHC Taxpayer LLC, c/o The Corporation Trust Company, Corporation Trust Center, 1209 Orange Street, Wilmington, Delaware 19801. Cert. of Formation filed with DE Secy. of State, John G. Townsend Building, 401 Federal Street, Suite 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: any lawful activity.
Notice of Qualification of SIXTAV VENTURES, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/14/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 03/14/25. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC, 20 Sullivan St., NY, NY 10012. DE addr. of LLC: c/o Corporation Service Co., 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
NOTICE OF SALE
SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF NEW YORK, WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS TRUSTEE FOR THE REGISTERED HOLDERS OF J.P. MORGAN CHASE COMMERICAL MORTGAGE SECURITIES CORP., MULTIFAMILY MORTGAGE PASSTHROUGH CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2018-SB54, Plaintiff, vs. 174 W 137 LLC, ET AL., Defendant(s).
Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale and Decision + Order on Motion duly entered on January 30, 2025, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Courthouse, room 130, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY 10007 on June 11, 2025 at 2:15 p.m., premises known as 174 West 137th Street, New York, NY 10030. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County, City and State of New York, Block 1921 and Lot 55. Approximate amount of judgment is $8,116,397.95 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index #850498/2023.
Clark Whitsett, Esq., Referee
McCarter & English, LLP, 250 W 55th Street, 13th Floor, New York, New York 10019, Attorneys for Plaintiff
NOTICE OF SALE
SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF NEW YORK, U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, NOT IN ITS INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY BUT SOLELY IN ITS CAPACITY AS INDENTURE TRUSTEE OF CIM TRUST 2020-R5, Plaintiff, vs. JOHN ANDREW LUMPKIN, ET AL., Defendant(s).
Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale and Decision + Order on Motion duly entered on February 6, 2025, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Courthouse, room 130, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY 10007 on June 25, 2025 at 2:15 p.m., premises known as 92 Perry Street a/k/a 382-384 Bleecker Street, Unit 20, New York, NY 10014. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County, City and State of New York, Block 621 and Lot 1120 together with an undivided 3.6214 percent interest in the Common Elements. Approximate amount of judgment is $636,042.05 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index #850416/2023.
Jeffrey R. Miller, Esq., Referee
Friedman Vartolo LLP, 85 Broad Street, Suite 501, New York, New York 10004, Attorneys for Plaintiff. Firm File No.: 223771-1
ANGEL GLOW GROUP LLC Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/11/2025. Office location: NEW YORK County. SSNY has been designated as an agent upon whom process against it may be served & shall mail to: 700 W 178TH ST APT22, NEW YORK, NY,10033. Purpose: Any lawful act.
NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT NEW YORK COUNTY
JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, Plaintiff against
NERA PROPERTY HOLDING LLC, et al Defendant(s)
Attorney for Plaintiff(s) Parker Ibrahim & Berg LLP, 5 Penn Plaza, Suite 2371, New York, NY 10001.
Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered June 3, 2022, and Amended on June 30, 2022 I will sell at public auction to the highest bidder at Room 130 at the Supreme Court, New York County, 60 Centre Street, New York, New York on June 25, 2025 at 2:15 PM. Premises known as 531 West 162nd Street, New York, NY 10032.
Block 2122 Lot 13. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City and State of New York.
Approximate Amount of Judgment is $829,409.72 plus interest, fees, and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index No 850232/2018.
The foreclosure sale will be conducted in accordance with 1st Judicial District's Covid-19 Policies and foreclosure auction rules. The Referee shall enforce any rules in
place regarding facial coverings and social distancing. Referee will only accept a certified bank check made payable to the referee.
Elaine Shay, Esq., Referee File # 850232/2018
NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF NEW YORK NewRez LLC d/b/a Shellpoint Mortgage Servicing, Plaintiff AGAINST The Estate of Carl Arak a/k/a Carl J. Arak, et al., Defendant(s) Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly entered February 4, 2025, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Courthouse in Room 130, located at 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on July 2, 2025 at 2:15PM, premises known as 301 Cathedral Parkway, Apt. 6W, New York, NY 10026. All that certain plot piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, City, County and State of New York, Block: 1846, Lot: 1119. Approximate amount of judgment $179,740.69 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index #850211/2024. For sale information, please visit Auction.com at www.Auction. com or call (800) 280-2832. Tom Kleinberger, Esq., Referee Frenkel Lambert Weiss Weisman & Gordon, LLP 53 Gibson Street Bay Shore, NY 11706 01-100355-F00 84632
LYYNC MEDIA LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 02/28/25. Office: New York County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, c/o Liu, Yiyi, 4357 Union Street, Unit 5C, Flushing, NY 11355. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.
NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT BRONX COUNTY JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, Plaintiff against NINA VAZQUEZ, et al Defendant(s)
Attorney for Plaintiff(s) Fein Such & Crane, LLP, 28 East Main Street, Suite 1800, Rochester, NY 14614.
Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered September 27, 2019, I will sell
at public auction to the highest bidder at the Bronx County Courthouse, Courtroom 711 at 851 Grand Concourse, Bronx, New York on June 9, 2025 at 2:15 PM. Premises
known as 3609 Holland Avenue, Bronx, NY 10467-0467. Block 4661 Lot 21. All that
certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon
erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough and County of Bronx, City and State of New York. Approximate Amount of Judgment is $599,659.45 plus interest, fees, and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index No 380570/2008E.
The foreclosure sale will be conducted in accordance with 12th Judicial District's Covid-19 Policies and the Bronx County foreclosure auction rules. The Referee shall enforce any rules in place regarding facial coverings and social distancing.
Jose C. Polanco, Referee File # XCAJN007
Notice of Qualification of BASKIR FIRST PROPERTIES LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/06/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 04/04/25. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co. (CSC), 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: c/o CSC, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Secy. of State, 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: All legal activities especially property investment.
Notice of Qualification of THE GRESHAM GOLD FUND, L.L.C. Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/16/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 04/10/25. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Gresham Investment Management LLC, 19 Union Sq. West, 11th Fl., NY, NY 10003. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State of DE, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
NOTICE OF SALE
SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF NEW YORK
U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS TRUSTEE FOR THE CERTIFICATE HOLDERS OF BANC OF AMERICA FUNDING CORPORATION, MORTGAGE PASS-THROUGH CERTIFICATES, SERIES 20076, Plaintiff, Against GREGORY STEPHENSON AS HEIR AT LAW AND NEXT OF KIN OF DEBORAH A. STEPHENSON; VINCENT STEPHENSON AS HEIR AT LAW AND NEXT OF KIN OF DEBORAH A. STEPHENSON; DWIGHT STEPHENSON, INDIVIDUALLY AND AS HEIR AT LAW AND NEXT OF KIN OF DEBORAH A. STEPHENSON, et al,
Defendant(s)
Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale, duly entered 01/15/2025, I, the undersigned Referee, will sell at public auction, in Room 130 of the New York County Supreme Courthouse, at 60 Centre Street, New York, NY 10007on 6/18/2025 at 2:15PM, premises known as 158 West 130th Street, New York, NY 10027, and described as follows:
ALL that certain plot piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County, City and State of New York.
Block 1914 Lot 55
The approximate amount of the current Judgment lien is $3,768,746.12 plus interest and costs. The Premises will be sold subject to provisions of the aforesaid Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale; Index # 103164/2008
Paul R. Sklar, Esq., Referee. MCCABE, WEISBERG & CONWAY, LLC, 10 MIDLAND AVENUE, SUITE 205, PORT CHESTER, NY 10573
Dated: 4/10/2025 File Number: 19-300697 CA
SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF NEW YORK
THE BOARD OF MANAGERS OF 435 EAST 117TH STREET CONDOMINIUM, Plaintiff -against- CHRISTINE HEALEY, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated June 29, 2023 and entered on July 3, 2023, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Courthouse located in Room 130 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street New York, NY on July 2, 2025 at 2:15 p.m. premises situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, City, State and County of New York, known and designated as Section 6 Block 1711 and Lot 1203.
