OUR TIME PRESS | January 10-16, 2019

| From the Villa ge of Brook ly n |

OUR TIME PRESS THE L OCAL PAPER WITH THE G LOBAL VIEW

| VOL. 23 NO. 2

January 10-16, 2019 |

Since 1996

Elevating the Game

Photo by ŠYaw Asare Aboagye

Letitia James, far left, recently sworn in as New York State Attorney General, is celebrated by Brooklyn’s political elite at her Emmanuel Baptist Church home. From near left: former Assembly Member Annette Robinson; State Senator Velmanette Montgomery and former City Council Member (and former Assembly Member) Al Vann. Page 8

The Government Shutdown Hits Home and Close to Home "Three weeks into the government shutdown 380,000 federal workers have been furloughed. Collectively, they owe $400 million in back rent and mortgage payments." Page 2

Women of Color Are Here to Make Congress Great Again On the first day of this 116th Congress, these Congresswomen of color are calling impeachment of this treacherous president" Page 3

HOW TO SURVIVE Where Are Our Boundaries?

"If you want to know a man, figure out where his boundaries lie." Page 5

2

OUR TIME PRESS January 10-16, 2019

View From Here ■■

The Government Shutdown Hits Home and Close to Home

By David Mark Greaves

New Women in Congress Set a New Path Being drowned out of the controversy about Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s promotion of a 70% tax rate is the fact that in 1956 the tax rate went up to 90% at the highest bracket. 1956 was also the year President Dwight Eisenhower enacted the Federal Aid Highway aka the National Interstate and Defense Highways Act. Originally authorized at $25 billion over ten years, it was the largest public works project ever done in the United States. Those high tax brackets paid for the highway system that is taken for granted today.

What AOC is proposing with her 70% tax for the highest incomes is an updated version of what payed for Eisenhower’s highways and substitutes the Green New Deal of converting the nation from fossil fuels to renewal energy to protect the climate, address the nation’s infrastructure and lessen income inequality. This young Hispanic woman makes good sense, which is why the conservatives can’t stand her and why they are so easily mocked.

Also in 1956, photos of the U.S. Congress would have in it only 18 women and three African-Americans. This 116th Congress of 2019 has 106 women, 54 African-Americans, 41 Hispanics, 15 Asian and Pacific Islanders, 4 Native Americans and 8 who identify as LGBTQ. There has never been a Congress like this and we are allowed to imagine that anything is possible.

And we must also be mindful that the makeup of the Congress, cheered by some, is proof to others of the takeover of the America they remember when white people were in charge of everything and others knew their place. And when Trump speaks of immigrants, drug runners and sex traffickers, he is also casting subtle shade on the new Congress which must be of concern to his base. This Congress is their fears made real.

DBG MEDIA Publishers of Our Time Press, Inc. 358 Classon Avenue Brooklyn, NY 11238 (718) 599-6828 Web site: www.ourtimepress.com e-mail: editors@ourtimepress.com Publisher DBG MEDIA Editor-in-Chief David Mark Greaves Copy Editor Maitefa Angaza Columnists Eddie Castro Victoria Horsford Michael Johnson Abigail McGrath Marlon Rice Reporters Akosua Albritton Margot McKenzie Contributors Lisa Durden Fern Gillespie Web Editor www.ourtimepress.com Liani Greaves Office Manager Joanna Williams Consultant Bernice Elizabeth Green Co-Founder © 2015, DBG MEDIA Publishers of Our Time Press, Inc., printed in New York City.

All rights reserved.

No part of the publication may be reproduced without prior permission of the publishers.

Publishers are not responsible for any ad claims.

MBE Certified in NYC, NYS and the Port Authority of NY & NJ Member: New York State Press Association

It is also the fear of the traditional powerful interests that exerted themselves through financial and personal relationships.

These interests have no say with these new congresspeople, they are just learning their names and learning how powerful the people’s voice can be once heard. And these new representatives are speaking “truth to power” in a straightforward way as Rep. Rashid Tlaib (D-Michigan) does with her “Justice for All Civil Rights Act,” that expands the powers of individuals against powerful, moneyed interests. She says the Civil Rights Act was watered-down, we need Medicare for all and the campaign finance laws need to be corrected. And then there is the problem of the tax breaks for the rich that have ballooned the deficit. Tlaib says movement on all of these fronts is possible because “it’s the will of the People.” As the Congress starts “to look, talk and feel as the rest of the country,” she says she has “tremendous hope and inspiration that the disconnect we feel with the nation’s politics will be corrected.” Expect her to be attacked regularly by Fox News.