Said premises known as 435 EAST 117TH STREET, UNIT NO. 3, NEW YORK, NY
Approximate amount of lien $57,680.99 plus interest & costs.
Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale.
Index Number 152950/2022.
GEORGIA PAPAZIS, ESQ., Referee
Mitofsky Shapiro Neville & Hazen, LLP
Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 152 MADISON AVENUE, 3rd Floor, New York, NY 10016
NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF NEW YORK. 57TH ST. VACATION OWNERS ASSOCIATION, INC., BY AND THROUGH ITS BOARD OF DIRECTORS, Plaintiff -againstMADAPPALLIL GEORGE, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated October 9, 2024, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction in Room 130 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street New York, NY on July 2, 2025 at 2:15 p.m. premises situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City and State of New York, being an undivided ownership interest as tenantin-common with other owners in the Timeshare Unit in the building located at 102 West 57th Street, New York, NY. Together with an appurtenant undivided .009864% common interest percentage. This is a foreclosure on ownership interest in a timeshare unit, a studio penthouse on a floating use basis every year, in accordance with and subject to declarations. Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions dated October 10, 2008 and October 31, 2008 as CFRN # 2008000426142 as recorded in the Office of the City Register, County, City and State of New York. The Timeshare Unit is also designated as Block 1009 and Lot 37.
Said premises known as 102 WEST 57TH STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10019
Approximate amount of lien $13,410.42 plus interest & costs.
Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale. Index Number 850276/2023. DORON LEIBY, ESQ., Referee DRUCKMAN LAW GROUP PLLC
Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 242 Drexel Avenue, Westbury, NY 11590 DLG# 39169 {* AMSTERDAM*}
Notice of Qualification of 154 PARTNERS INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/01/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 08/15/24. Princ. office of LLC: 34 E 51st St., NY, NY 10022. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to CT Corporation System, 28 Liberty St., NY, NY 10005. DE addr. of LLC: 1209 Orange St., Wilmington, DE 19801. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Secy. of State, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
Notice of Qualification of ELATEC GmbH Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/21/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Germany on 09/30/88. NYS fictitious name: ELATEC GmbH LLC. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 122072543. Germany addr. of LLC: Zeppelinstr., 1 82178 Puchheim, Germany. Cert. of Form. filed with Deutscher and Industrie Und Handelstag, Breite Str. 29, 10178, Berlin, Germany. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF NEW YORK. 57TH ST. VACATION OWNERS ASSOCIATION, INC., BY AND THROUGH ITS BOARD OF DIRECTORS, Plaintiff -against- YEANNETTE SALAZAR, ARTHUR M. SALAZAR, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated September 24, 2024, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction in Room 130 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street New York, NY on June 11, 2025 at 2:15 p.m. premises situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City and State of New York, being an undivided ownership interest as tenantin-common with other owners in the Timeshare Unit in the building located at 102 West 57th Street, New York, NY. Together with an appurtenant undivided .009864% common interest percentage. This is a foreclosure on ownership interest in a timeshare unit, a studio penthouse on a floating use basis every year, in accordance with and subject to declarations. Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions dated October 10, 2008 and October 31, 2008 as CFRN # 2008000426142 as recorded in the Office of the City Register, County, City and State of New York. The Timeshare Unit is also designated as Block 1009 and Lot 37. Said premises known as 102 WEST 57TH STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10019
Approximate amount of lien $19,946.34 plus interest & costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale.
Index Number 850280/2023. TOM KLEINBERGER, ESQ., Referee
DRUCKMAN LAW GROUP PLLC
Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 242 Drexel Avenue, Westbury, NY 11590
DLG# 39159 {* AMSTERDAM*}
Notice of Qualification of 1580 NOSTRAND AVE OWNER LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/08/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 03/12/25. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co. (CSC), 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: CSC, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State, 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
PAMELA SOLE JEWELRY LLC Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 1/09/2025. Office location: NY County. SSNY has been designated as an agent upon whom process against it may be served & shall mail to: 112 East 74th St. Apt 6N, New York, NY 10021. Purpose: Any lawful act.
MAKEUP BY T LLC Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/14/2025. Office location: NY County. SSNY has been designated as an agent upon whom process against it may be served & shall mail to: 105 W 13 Street Apt 4E, New York, NY 10011. Purpose: Any lawful act.
NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF NEW YORK.
57TH ST. VACATION OWNERS ASSOCIATION, INC., BY AND THROUGH ITS BOARD OF DIRECTORS, Plaintiff -againstKIM BRAUN BARDONESCHI, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated October 9, 2024, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction in Room 130 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street New York, NY on June 18, 2025 at 2:15 p.m. premises situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City and State of New York, being an undivided ownership interest as tenantin-common with other owners in the Timeshare Unit in the building located at 102 West 57th Street, New York, NY. Together with an appurtenant undivided .009864% common interest percentage. This is a foreclosure on ownership interest in a timeshare unit, a studio penthouse on a floating use basis every year, in accordance with and subject to declarations. Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions dated October 10, 2008 and October 31, 2008 as CFRN # 2008000426142 as recorded in the Office of the City Register, County, City and State of New York. The Timeshare Unit is also designated as Block 1009 and Lot 37.
Said premises known as 102 WEST 57TH STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10019
Approximate amount of lien $22,959.33 plus interest & costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale.
Index Number 850310/2023.
SCOTT SILLER, ESQ., Referee DRUCKMAN LAW GROUP PLLC
Attorney(s) for Plaintiff
242 Drexel Avenue, Westbury, NY 11590
DLG# 39337 {* AMSTERDAM*}
Notice of Formation of 160 EAST 84TH STREET ASSOCIATES LLC
Cert. of Conversion filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/23/06, converting 160 EAST 84TH STREET ASSOCIATES to 160 EAST 84TH STREET ASSOCIATES LLC. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: The Feil Organization, Inc., 7 Penn Plaza, Ste. 618, NY, NY 10001. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the addr. of its princ. office. The regd. agent of the company upon whom and at which process against the company can be served is The Feil Organization, Inc., 7 Penn Plaza, Ste. 618, NY, NY 10001. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
Notice of Qualification of SIDEROFSKY LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/21/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 05/11/22. Princ. office of LLC: 45 E. 82nd St. - Apt. 3W, NY, NY 10028. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co. (CSC), 80 State St., Albany, NY 122072543. DE addr. of LLC: c/o CSC, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State, 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF NEW YORK. 57TH ST. VACATION OWNERS ASSOCIATION, INC, BY AND THROUGH ITS BOARD OF DIRECTORS, Plaintiff -againstMELISSA B. GILSON, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated October 1, 2024, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction in Room 130 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street New York, NY on June 18, 2025 at 2:15 p.m. premises situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City and State of New York, being an undivided ownership interest as tenant-in-common with other owners in the Timeshare Unit in the building located at 102 West 57th Street, New York, NY. Together with an appurtenant undivided .009864% common interest percentage. This is a foreclosure on ownership interest in a timeshare unit, a studio penthouse on a floating use basis every year, in accordance with and subject to declarations. Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions dated October 10, 2008 and October 31, 2008 as CFRN # 2008000426142 as recorded in the Office of the City Register, County, City and State of New York. The Timeshare Unit is also designated as Block 1009 and Lot 37. Said premises known as 102 WEST 57TH STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10019
Approximate amount of lien $16,139.99 plus interest & costs.
Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale.
Index Number 850138/2023.