Rep. Deb Haaland (D-New Mexico) makes it clear that she is a woman ready for a fight and not backing down in her effort to do nothing less than re-center Congress on the need to get to solving problems (real problems) of the people and forcing them to look at reality. “The wall is a fantasy. Climate change is the crisis.” And she dismisses the idea that Donald Trump feels the pain of others: “I know what it’s like to be on food stamps and the president does not.”

This is a Congress bringing a whole new ball game, get your popcorn and grab your seat.

Latest on Trump and the Russians Collusion n. Definition: A secret agreement between two or more persons for a deceitful or fraudulent purpose.

Script writers must be in a swoon over the characters in this Russia-Trump saga.

Now it appears that Paul Manafort, while campaign manager for Donald Trump, for which he took no pay, flew to Madrid to share the campaign’s internal polling data with a Russian agent. This data would have told the Russians how best to target the messaging of their social media campaign to benefit Trump. And so, the net tightens.

VOL. 23 NO. 2

T

■■

By Maitefa Angaza

hree weeks into the government shutdown 380,000 federal workers have been furloughed.

Collectively, they owe $400 million in back rent and mortgage payments.

Meanwhile, the president is doubling-down on his demand for a border wall – or fence. He’s focused on barring and deporting immigrants of all ages, while those bearing the brunt the of the shutdown are citizens – children, families and elders born in the United States.

Some are our Brooklyn neighbors and fellow New Yorkers. Their daycare programs, Head Start, school lunches, SNAP benefits, food pantries, domestic violence shelters and tax returns, are all now – or may likely soon be -- delayed or denied.

Schools can’t take children to the African Burial Ground and New York is footing the bill to keep the Statue of Liberty open during the holidays – but no more. Word has leaked from the White House that Donald Trump and his advisors did not know what the full effect of the shutdown would be.

But his address to the nation Tuesday night gave no indication that he’ll place the wellbeing of the people above his insistence of having his way.

Several federal agencies located in New York have remained up and running, so the effects of Trump’s shutdown are not yet fully visible. Fewer people rely on the Postal Service these days, and for those who do, the mail is being delivered, Social Security checks will go out as scheduled and VA hospitals are open.

But pain and hardship are on the way if it continues much longer. And although the procedure for what shuts down precedes him, it appears to reflect Trump’s own priorities and proclivities – with agencies housing the poor, protecting the environment and protecting workers taking the hardest hit.

Housing and Urban Development (HUD) the Environmental Protection Agency (the EPA), the Department of Education and the Department of Labor

are all in the top five of agencies sending the greatest number of employees home without pay -- with 96 percent, 95, 95 and 83 percent (respectively) of employees furloughed.

Let’s look at a few of the ramifications: According to a report by the National Low Income Housing Coalition, “HUD sent letters to 1,500 landlords on January 4 clarifying what activities will continue to take place during the first 30 business days of the shutdown and how to prevent the eviction of thousands of tenants who live in homes covered by the Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance program or Section 202 (for the elderly) and Section 811 (for people with disabilities) programs.”

Public housing tenants must rely on the skeleton crew left at HUD for emergencies only, if a ceiling falls, for example. But if a family with an asthma-stricken child needs mold inspection or removal, that will have to wait. The critical nature of the shutdown is reflected in the agency’s own Contingency Plan. “A government shutdown would deeply impact the millions of families in need assisted by HUD programs,” the plan says. “Lowincome families make up 72 percent of HUD-assisted households — and more than half of those receiving vouchers are elderly or persons with disabilities.”

The SNAP program, which provides food and other essentials to low-income people, says its funds will last through the end of February and subsidized school lunches have limited reserves.

Our Time Press spoke with a federal worker who would prefer to remain anonymous to get a view of local impact.

Turns out, he’s one of the lucky ones.