GEORGIA PAPAZIS, ESQ., Referee
DRUCKMAN LAW GROUP PLLC
Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 242 Drexel Avenue, Westbury, NY 11590
DLG# 39157
{* AMSTERDAM*}
Notice of Qualification of FORTHILL AX HOLDCO, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/31/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 02/21/25. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Secy. of State, Div. of Corps., John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St. - Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
Notice is hereby given that Application ID number NA-034024-119901 for a On-Premises Restaurant liquor license has been applied for by the undersigned to permit the sale of beer, wine and liquor at retail in a Restaurant under the Alcoholic Beverage Control Law at The Yacht and Level 10 located at 601 West 26 th Street, 10 th and 11 th Floor, Outdoor Terrace, New York in New York County for on-premises consumption. RXR SL TRS Sub LLC, SL F&B Management, LLC, and RXR SL TRS Sub Conference Center LLC601 West 26 th Street, 10 th and 11 th Fl, Outdoor Terrace, New York, NY 10001.
NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF NEW YORK. 57TH ST. VACATION OWNERS ASSOCIATION, INC., BY AND THROUGH ITS BOARD OF DIRECTORS, Plaintiff -againstAMOS LINENBERG, GAIL P. BARTHOLOMEW-LINENBERG, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated September 11, 2024, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction in Room 130 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street New York, NY on July 2, 2025 at 2:15 p.m. premises situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City and State of New York, being an undivided ownership interest as tenant-in-common with other owners in the Timeshare Unit in the building located at 102 West 57th Street, New York, NY. Together with an appurtenant undivided .009864% common interest percentage. This is a foreclosure on ownership interest in a timeshare unit, a studio penthouse on a floating use basis every year, in accordance with and subject to declarations. Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions dated October 10, 2008 and October 31, 2008 as CFRN # 2008000426142 as recorded in the Office of the City Register, County, City and State of New York. The Timeshare Unit is also designated as Block 1009 and Lot 37.
Said premises known as 102 WEST 57TH STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10019
Approximate amount of lien $16,937.46 plus interest & costs.
Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale.
Index Number 850257/2023.
DORON LEIBY, ESQ., Referee DRUCKMAN LAW GROUP PLLC
Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 242 Drexel Avenue, Westbury, NY 11590 DLG# 39115 {* AMSTERDAM*}
NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR AUTHORITY OF FOREIGN LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY
The Malin Chelsea LLC App. for Authority filed with Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/10/2025. LLC formed in DE on 04/09/2025. Office location: New York County. SSNY desig. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 32 Mercer Street, 3 rd Floor, New York, New York 10013. The address of the office required to be maintained in the jurisdiction of its organization by the laws of that jurisdiction is 300 Creek View Road, Suite 209, Newark, Delaware 19711. Cert. of Form. on file: DE SOS, Div. of Corporations, P.O. Box 898, Dover, DE 19903. Purpose: any lawful business.
Notice of Qualification of NUVEEN STRATEGIC RETAIL AGGREGATOR LP Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/18/25. Office location: NY County. LP formed in Delaware (DE) on 04/11/25. Princ. office of LP: 730 Third Ave., NY, NY 10017. NYS fictitious name: NUVEEN STRATEGIC RETAIL AGGREGATOR L.P. Duration of LP is Perpetual. SSNY designated as agent of LP upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the Partnership at the princ. office of the LP. Name and addr. of each general partner are available from SSNY. DE addr. of LP: Corporation Service Co., 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of LP filed with Secy. of State, 401 Federal St., #4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
Notice of Formation of BLACKSMITH LANE LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/04/25. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Jonathan Barzilay, 670 West End Ave. (8A), NY, NY 10025. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
315 WEST 92ND STREET LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 05/06/25. Office: New York County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, c/o BDO, 200 Park Avenue, 38th Floor, New York, NY 10166. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.
HOMEWRIGHTS DEVELOPMENT, LLC filed Arts. of Org. with the Sect'y of State of NY (SSNY) on 3/24/2025. Office: New York County. SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: The LLC, 380 Riverside Dr, Apt 7J, NY, NY 10025. Purpose: any lawful act.
DEEPAK CHOPRA, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/25/25. Office: New York County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 41 East 11th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10003. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.
Notice of Qualification of JCP CONGAREE CREDIT FUND
NOTICE OF SALE
In pursuance and by virtue of a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly granted and entered in an action entitled NYCTL 1998-2 Trust and The Bank of New York Mellon as Collateral Agent and Custodian for the NYCTL 1998-2 Trust v. 249 West 131 Street Associates LLC, et al., bearing Index No. 153894/2017 on or about April 2, 2025, by the Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York, I, the Referee, duly appointed in this action for such purpose, will expose for sale and sell at public auction to the highest bidder on June 25, 2025 at 2:15 p.m., at the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street, Room 130, New York, New York 10007, the liened premises designated as Block 1937, Lot 12, in the City of New York, County of New York and Borough of Manhattan, State of New York and known as 249 West 131 st Street, New York, New York 10027 , directed in and by said judgment to be sold. The sale will be conducted pursuant to the Court’s Auction Rules and any COVID Restrictions.
The approximate amount of the judgment is $17,625.04 plus interest and other charges, and the property is being sold subject to the terms and conditions stated in the judgment, any prior encumbrances and the terms of sale which shall be available at the time of sale.
Dated: May 22, 2025 New York, New York Elaine Shay, Esq. Referee 800 Third Avenue Suite 2800 New York, New York 10022 (212) 520-2690
David P. Stich, Esq. Attorney for Plaintiff 521 Fifth Avenue, 17th Floor New York, New York 10175 (646) 554-4421
Notice of formation of Limited Liability Company (“LLC”).
Name: Kingsboro SHOP 1 GP LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of the State of New York (“SSNY”) on April 24, 2025. N.Y. office location: New York County. The SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. The SSNY shall mail a copy of any process to Kingsboro SHOP 1 GP LLC, c/o Breaking Ground II Housing Development Fund Corporation, 505 Eighth Avenue, 5 th Floor, New York, New York 10018.
SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF NEW YORK
BOARD OF MANAGERS OF TOWERS ON THE PARK CONDOMINIUM, Plaintiff, — against —
ROGER WILLIAMS, Defendants.
Index No. 152565/2023
PUBLICATION OF SALE
Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered December 18, 2024, as amended on January 10, 2025. I, the undersigned Referee, will sell at public auction at the New York County Courthouse Room 130, 60 Centre Street. New York, New York on the 4th day of June 2025 at 2:15 p.m. the premises known as Unit 12E of the Towers on the Park Condominium, 301 Cathedral Parkway, New York, NY (Block: 1846, Lot: 1191) Approximate amount of lien $ 131,156.53 plus any additional common charges, assessments, late fees, legal fees, and interest that may accrue up to the date of sale. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed judgment and terms of sale and subject to the prior mortgage lien of record. Ronald Zezima, Esq., Referee. Edi Ebiefung, Kellner Herlihy Getty & Friedman, LLP Attorney(s) for the Plaintiff, 470 Park Avenue South, 7th Floor, New York, New York 10016
Notice of Formation of DETOX BY REBECCA NYC LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/28/25. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
DAR REALTY COLLECTIVE
LLC Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/25/2025. Office location: NY County. SSNY has been designated as an agent upon whom process against it may be served & shall mail to: 1 West End Avenue, Unit 21F, New York, NY 10023. Purpose: Any lawful act.
LP Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/29/25. Office location: NY County. LP formed in Delaware (DE) on 04/16/25. Princ. office of LP: 520 Madison Ave., 12th Fl., NY, NY 10022. NYS fictitious name: JCP CONGAREE CREDIT FUND L.P. Duration of LP is Perpetual. SSNY designated as agent of LP upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o The Corporation Service Co. (CSC), 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. Name and addr. of each general partner are available from SSNY. DE addr. of LP: CSC, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of LP filed with DE Secy. of State, 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
Notice of Qualification of NUVEEN STRATEGIC RETAIL INVESTORS LP Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/18/25. Office location: NY County. LP formed in Delaware (DE) on 03/12/25. Princ. office of LP: 730 Third Ave., NY, NY 10017. NYS fictitious name: NUVEEN STRATEGIC RETAIL INVESTORS L.P. Duration of LP is Perpetual. SSNY designated as agent of LP upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the Partnership at the princ. office of the LP. Name and addr. of each general partner are available from SSNY. DE addr. of LP: Corporation Service Co., 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of LP filed with Secy. of State, 401 Federal St., #4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
223 W 29TH OWNER LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/25/25. Office: New York County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 431 W 37th Street, #2A, New York, NY 10018. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.