An Emergency Management Specialist, he works for FEMA, an agency under the Department of Homeland Security.

He’s a term employee working out of the New York office, which serves New ➔➔ Continued on page 14

VOL. 23 NO. 2

3

OUR TIME PRESS January 10-16, 2019

Women of Color Are Here to Make Congress Great Again

A

n extraordinary cohort of women of color were sworn into Congress this week.

They arrive in a D.C. that is fraught with chaos and uncertainty, largely because of our reckless president. He is holding the government hostage, demanding an estimated $5 billion to build an unnecessary wall at the U.S.-Mexico border. This ransom comes at the cost of an ongoing federal government partial shutdown that is further impairing an already-fragile nation.

Since Dec. 22, the shutdown has put the lives of government employees (and their paychecks) on hold because President Donald Trump thinks that playing high-stakes politics is how he should govern.

In stark contrast to many establishment leaders, Reps. Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar, Deb Haaland, Ayanna Pressley, Lucy McBath and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are showing America what thoughtful governance and political hope can look like. Theirs is not a “politics of pettiness;” it is a “politics of accountability.”

On the first day of this 116th Congress, these congresswomen of color are calling for a New Green Deal and the impeachment of this treacherous president; they are demanding genuine gun control and transparent oversight of our infrastructure. This is what women of color politics looks like.

This squad of bold women of color is arriving in the nation’s capital on the people’s steam, not on the coattails of establishment Democrats. They make comprehensive proposals like a New Green Deal. They support a boycott, divestment and sanctions bill to use tools such as economic sanctions to address violations of Palestinians’ human rights.

They insist on serving on the most powerful committees because they are emboldened as veterans of social, economic and racial justice movements.

Theirs are the strategies of organizing everyday people to insist on their rights and to accept nothing less.

Last year began with both the GOP and the Democratic Party refusing to recognize the power of these women of color and the new American majority that stands behind them. But now they’re in the driver’s seat, and there is no denying who they are, who they represent and what they will do. These women of color are in office to challenge the mores, practices and assumptions of both parties.

Photo: © Tom Williams/Congressional Quarterly/Newscom via ZUMA

January 4, 2019 – Washington Rep. Lucy McBath, D-Ga., leaves the Capitol before a group photo with Democratic women members of the House on the East Front.

■■ Aimee Allison Guest Writer, huffingtonpost.com

In the month before taking office, these women – including, most visibly, OcasioCortez, Pressley, Omar and Haaland – have called for what amounts to a legislative agenda that advances voting rights, green jobs, a living wage and protection of the basic humanity and rights of immigrants and refugees.

The women of color leaders entering Congress are not cogs of a party machine; they are, instead, veterans of grassroots movements, once wholly dismissed by establishment Democrats. They are organizers and thought-leaders, everyday women who understand firsthand what it has been to suffer under the cruel regime of conservatism inflicted on people of color and other marginalized communities.

They are not just changing American politics, they are changing our culture.

Mothers of the Movement’s Lucy McBath entered Congress with a promise to make government accountable to the young, to Black people and to victims of gun violence.

She will do this in the seat once held by Newt Gingrich and alongside the largest and most impressive class of women of color ever to enter Congress.

Ocasio-Cortez holds government accountable to poor and working-class young people when she exposes the common practice by both parties’ congressional members of not paying interns. She takes a stand for working people when she points out the hypocrisy of Republicans decrying Obamacare while enjoying excellent government benefits for themselves and their families. If her first day in office is any indication, she will continue to call out the avarice and self-serving practices of both parties.

We will look back and thank these women of color for doing what Democratic stalwarts couldn’t: lead the charge to transform our politics and our country away from its long, brutal conservative era.

She, along with Rep. Ro Khanna, publicly refused to support a rules package from House Speaker Pelosi because they want to eliminate the fiscal measure pay-go, which fuels a politics of “backroom deals and horse-trading.”

Ocasio-Cortez brought unprecedented energy and momentum to a New Green Deal, uniting 45 members of Congress behind the proposal, which calls for generating 100 percent of the nation’s electricity from renewable energy in 10 years. Pelosi, sensing a need to respond, acknowledged in a recent speech that the American people are ahead of Congress on the urgency of climate change.

Ocasio-Cortez demonstrates grace under fire. She has already faced demeaning personal attacks to dampen her influence, but in the age of Trump, when demeaning attacks are commonplace, her effective and powerful response is often to call out the hypocrisy of whatever statements are made against her. A video of her dancing in her college days, released by an anonymous source to shame the new congresswoman, instead captivated millions and strengthened her support.

Democrats would be wise to heed her tenacity and growing influence. As a Justice Democrat who has endorsed the strategy of challenging moderate, incumbent Democrats in “blue” districts, she has the experience on the ground and with movements to force both Democrats and Republicans to pay attention.

Tlaib, who hails from Michigan, where poor Black and Brown residents still don’t have clean water in Flint and Detroit, is demanding that the federal government be accountable to those most affected by such environmental catastrophes. She joined the Sunrise Movement’s sit-in at Pelosi’s office in November, refusing to abide by conventions that would weaken her advocacy. Instead, she publicly supported

demonstrators’ demands and is organizing members of Congress to form a select committee on a New Green Deal. And she’s not holding back. On her very first day as a congresswoman, she vowed to “impeach that motherfucker” Trump.

When Pelosi initially waved off talk of impeachment, it was this group of incoming congresswomen of color who joined with other progressive legislators to demand accountability and investigations.

In doing so, they are holding Democrats and Republicans accountable to the Constitution and to our democracy. Pelosi will likely continue to face challenges from this group of leaders who are empowering colleagues to press for progressive change.

A quarter-century ago, conservatives laid out an ambitious plan to reshape our government — privatizing schools and prisons, repealing oversight of financial corporations, neutering civil rights laws, strangling ballot access, expanding military spending and criminalizing people of color. All this created the structural conditions that would make a Trump presidency not only possible but inevitable.

It has taken decades, but we are now at the twilight of that period, and a new era is before us. In the 2018 midterms, voters recognized that moderate politics would not be enough to stop Trump and his relentless attacks on our people and our democracy.

In a time where phrases like “Muslim ban”

Credit Image: © Tom Williams/Congressional Quarterly/Newscom via ZUMA Press

January 3, 2019 - Washington, Reps. Deb Haaland, D-N.M., right, and Rashida Tlaib, D-N.M., left, are seen in the Capitol's House chamber before members were sworn in on the first day of the 116th Congress. and “border wall” are commonplace, Tlaib, Omar, Ocasio-Cortez and other women of color are effectively blunting the attacks unleashed by the GOP. A quarter-century from now, I predict we will look back and thank these women of color for doing what Democratic stalwarts couldn’t: lead the charge to transform our politics and our country away from its long, brutal conservative era.

Aimee Allison is the founder of She the People, a national network elevating the political voice and power of women of color, and the president of Democracy in Color.

Photo: © Tom Williams/Congressional Quarterly/Newscom via ZUMA Press

January 3, 2019 - Washington, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., greets Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., in the Capitol's House chamber before members were sworn in on the first day of the 116th Congress, 2019.

Photo: © Glen Stubbe/Minneapolis Star Tribune/TNS via ZUMA Wire

January 3, 2019 - Washington, Rep. Ilhan Omar stands with her three children as she is sworn in on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives at the U.S. Capitol

4

OUR TIME PRESS January 10-16, 2019

WHAT’S GOING ON ■■

By Victoria Horsford

NEW YORK, NEW YORK

Dawn Smalls What’s Going On re: Mayor de Blasio’s inner circle and personnel turnover. Alicia Glen, Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development, is leaving, as is Meera Joshi, head of the Taxi and Limousine Commission; also leaving is Rick Chandler, Commissioner of the NYC Department of Buildings. Last month, Joe Esposito, Commissioner of the Office of Emergency Management, was fired. Is this City Hall or the White House West Wing?

NYC will hold a special election for Public Advocate on February 26 to identify a Tish James successor. January 14 is the deadline for filing to run in the 2/26 election. Ms. James is now NYS Attorney General. Her departure from the PA office means that there is no African-American in any key citywide elected office. There are more than two dozen candidates running on 2/26, including City Councilman Jumaane Williams. Most of the candidates are African-American, Latino and Asian.