GTM ADVISORS LLC Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 05/12/05. Office location: NY County. SSNY has been designated as an agent upon whom process against it may be served & shall mail to: 235 East 87th St, Apt 12L, New York, NY 10128. Purpose: Any lawful act.
Royvolution LLC Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 4/17/2025. Office location: NY County. SSNY has been designated as an agent upon whom process against it may be served & shall mail to: 34th Ave. #977, Anchorage, Ak 99503. Purpose: Any lawful act.
State of Now York
Unified Court System
SURROGATE'S COURT OF THE COUNTY OF NEW YORK
31 CHAMBERS STREET NEW YORK, NY 10007 (646) 386-5800
NOTICE TO CITED PARTIES
You have been served with a citation for a matter that is scheduled to be heard at a New York County Surrogate's Court calendar. The citation that you have received contains a return date. Please do not appear in the courthouse on that date. The following choices are available to you:
If you do not object to the relief requested, you do not need to contact the court or do anything else. If you do object to the relief sought on the citation, you or your lawyer must send a document to the court signed by you or your lawyer indicating that: 1. You object to the relief or you are requesting discovery; OR 2. You are requesting the opportunity to appear in person or by using Skype for Business or by telephone conference; OR 3. You are requesting an adjournment to consult with or retain counsel. Your written response must be received by the court three (3) business days before the return date and must include either an email address or telephone number, or both, where you or your lawyer can be reached during business hours. Your communication to the court may be sent by email to: Probate General@nycourts.gov or by mail addressed to the Probate Department of this court at the address listed above or you may bring it in person to the court. The attorney for the petitioner must be copied in your communication. If your written communication to the court indicates that you would like to proceed as described in choice number 1 above, your case may be referred to a court attorney-referee for a conference. The case will be adjourned to a future date, if you request the opportunity to appear in person or by electronic means or to consult or retain counsel (choices number 2 and 3).
If you do not contact the court by the date on the citation, the record will reflect that you do not object to the relief requested. If an attorney plans to appear on your behalf, he or she must file a Notice of Appearance. This Notice may be filed by delivering it in person to the Probate Department of this court or mailing it addressed to the Probate Department at the address listed above or through the e-filing system (NYSCEF), at www.nycourts.gov/efile.
If you have questions about responding to the citation, you may contact the Probate Department at Probate General@nycourts.gov. Please note that court staff are prohibited from giving legal advice but they are available to answer any question about procedure.
The Probate Department of the New York County Surrogate's Court
PROBATE CITATION
File No. 2024-2532/A SURROGATE'S COURTNEW YORK COUNTY CITATION
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, TO TIFFANY C. GRAVES, if living and if dead, to her heirs at law, next of kin and distributees whose names and places of residence are unknown and if she died subsequent to the decedent herein, to her executors, administrators, legatees, devisees, assignees and successors in interest whose names and places of residence are unknown and to all other heirs at law, next of kin and distributees of GREGORY GRAVES, the decedent herein, whose names and places of residence are unknown and cannot, after diligent inquiry, be ascertained.
A petition having been duly filed by Daryl K. Harris who is domiciled at 322 Millies Road, Hopkins, South Carolina 29061 YOU ARE HEREBY CITED TO SHOW CAUSE before the Surrogate's Court, NEW YORK COUNTY at 31 Chambers Street, New York, on June 16, 2025 at 9:30 o'clock in the FOREnoon of that day why a decree should not be made in the estate of GREGORY GRAVES lately domiciled at 15 West 127th Street, New York, NY 10027
November 10, 2007
(Codicil(s) dated _________, GREGORY GRAVES
admitting to probate a Will dated. copy of which is attached, as the Will of_ Gregory Graves deceased, relating to real and personal property, and directing that [X] Letters Testamentary issue to:_
[ ] Letters of Trusteeship issue to:_
[ ] Letters of Administration c.t.a. issue to (State any further relief requested)
DARYL K. HARRIS
*To all Parties: No in person appearances shall be made at the return date. If you wish to object to this matter, you may do so in writing in accordance with the annexed New York County Surrogate's Court Notice to the Cited Parties May 5th 2025
HON.
Rita Mella
Surrogate
Diane Sinebria
Chief Clerk
Dated, Attested and Sealed
Christopher J. Donadio, Esq., Gair, Gair, Conason, et Attorney for Petitioner
80 Pine Street, New York, NY 10005
Address of Attorney
212-943-1090 Telephone Number cdonadio@gairgair.com E-mail Address of Attorney [NOTE: This citation is served upon you as required by law. You are not required to appear. If you fail to appear it will be assumed you do not object to the relief requested. You have a right to have an attorney appear for you.]
P-5 (10/96)
Notice of Qualification of GreshamQuant Trend Intermediary Fund, L.L.C Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/16/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 04/10/25. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Gresham Investment Management LLC, 19 Union Sq. West, 11th Fl., NY, NY 10003. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State of DE, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
Notice of Qualification of SQUARE NINE CAPITAL, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/06/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 10/23/24. Princ. office of LLC: 292 Madison Ave., 22nd Fl., NY, NY 10017. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the princ. office of the LLC. DE addr. of LLC: c/o The Corporation Service Co., 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State of the State of DE, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 3, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
Notice of Qualification of 240 WILLOUGHBY GL, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/29/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 01/15/25. Princ. office of LLC: c/o Maritime Management, LLC, One Maritime Plaza, Ste. 2100, San Francisco, CA 94111. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State of the State of DE, PO Box 898, Dover, DE 19903. Purpose: Purchase of real property.
SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK Index No.4264-2024 Date Summons
Filed:
Plaintiff designates Bronx as the place of trial. The basis of venue is CPLR 509.
Summons with Notice Plaintiff resides at 593 Riverside Drive 4A New York, NY 10031 County of Manhattan. Nina Kakiashvili, Plaintiff against Felix Anguyo, Defendant Action for Divorce
To the above named Defendant YOU ARE HERE BY SUMMONED to serve a notice of appearance on the Plaintiff within twenty(20) days after the service of this summons exclusive of the day of service (or, within thirty (30) days after the service is complete if this summons is not personally delivered to you within the State of New York); and in case of your failure to appear, judgment will be taken against you by default for the relief demanded in the notice set forth below.
Dated May 15, 2025
Plaintiff Pro Se Signature: Nina Kakiashvili Phone number 631-774-7859
Notice: The nature of this action is to dissolve the marriage between the parties, on the grounds: DRL Section 170 subd. (2)-the abandonment of the Plaintiff by the Defendant for the period of more than one year. The relief sought is a judgment of absolute divorce in favor of the Plaintiff dissolving the marriage action. The nature of any ancillary or additional relief demanded is: That and the Family Court of Bronx County shall have concurrent jurisdiction with the Supreme Court with respect to any future issues of maintenance and support.
That either party may resume the use of a prior surname. That the Plaintiff may resume her maiden name.
That the Court grant such other and further relief as the court may deem just and proper. The parties have divided the marital property and no clain will be made by either party under equitable distribution.
Notice Under DRL Section 177:
The Defendant is advised that he may no longer be covered by the Plaintiff's health insurance plan upon the entry of a judgment of divorce and that the Defendant may be responsible for own health insurance coverage.