Blacks in the 2/26 Public Advocate lineup includs NYS Assemblyman Michael Black and Harlem resident Dawn Smalls. Melissa Mark-Viverito, Ydannis Rodriguez and Manny Alicandro are

among the Latino candidates. Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa and his wife have also tossed their hats into the PA ring.

Election is nonpartisan. The winner will serve for a few months before readying for the September Primary and the November general election, whose victor will serve as Public Advocate until 2021, the year that the James term ends.

The NY State Legislative session convenes on Wednesday, January 9.

The legislature’s 2019 platter is full of items to address for better governance: criminal justice reform, voting reform, vacancy decontrol, preferential rents, Dream Act, more equitable health programs. The NYS Senate chamber includes 63 seats, 39 of which are occupied by Democrats.

BUSINESS AFFAIRS

Leah Abraham FYI small business owners: Do you know about the “NYC Loves You Local Grants,” which totals $1.8 million annually that targets NYC-based small businesses that have been open for at least 3 years? Become one of the 20 small business owners who could be one of the grants up to $90,000 during the 2019 Grant Program to implement recommendations from experts. Harlem entrepreneur and Ethiopian-American Leah Abraham, owner of Settepani Ristoranti (SPELLING?) on Lenox

Avenue at 120th Street, is one of the 2019 NYC Loves You Local grantees.

The application deadline for the NYC Small Business Services’ NYC Loves You Grants initiative is January 22.

[Visit: loveyourlocal.cityofnewyork.us/ apply-for-a-grant TODAY!]

VOL. 23 NO. 2 for Children’s Environmental Health.

Partnership will co-host a “COSMETICS AND PERSONAL CARE PRODUCTS” briefing on January 16 from 5:30-8 pm at the Schomburg Center, located at 515 Malcolm X Boulevard, Harlem. Briefing will raise the awareness about content of these personal care items and their accompanying toxic chemicals, which puts users at risk, especially women of color who face the greatest exposure from those products marketed to them.

NEWSMAKERS Sharon Wood The Harlem Renaissance Centennial era began in 2018 and a business was born with the launch of the Harlem Haberdashery’s Bespoke Spirits Collection, a curated spirits line which offers Bespoke Rum, Bespoke Gin and Bespoke Vodka, made possible by a collaboration with AstraLuna Brands.

Located at 245 Malcolm X Boulevard, the six-year-old Harlem Haberdashery is an upscale boutique, uptown’s premier destination for couture and edgy readyto-wear fashion. Sharene Wood, Harlem Haberdashery and HH Bespoke Spirits Collection President/CEO says, “For more than 26 years our family has created fashion experiences through 5001 Flavors, our celebrity custom-clothing business and our retail boutique Harlem Haberdashery.” She adds, “We are excited to present the HH Bespoke Collection to celebrate life fashionably with our curated spirits and be a part of the celebratory and responsible lifestyle experience for our customers.”

If you are looking for a directory of NYC business, culture and nonprofit society, buy the special issue of Crain’s NY Business and study its BOOK OF LISTS 2019. It includes New York’s top architecture firms, construction companies, employers, film and TV productions, foundations, hospitals, law firms, physician groups, private and publicly held companies and more.

It is an indispensable research tool for anyone doing business in NYC. The special issue retails for $49.95. Crain’s must have a cheaper digital edition.

ARTS/CULTURE/ HISTORY

Peggy Shepard The Schomburg’s Seventh Annual Black Comic Book Conference will be held on January 18-19 at its headquarters located at 515 Malcolm X Boulevard, Harlem. Free and open to the public, the conference includes interactive panel discussions, vendor marketplace space, featuring exclusive titles by Black creators, cosplay shows and more.

Harlem’s preeminent environment advocate Peggy Shepard, co-founder and executive director of WE-ACT for Environmental Justice, partners with Columbia University’s NIEHS Center for Environmental Health and its Center

NEW ADDITIONS: Newlyweds and Jamaican-born Karen and Nesta McLymont welcomed their baby boy Nesta, who weighed 6 pounds, 6 ounces on November 29… Dominique and Dr. Marcus Bright welcomed their baby boy, Marcus Al Sharpton Bright, who weighed 8 pounds, 6 ounces on December 29……….Newlyweds Cathleen and Senator Brian Benjamin welcomed their baby girl, Caroline Annette, who weighed 7 pounds, 2 ounces on January 2.