CRG CAPITAL GROUP LLC
NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF NEW YORK PHH MORTGAGE CORPORATION, Plaintiff AGAINST BONNIE WIENER AS HEIR TO THE ESTATE OF LINDA ORLIN, UNKNOWN HEIRS OF LINDA ORLIN IF LIVING, AND IF HE/SHE BE DEAD, ANY AND ALL PERSONS UNKNOWN TO PLAINTIFF, CLAIMING, OR WHO MAY CLAIM TO HAVE AN INTEREST IN, OR GENERAL OR SPECIFIC LIEN UPON THE REAL PROPERTY DESCRIBED IN THIS ACTION; ET AL., Defendant(s) Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly entered January 23, 2025, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Courthouse in Room 130, located at 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on June 25, 2025 at 2:15PM, premises known as 220 East 60th Street, Unit 5M, New York, NY 10022. All that certain plot piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, City, County and State of New York, Section 5, Block 1414, Lot 1055. Approximate amount of judgment $591,441.70 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index #850197/2022. Christy M. Demelfi, Esq., Referee Gross Polowy, LLC 1775 Wehrle Drive Williamsville, NY 14221 20001018 84608
Notice of Qualification of VELOCITY ELEVATE LP Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/23/25. Office location: NY County. LP formed in Delaware (DE) on 10/23/24. Princ. office of LP: 1 Penn Plaza, Ste. 4420, NY, NY 10119. NYS fictitious name: VELOCITY ELEVATE L.P. Duration of LP is Perpetual. SSNY designated as agent of LP upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LP at the princ. office of the LP. Name and addr. of each general partner are available from SSNY. DE addr. of LP: c/o Corporation Service Co., 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of LP filed with Secy. of State of DE, Dept. of State, Div. of Corps., John Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
Greater Harlem Chamber SPV1, LLC LLC Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 5/8/25 Office location: New York County. SSNY has been designated as an agent upon whom process against it may be served & shall mail to: 200A W136th Street, New York, NY 10030. Purpose: Any lawful act.
NUSYSTEM SERVICES LLC, filed Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of New York (SSNY) on 04/02/2025. Location: New York County SSNY designated as agent for service of process on LLC. SSNY shall mail a copy of process to: 121A, Nassau Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11222 Purpose: Any lawful purpose.
Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 05/08/2025. Office location: NY County. SSNY has been designated as an agent upon whom process against it may be served & shall mail to: 134 West 29th Street, 4th Fl, New York, NY 10001. Purpose: Any lawful act.
VESSEL GLOBAL CAPITAL LLC Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 01/3/2025. Office location: NY County. SSNY has been designated as an agent upon whom process against it may be served & shall mail to: 31 Hudson Yards, Office 51, New York, NY 10001. Purpose: Any lawful act.
Clay Bridges LLC Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 4/17/25. Office location: New York County. SSNY has been designated as an agent upon whom process against it may be served & shall mail to: 601 W 149th St 67, NY, NY 10031 Purpose: Any lawful act.
SMZ International Group LLC LLC Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 02/27/2025. Office location: New York County. SSNY has been designated as an agent upon whom process against it may be served & shall mail to: 2804 Gateway Oaks Dr # 100 , Sacramento, CA 95833. Purpose: Any lawful act.
Archie's Handy Works LLC Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on Feb. 28, 2025. Office location: Manhattan County. SSNY has been designated as an agent upon whom process against it may be served & shall mail to: 228 Park AVE S #608669, NY, NY. Purpose: Any lawful act.
Blood Dynamics, LLC. LLC Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/20/2025. Office location: New York County. SSNY has been designated as an agent upon whom process against it may be served & shall mail to: 450 Riverside Drive, Apt 94, New York, NY 10027. Purpose: Any lawful act.
SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF NEW YORK
SUPPLEMENTAL SUMMONS
Index NO. 850284/2024
Date Filed: 4/22/2025
Wilmington Savings Fund Society, FSB, not in its individual capacity but solely as Owner Trustee of CSMC 2022-JRI Trust, Plaintiff, -against-
Young Sook Lee a/k/a Young S. Lee, if she be living or if she be dead, her spouses, heirs, devisees, distributees and successors in interest, all of whom and whose names and places of residence are unknown to Plaintiff; The Board of Managers of Chartwell House Condominium Homeowners Association; City of New York Environmental Control Board; City of New York Parking Violations Bureau; City of New York Transit Adjudication Bureau, and "JOHN DOE" said name being fictitious, it being the intention of Plaintiff to designate any and all occupants of premises being foreclosed herein, and any parties, corporations or entities, if any, having or claiming an interest or lien upon the mortgaged premises, Defendants.
PROPERTY ADDRESS: 1760 2 nd Avenue, Unit 19B, New York, NY 10128
TO THE ABOVE NAMED DEFENDANTS: YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to answer the complaint in this action and to serve a copy of your answer, or a notice of appearance on the attorneys for the Plaintiff within thirty (30) days after the service of this summons, exclusive of the day of service. The United States of America, if designated as a defendant in this action, may appear within sixty (60) days of service hereof. In case of your failure to appear or answer, judgment will be taken against you by default for the relief demanded in the complaint.
Climate change is disrupting access to HIV treatment
By JESSICA KUTZ
The 19th*
This story was originally published by the 19th*
Half of the people with HIV in the United States are living in places that are vulnerable to extreme weather and climate disasters, according to a new analysis from the leftleaning Center for American Progress (CAP).
depends on the individual patient and when they were diagnosed with HIV.
Seal said they stress the importance of patients staying on their medication.
Notice is hereby given that a license, serial #NA-0340-25103028 for beer, wine & liquor has been applied for by the undersigned to sell beer, wine & liquor at retail in a restaurant under the ABC Law at 994 Columbus Ave., New York, NY 10025 for on-premises consumption; Limone LLC
In the South and Northeast, flooding and hurricanes pose unique health issues for people with HIV by making it more difficult to get access to medical care. All three of these types of climate disasters are becoming more destructive due to climate change.
that had run out, Chanthala said. The high cost of the drugs meant some pharmacies were hesitant to fill prescriptions, worried that people wouldn’t come to pick them up.
“When you have trouble is when patients are running out of medications because if they don’t have enough medicine, then they start skipping doses to make it last longer, that’s when we run into problems, and then the virus can become resistant to those medications,” Seal said.
TO THE ABOVE NAMED DEFENDANTS: The foregoing Summons is served upon you by publication pursuant to an Order of the Hon. Francis A. Kahn, III, a Justice of the Supreme Court, New York County, entered Apr. 18, 2025 and filed with the complaint and other papers in the New York County Clerk’s Office.
NOTICE OF NATURE OF ACTION AND RELIEF SOUGHT THE OBJECT of the above captioned action is to foreclose a Mortgage to secure $220,000.00 and interest, recorded in the New York County Office of the City Register on March 10, 2004, in CRFN 2004000145956 covering premises known as 1760 2nd Avenue, Unit 19B, New York, NY 10128 a/k/a Block 1554, Lot 1087.
NOTICE is hereby given that a license, number NA-0370-24135212 for liquor, wine, beer & cider has been applied for by the undersigned to sell liquor, wine, beer & cider at retail in a bar/tavern under the Alcoholic Beverage Control Law at 4371 3rd Ave; Bronx, NY 10457 in Bronx County for on premises consumption. Zion Restaurant and Lounge Corp d/b/a Zion Restaurant and Lounge
Notice of Qualification of AP CREDIT SOLUTIONS HOLDINGS (AIV) II, L.P. Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 01/08/25. Office location: NY County. LP formed in Delaware (DE) on 12/26/24. Princ. office of LP: Attn: General Counsel, 9 W. 57th St., 43rd Fl., NY, NY 10019. Duration of LP is Perpetual. SSNY designated as agent of LP upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the Partnership at the princ. office of the LP. Name and addr. of each general partner are available from SSNY. DE addr. of LP: c/o Corporation Service Co., 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of LP filed with The Secy. of State of the State of DE, Dept. of State, Div. of Corps., John Townsend Bldg., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
The relief sought in the within action is a final judgment directing the sale of the premises described above to satisfy the debt secured by the Mortgage described above.
Plaintiff designates New York County as the place of trial. Venue is based upon the County in which the mortgaged premises is situated.
YOU ARE IN DANGER OF LOSING YOUR HOME
IF YOU DO NOT RESPOND TO THIS SUMMONS AND COMPLAINT BY SERVING A COPY OF THE ANSWER ON THE ATTORNEY FOR THE MORTGAGE COMPANY WHO FILED THIS FORECLOSURE PROCEEDING AGAINST YOU AND FILING THE ANSWER WITH THE COURT, A DEFAULT JUDGMENT MAY BE ENTERED AND YOU CAN LOSE YOUR HOME.
SPEAK TO AN ATTORNEY OR GO TO THE COURT WHERE YOUR CASE IS PENDING FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ON HOW TO AN SWER THE SUMMONS AND PROTECT YOUR PROPERTY. SENDING A PAYMENT TO YOUR MORTGAGE COMPANY WILL NOT STOP THIS FORECLOSURE ACTION.
YOU MUST RESPOND BY SERVING A COPY OF THE ANSWER ON THE ATTORNEY FOR THE PLAINTIFF (MORTGAGE COMPANY) AND FILING THE ANSWER WITH THE COURT.
Dated: March 11, 2025
The report from CAP released Wednesday found that the areas of the country where HIV is being diagnosed at disproportionately high rates are also places most at risk of disasters. The analysis used data from Ending the HIV Epidemic in the U.S. (EHE), a federal program that aims to reduce the rate of new HIV infections, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) national risk index. FEMA’s tool takes into account the frequency of disasters, but also the vulnerability of the population, accounting for certain at-risk demographics like low-income and socially disadvantaged people.
Occupational Therapist Priority Care Staffing. Full time. Bronx. 75,712/year (36.4/ hour) Evaluate patients’ conditions; Develop and implement treatment plans; Demonstrate exercises to help relieve patients’ pain; Evaluate results and progress of occupational therapy on patients; Educate caregivers and family members of clients on patient care. usotjobs@prioritycarestaffing. com.
Continued from page 4
“We’re seeing extreme weather and climate events that are quite far outside of historic experience,” Ebi said, pointing to flooding in Asheville, N.C., as one recent example.
EHE designated 50 locations, including 48 counties; Washington, D.C.; and San Juan, Puerto Rico, as high-priority areas to combat HIV because they are where more than 50% of new HIV cases occur. On average, those places had a national risk index score of 96.8 out of 100.
“It is not surprising that those most at-risk live in areas particularly vulnerable to extreme weather and climate events. That is true for many other climate-sensitive health outcomes,” said Kristie Ebi, professor of global health at the University of Washington, who reviewed the analysis. “The poor and marginalized are generally at higher risk and often live in … locations that are less desirable because of vulnerability to extreme weather and climate events.”
Haley Norris, a policy analyst with CAP and author of the report, said what stood out was the variability in threats faced by different parts of the country. On the West Coast, wildfires cause issues for people with HIV because many develop lung conditions that are exacerbated by wildfire smoke.
For those with HIV, such extreme events are making it harder to stay on track with their medications, which stop the disease from progressing to AIDS and prevent transmission to others.
“There’s still a lot of fear with HIV and so many clients don’t disclose their status, so they find ways to hide their medications, and if they’re around people, they’re less likely to take those medications out,” said Vatsana Chanthala, director of the New Orleans Health Department’s Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, a federal initiative that provides funding for clinics and treatments that support low-income people. New Orleans is located in one of the priority jurisdictions to combat new HIV infections.
After Hurricane Ida in 2021, Chanthala’s team surveyed patients in the program to gain a better understanding of how the disaster may have disrupted their care or access to medications. HIV treatment involves taking antiretrovirals daily or bimonthly injections to suppress the virus and keep it at a level that prevents it from spreading. After Ida, pharmacies closed due to damage; electricity was also out for nearly two weeks in parts of the city, making it difficult to contact pharmacies to refill lost prescriptions or others
The cost of the drugs were also an issue for those who evacuated: Many did not know that they could use their insurance to cover medications out of state, so they did not attempt to purchase their medication due to out-of-pocket costs, Chanthala found. Of 194 patients surveyed, 30% of those who evacuated said they had trouble accessing care, and of those who stayed in New Orleans, 32% also had trouble accessing care.
Another barrier to taking medications is the stigma about HIV. In times of disaster, many people evacuate to the homes of family and friends, and some people in the survey said their family was unaware they had HIV.
Norris said one study on HIV care and wildfires in California also found that people expressed fear of disclosing they had the disease.
“These are people who are going through extremely stressful, life-destroying situations, and they have to do the emotional calculation of, ‘Will disclosing this make me less safe?’ That is the hardest part of the puzzle for us to figure out,” Norris said.” It is not just about access; it is the reality that HIV stigma is still very alive and well and still very powerful.”
The risk associated with not taking medications is high for people with HIV. If someone stops taking their antiretrovirals (ART) or if they run out of medication, their viral load will go up over time, said Dr. Paula Seal, who works at the HIV Outpatient Clinic at the University Medical Center New Orleans. The length of time it would take for that to happen
To offset those risks, Seal and other providers follow a hurricane preparedness protocol, talking with patients every year before hurricane season hits and urging them to refill their prescriptions. In many instances, people can get up to 90 days’ worth covered by insurance, which could last through a hurricane season. Seal also provides numbers to pharmacies they can contact if something happens to their medication.
This past October, the Biden administration updated its guidelines for providers who are treating people with HIV who have been displaced, Norris said. The new guidelines walk providers, who might not have expertise in treating HIV, through how to assess and prescribe medication for new patients who otherwise may have disruption in their care. “Providing ART is very complex, it’s really, really good that they were able to get that out when they did,” they said.
One way that the Ryan White Program could become more nimble is by having its services follow enrolled patients, Chanthala said. Currently patients at the Ryan White clinics have access to wrap-around services, like transportation and help with housing, but they lose that support if they evacuate.
“Medications are important, and adherence is important, but if a person needs food, needs a place to stay, that’s going to be first on their minds,” she said.
Currently, these supports are not provided through money directly, but Chanthala thinks that having the flexibility to provide funds in disaster situations for people with high medical needs could also help: “If they can’t afford gas to get out of the area, they aren’t going to evacuate.”
Bronx native Stacia Suttles makes her name in professional boxing
By LOIS ELFMAN Special to the AmNews
As women’s boxing slowly but surely grows in popularity, the number of women developing their careers increases. Stacia “The Natural” Suttles is part of the current generation diligently working to earn a place on high-profile fight cards.
Growing up in the Bronx, Suttles participated in Karate and Taekwondo, earning a black belt in the latter. When she went away to college, she stepped away from sports, which proved to be detrimental to her well-being.
“I knew I needed to get back into a sport because I’ve always been in one and that kept me grounded,” said Suttles, 30, who took up boxing in 2014. Over the next decade, she established a decorated amateur career, including the New York Golden Gloves (2016), four-time Team USA boxer, nine-time national and international medalist, and twice at the U.S. Olympic trials, finishing second in 2024. She
turned professional last year.
“Team Combat League (TCL) is a great opportunity for women to compete at the same level as the
men and make a good amount of money at the same level as the men,” said Suttles, who hopes this will lead to more professional op-
portunities. “I’m overwhelmed with gratitude because I’m able to display my skills, do what I love to do, get paid to do it, and at the end of
the day, hopefully gain exposure.” Now in its third season, TCL Team Boxing League teams are composed of both male and female fighters. Each boxer earns points toward a team’s total performance. TCL appears on MeritTV as well as streaming on its website, and many of the matches are on YouTube. On any given fight night, Suttles, who is with New York City Attitude, fights one or two rounds. Her next TCL fight is May 30 in Nashville.
“Outside of my own professional boxing journey, I do own my own business where I help children and adults develop social and emotional skills through boxing,” Suttles said. “With that, I teach in after-school programs, summer camps, I do private coaching, and I’ve done seminars as well.”