MY HOLIDAY SEASON

Janet Bell My December party itinerary began at the Edwards Sisters holiday fete, hosted by the Greys, the Serailes and the Harrisons, at the family mansion in Hastings-on-Hudson. A fun tradition, the evening was filled with merriment, good Caribbean food, music and dance.

I counted at least three generations of the Grey clan in attendance, Ramona and Lucille, their children, Russell, Aden and Garnet, and their children’s children.

There were too many parties, but not enough time. Missed Assemblywoman Inez Dickens’ two parties, one a toy drive at the Kennedy Center and the one she co-hosted with NYS Senator Brian Benjamin at the State Office Building on 125th Street. The Horsford Group party, hosted by Alyah and Robert at Cove Lounge, was top-heavy with politicos and citywide real estate brass. Democratic political consultant Chet Whye and his partner Katie Dunne McGrath co-hosted a wonderful holiday fete at their Fifth Avenue apartment along Museum Mile.

Live music, food, wine, ambiance and party-ready guests who hit the dance floor took that mike for impromptu solos. It was big fun! Four generations of Lillian and Victor Horsford’s clan descended on Harlem’s Milbank Center to celebrate their granddaughter Gloria, who transitioned in December 2017. A multiple choice of activities was part of the Team Gloria festivities, like swimming, basketball and Caribbean dining. I started the New Year attending an Upper West Side wall-to-wall people brunch hosted by Dr. Janet Bell, storied Perl Mesta socialite and author of the book African-American Women in the Civil Rights Movement, Lighting the Fires of Freedom.

A Harlem-based management consultant, Victoria Horsford is reachable at Victoria.horsford@gmail.com.

VOL. 23 NO. 2

5

OUR TIME PRESS January 10-16, 2019

Thinker's Notebook

N

HOW TO SURVIVE Where are Our Boundaries?

FL greats often talk about realizing that they were going to reach their potential in the league the moment that the game “slowed down” for them. When the game slows down for you, that means that you’ve found in yourself that peace and focus necessary to be accurate and productive even as the chaos of the game surrounds you. It’s being calm in the storm, being able to block the noise out and to concentrate on the task at hand.

This past week, Lifetime televised a docuseries titled “Surviving R. Kelly.”

The six-part series chronicled many of the relationships that singer R. Kelly has allegedly maintained with women, some were minors at the time of the relationship. The series was gripping and quite literal in its depiction of Kelly as a manipulating and menacing threat to women, specifically touching on his alleged involvement with minors.

Lifetime received more viewers for the series than they have had for any show or series in the past two years. Figures put viewership at around 2.3 million.

Surviving also set records on social media, bringing in more than 743K interactions over Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, making it the largest social premiere for any series or movie in the network’s history.

■■

By Marlon Rice

The amount of attention given this series and its lurid details has been matched only by the amount of vitriol spewed via tweets and comments between men and women on both sides of the discussion.

Toxic masculinity, victim-shaming, gaslighting, terminology built out of the social media age, used as keystroke weapons set upon anyone who says anything other than what the other side believes.

Tolerance is tolerant until you become tolerant to an issue that tolerance doesn’t agree with, or so it seems.

an American problem, a human problem, a problem that permeates communities across the world.

However, there is a fine line between being informative and being exploitative, and I feel that Lifetime crossed that line.

What gains can be made of producing and airing a docuseries about a superstar’s sexual deviancy? Did the public need to be made aware of every lucid detail? Is it imperative that we see the faces of the victims, or revisit the sick DVD of him and the 14-year-old girl? Why is it that

"If you want to know a man, figure out where his boundaries lie."

Most of the things that I’ve read via social media are coming from people who do not know R. Kelly or any of the girls or women that are accusing him. This series has caused a lot of arguments and has triggered a lot of memories, because in all honesty, many of us have either dealt with or know someone who has dealt with sexual abuse. This story, and the circumstances abound, aren’t germane to R. Kelly. Sexual abuse and molestation are

the people involved with bringing this to you feel like it’s so important for you to ingest it?

Because it can make them a whole lot of money.