She is a huge advocate for female boxers and women’s sports. “The biggest message that I’m trying to convey is that everyone is their own individual,” she said. “If you can pursue doing your best in whatever you want to do, you never know where it can take you.”
Acrobatics & Tumbling moves towards NCAA championship status
By LOIS ELFMAN Special to the AmNews
Acrobatics and tumbling, which merges dance, gymnastics, and cheerleading, has rapidly gained popularity as a college sport. It emerged as a sport in 2020 and currently has more than 40 schools participating. Earlier this month, the NCAA Committee on Women’s Athletics voted to recommend that Divisions I, II, and III sponsor legislation to establish a National Collegiate Championship.
In the New York area, Manhattan College will begin competing in the 2025-2026 academic year, which Iona University and Long Island University (LIU) have competed in the past two seasons.
“For so many of us who started this as young athletes and are current coaches now, it’s amazing to see,” said Iona coach Jacquie Eshleman. An early competitor in the sport at the University of Oregon, then known as stunts and gymnastics, she recalled the impact of becoming a varsity sport, which involved access to athletic department resources. She is excited to see how NCAA championship status will impact
today’s student-athletes.
“It’s something we’ve been fighting for, for a really long time, and advocating for all of the young women in this country that love to flip, tumble, and dance,” said Eshleman. “I feel blessed to have been a part of the sport on the very first team…and now being one of the people that is going to see it through.”
A Division I acrobatics and tumbling team typically has about 40 to 50 student-athletes. A game-day roster can be a maximum of 28. At present, the maximum number of scholarships is 14, which can be divided across the roster.
“We are a team sport, so we have six events — compulsory, acro, pyramid, toss, tumbling, and team routine,” Eshleman said. “[The tumbling] event has synchronized passes as well as solo passes.”
Shelby Armstrong, the inaugural coach of LIU’s acrobatics and tumbling team, also attended the University of Oregon. As a student-athlete, Armstrong just wanted to compete.
“I wanted to showcase my skills and be judged on the execution of them,” said Armstrong. “Towards the end of college, I thought I
wanted to coach the sport. I started at the club level. Then I built a Division II program. That’s when I started to really understand what was required of us to get the NCAA status. It’s been a lot of years in the making. … I’m showing my athletes that this is bigger than our wins and losses. This is history that we’re creating.”
(L) Boxer and Bronx native Stacia “The Natural” Suttles is making her mark inside and out of the ring. (Photo courtesy of Stacia Suttles)
LIU’s acrobatics and tumbling team is now in its second year of competing. (LIU Athletics photo)
Iona’s squad of acrobats and tumblers has experienced considerable success as the sport moves toward having an NCAA championship tournament. (Iona Gaels Athletics photo)
Natasha Cloud makes an immediate impact with the champion Liberty
By LOIS ELFMAN Special to the AmNews
The Liberty not only look the part of being the best team in the WNBA, they are stringing together what may end up being one of the best two-season runs in league history. It’s still a long way to go in this current campaign — the regular season continues until September 11— but after a resounding 95-67 win over the Golden State Valkyries at the Barclays Center on Tuesday night, the Liberty were 4-0 before they hosted Golden State again tonight in Brooklyn. They are neck and neck with the 5-0 Minnesota Lynx, the squad they beat in last season’s finals. The Liberty are rolling in large part due to Natasha Cloud, a key offseason veteran addition. The 5-10 guard spent her first eight years in the WNBA with the Wash-
ington Mystics, winning a championship before moving on to the Phoenix Mercury last season. Last March, she was traded to the Connecticut Sun and then from the Sun to the Liberty.
Given the season-long absence of Betnijah Laney-Hamilton, Cloud has been a tremendous addition. Laney, who has been a key component of the Liberty, joining the team in 2021, underwent surgery in late March to repair a meniscus injury in her left knee sustained playing in the Unrivaled 3-on-3 league. The 33-yearold shooting guard has more than filled the void in head coach Sandy Brondello’s lineup, averaging 18.7 points, 5.7 rebounds and 7.7 assists.
On Saturday, in a 90-88 road win over the Indiana Fever, Cloud had a stat line of 16 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Afterwards, her teammate, All-Star
point guard Sabrina Ionescu complimented Cloud’s significant contributions.
“Everyone knows what she brings to this team and why she’s so valuable offensively and defensively, and she does it every single night,” said Ionescu.
While the win over the Fever wasn’t pretty, Ionescu observed it was a huge early season victory against the rising Fever, led by Caitlin Clark and Aliyah Boston, two of the best young players in the WNBA.
“On the road and a gritty win, I think it’s impressive,” said Ionescu. “Being able to see how we’re able to grind wins out, continue to stay together and win when it’s ugly. When you get to the end of the year, that’s kind of what it looks like.”
The Liberty will take on the Mystics tomorrow in Washington and play the Sun at the Barclays on Sunday afternoon at 3 p.m.
What’s wrong with the Mets’ Juan Soto? The simple answer is baseball
By JAIME C. HARRIS AmNews Sports Editor
Nearly one year ago, on May 30, 2024, Juan Soto was batting .312, had an on-base percentage of .415 and was slugging .584 in his first and only season with the New York Yankees. The right fielder ended the regular season playing 157 games with MVP-esque numbers: a .288 batting average, .419 OBP, slugging .519, and on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) of .989, 41 home runs, 109 RBIs and 129 walks.
Twelve months later, Soto is way behind that impactful rate of production and is being analyzed through a powerful microscope by fans and media after signing the largest contract for a player in American team sports history last December.
Leaving the Bronx to join the Mets in Queens, Soto inked a 15-year, $765 million deal as team owner Steve Cohen, a hedge fund manager who according to Forbes has an estimated net worth of around $21 billion, made a long-term investment that he wagers will yield several World Series championships for the franchise.
While this season’s MLB schedule is only a little over two months in, the returns on Soto have been min-
imal. After going 0-4 in the Mets 6-4 win over the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday at Citi Field in Queens, Soto was hitting a lowly .228, tied for just 132nd in all of baseball, was 55th in home runs with eight, sitting 81st in RBIs with 25 and a middling by his lofty standards .756 OPS, 83rd among all players.
So what’s wrong with the 26-yearold four-time All-Star and five-time
Silver Slugger Award winner, the latter an honor given to the best offensive player at each position in both the American and National League?
The simple answer is baseball.
The sport can be unforgiving and like the stock market, a system in which Cohen has exceeding expertise, can be extremely volatile and uncertain. One of the most often
asserted explanations in the large orbit of sports debates is that Soto is feeling immense pressure to live up to his enormous deal. However, the hefty weight that has crushed other players who have come to the Big Apple after having success with other teams doesn’t apply here because Soto thrived with the Yankees last year.
Perhaps he is overthinking his
approach at the plate. Maybe, without arguably baseball’s best player as a protective force, Yankees center fielder Aaron Judge, last season’s AL MVP, who continues to post historic numbers, Soto has not yet adjusted to how pitchers are dissecting him.
It could be why he has had mental lapses, such as not running hard out of the batter’s box on occasion, which spurred a recent conversation between him and Mets manager Carlos Mendoza to remind Soto not to overlook some of the game’s fundamental details while critics regularly reference his paycheck
“What’s new is the contract,” Mendoza said last week in contrasting 2024’s and this season’s version of Soto. “That’s the biggest difference here.”
The Mets were a sturdy 34-21 before last night’s game against the White Sox, in second place NL East, only 1.5 games behind the sizzling Philadelphia Phillies. The back of Soto’s baseball card, which reads like a future Hall of Fame resume, says he will be at or near his career numbers as the season progresses.
Until then, he will be the subject of the question: What’s wrong with Juan Soto?
Mets right fielder Juan Soto is off to a slow start at the plate in his first season with the team. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
In her first season with the New York Liberty, guard Natasha Cloud is averaging 18.7 points per game. (Brandon Todd/New York Liberty photo)
Sports Business Awards attendees discuss progress in women’s sports
By DERREL JOHNSON Special to the AmNews
With the rise in popularity of athletes such as WNBA sensation Caitlin Clark, USC college basketball star Juju Watkins; gymnast Simone Biles, a seven-time Olympic gold medalist, and track and field champion Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, women’s sports have been elevated to unprecedented heights. Still, with the exception of a few, which includes tennis standouts Coco Gauff and Naomi Osaka, women are not earning an equal amount of money as their male counterparts.
At the Sports Business Awards presented by the Sports Business Journal held at the New York Marriott Marquis in Midtown Manhattan on May 21, journalist Hannah Storm, businesswoman Julie Uhrman, and wrestler Chelsea Green of the WWE Superstars discussed how women are endeavoring to close the financial gap as their prominence in sports grows.
“I’ve always known, I was, you
know, the first play-by-play person for the WNBA, so I have always known about the magic of women’s sports and how amazing it is,” said Storm, who has also served as an ESPN anchor and NBA Countdown host. “But to see huge corporations come in and understand the return on investment in women’s sports now is just so gratifying.”
Storm hopes that her three daughters, whom she had with her husband and fellow sportscaster Dan Hicks, will be part of the generation that will see the economics of women’s sports make substantial gains.
“I think everybody really needs to look at themselves and answer that and understand that these things do take a while to build,” Storm said. “But in the meantime, in terms of deals for individual athletes, we have that happening at the college level, thank goodness, with NIL (name, image and likeness) and a lot of women are able to navigate that beautifully.”
Uhrman, who is president and cofounder of Angel City FC, a National Women’s Soccer League team based
WWE Superstar Chelsea Green spoke about increased financial opportunities for women in sports at last week’s Sports Business Awards held in Midtown Manhattan. (Derrel Johnson photo)
in Los Angeles, referenced some stark numbers when asked about the differences in what men’s and women’s sports generate.
“Women’s sports has a long way to go,” she said, referencing a report by Deloitte that states while women’s sports collectively generates $2.35 billion annually in revenue, the number is a massive $471 billion for men. “We have a long way to go to be equal to men, but it starts with investment. Investing in the players, investing in the product, investing in the experience,
and investing in the community.
“Each year, the National Women’s Soccer League has been increasing our salary cap so we can pay players what they’re worth, and my hope is that we continue to do that.”
Female wrestlers are showcased by the WWE more than ever. Signature personality, Chelsea Green, hopes that expanded exposure, work ethic, and commitment translate into increased status and financial gains.
“As a female athlete, I know that
that’s what I’m trying to do every single day that I clock into work,” she said. “When I go out there, I’m making sure I give it my all. I leave everything out there in the ring, and that’s all I can do. I can rest my head at night knowing I’m giving everything and more that a man would give to this industry and this job.”
She added, “And that’s all I can do. We can continue to fight that way by just showing up. That’s what we need to do, and we are going to keep fighting.”
Lanaya Price, inspired by ‘The Cosby Show,’ establishes a career in television
By DERREL JOHNSON Special to the AmNews
ESPN studio operator Lanaya Price found herself in the sports world through a pathway not exactly related to athletics.
“I would say it goes back to my childhood being influenced by my uncle, who was a camera operator at ‘The Cosby Show,’” she said to the AmNews while attending the 46th Annual Sports Emmy Awards staged on May 20 at Lincoln Center in Manhattan.
“So it was the exposure, the conversations, and just him talking to me and pulling me aside like, ‘hey, what do you want to do with your future?’ It is just being able to be around somebody who already has something great established for themselves in their career, and that’s what I did. I pursued it, and I did it, thanks to him.”
The Jamaica, Queens native embraced every opportunity afforded to her to gain and sharpen the requisite skills to ascend to ESPN, known as the worldwide leader in sports.
“I am a studio operator, so I’m actually the one behind the camera operating your cameras and also doing video shading, handheld work, steady camera, so on and so forth. I’m very passionate about technology.”
Price has welcomed the challenge of keeping up with rapidly evolving technology in the sports and entertainment industries.
“ESPN has a different way that they do things, and when I came in the door, I had experience in local news here in New York,” said Price. “And going to ESPN, I had
to learn things in a different way, it was different (technology) languages. It only made me better at the end of the day. I just had to apply myself. I had great mentors, and I just had a go get it mindset.”
Price is proud of her tenure at ESPN.
“Celebrating 14 years as a woman in tech at ESPN, what a surreal milestone,” she said. ”This journey has been fun, challenging, and incredibly fulfilling. Working at the worldwide leader isn’t just a job, it’s a lifestyle that’s shaped me in so many ways.”
Price, who founded Terminaya Fitness, a youth basketball and fitness camp, shared advice for those aspiring to enter the industry but do not have the mentors she had.
“Stay true to your passion, stay true to what you’’e connected to, don’t take no for an answer,” she emphasized. “Continue to see things through. You have to have grit, you have to have determination… you have to stay persistent and push through those nos to get to that yes.”
Lanaya Price, a studio operator for ESPN, credits her uncle, who worked for ‘The Cosby Show,’ as a source for her pursuing a career in television. (Derrel Johnson photo)
Sports Knicks have to slow down Pacers to avert playoff elimination
By JAIME C. HARRIS AmNews Sports Editor
The Indianapolis 500 took place on Sunday at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It’s where the Knicks and Pacers should be facing each other in the Eastern Conference Finals because seemingly, the hometown Pacers are playing faster than the race cars were driven. The Indy 500 ended with an average car speed of 231 miles per hour and the Pacers’ velocity, as seen by the naked eye, isn’t much slower.
Down 3-1 in the best-of-seven series after a 130-121 road loss on Tuesday in Game 4, the Knicks have to somehow slow
down the Pacers tonight in Game 5 at Madison Square Garden if they are going to stave off being eliminated from the playoffs.
The No. 3 seed Knicks, like the No. 5 seed Milwaukee Bucks in the opening round and the No. 1 seed Cleveland Cavaliers in the conference semifinals, have been coerced by the Pacers into playing at a tempo they cannot effectively match. The No. 4 seed Pacers dispatched both teams 4-1 and can do the same to the Knicks with a win this evening.
As they’re taking the opposition down one by one in electrifying fashion, putting the basketball universe, which still has many NBA followers doubting their legitimacy as a certified
championship contender, on notice, the Pacers are emphatically asserting they are a dangerous collective.
Two stats tell much of why the Knicks are in a dire circumstance: Over four games, the Pacers lead them in fast-break points 65-23 and have outscored them by an unfathomable 53 points, 86-33, off turnovers. It’s a byproduct of the Pacers’ relentless pressure on both ends of the court.
“You turn it over against them, particularly live ball turnovers, you’re fueling their transition game,” said Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau of his squad’s 17 turnovers, off which they conceded 20 points.
Meanwhile, the Knicks can be
encouraged by understanding that having taken better care of the ball and being more sound in late game execution could have them tied or even leading the series. The average margin of victory in the four games is a close 5.75 points.
They also have to proverbially cut off the head of the snake that is Pacers point guard Tyrese Haliburton, who etched a game no one in history ever has on Tuesday. Perpetually in motion, Haliburton became the first player to register at least 30 points, 15 assists, and 10 rebounds (he had 32, 15 and 12) with no turnovers in a playoff game since turnovers began being
tracked in the 1977-78 season. Despite having a team high, “I’m not doing enough,” said Knicks guard Jalen Brunson. “There has to be a difference on my part when it comes to that.”
Teams that have held 3-1 leads in best-of-seven playoff series have won nearly 96% of the time, so the Knicks are trying to overcome monumental odds. It’s possible. And it can start with a win tonight.
Knicks face playoff elimination tonight at Madison Square Garden by guard Tyrese Haliburton and Indiana Pacers in Game 5 of Eastern Conference Finals. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