The consumption of this trash did little or nothing to fix or repair the damage that sexual abuse has caused people. If anything, it only worked to agitate old feelings and to enrage those who haven’t yet come to grips with their truths and

the things that has happened to them. The series did excellent ratings-wise, meaning that Lifetime secured a big bag, and in turn, so did the producers and the folks involved in the creation of this. Even R. Kelly profited from this series. Streaming of his music had a 16% bump on Spotify.

The advertisers are happy, the network is happy, the production company is happy; the only folk left in a mess are us, the consumers. Pay no mind at all to the celebrities feigning shock and disgust. They knew about R. Kelly and who he was way before you did, they are just providing lip service so that they can be viewed on the side of right.

R. Kelly is a sick man or not. Unless you know him personally, who he is shouldn’t matter much. Who he is, is certainly not a referendum on who you are, right? We live in an era of noise.

Entertainment has become noisy. The Internet has become noisy. And the people that profit from the noise want you to believe in it, they want you to believe the noise. I don’t believe the noise. I learned some time ago to find the peace and the focus necessary to be accurate and productive, even as the chaos surrounds us.

When the system tries to sell you chaos, create and hold your boundaries.

A friend once told me, if you want to know a man, figure out where his boundaries lie.

WIN UP TO $5,000,000 EXTREMELY EXQUISITE. EXTREMELY EXCITING. LOOK FOR THE X AND YOU COULD MULTIPLY YOUR WINNINGS UP TO 100 TIMES.

PLEASE PLAY RESPONSIBLY.

Struggling with a gambling addiction? Call the HOPEline 1-877-846-7369 or text HOPENY (467369). You must be 18 years or older to purchase a lottery ticket. NYLResponsiblePlay.com

CAMPAIGN: NYL MULTIPLIER COMMUNITY PRINT Nov 29

© 2019 New York Lottery

6

OUR TIME PRESS January 10-16, 2019

VOL. 23 NO. 2

VOL. 23 NO. 2

7

OUR TIME PRESS January 10-16, 2019

Sweet Affair For Adams at Sugar Hill

Photo: Courtesy of Sugar Hill Restaurant & Supper Club

Adams addressed Issues pertaining to NYCHA jobs, improving police communication and issues to improving the quality of life.

Photo: Courtesy of Sugar Hill Restaurant & Supper Club

Shamel Abdullah, BP Eric Adams, Sheila Miller

Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams seen here, second from right, at a fundraising event in his honor at Sugar Hill restaurant, acknowledged best wishes from community residents and leaders, including, from left: Bro. Abdul Salaam, Bro. Idris Abdullah, Bro. Salahudeen Chandler, Imam Abdul Malik, former City Councilwoman Tracy L. Boyland, Sis. Badiyah, BP Adams and Bro. Idris Brathwaite.

Sign up for low or no-cost health insurance today!

Get free in-person enrollment assistance in your language.

Open Enrollment in New York continues through January 31.

Call 311 Text CoveredNYC to 877877 Visit nyc.gov/GetCoveredNYC

ÂŽ

8

OUR TIME PRESS January 10-16, 2019

VOL. 23 NO. 2

Letitia James, center with her mentor former Assemblmember Annette Robinson, right, and City Councilwoman Laura Cumbo, left, and Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez, back left.

SHE BRINGS IT HOME!

Attorney General Letitia James Returns to Thank Her Church and Community ■■ By Marlon Rice All photos: by ©Yaw Asare Aboagye

S

t. James Place between DeKalb and Lafayette was closed to traffic as Emmanuel Baptist Church hosted a community coronation for its daughter, Clinton Hill resident Letitia “Tish” James - newly elected to the powerful position of New York State’s 67th Attorney General.

Hundreds from all over Brooklyn and beyond joined the Reverend Anthony Trufant and church congregants in exalting James as the first African-American and the first woman to be elected Attorney General of New York State. The church also was abuzz in reaction to the rare coming together at the event of elected officials, community leaders, members of the

H

law community and the esteemed hierarchy of Central Brooklyn.

Rev. Trufant, shepherd of the Emmanuel Baptist Church congregation effortlessly injected levity

into the proceedings by approaching the pulpit whenever speakers became long-winded. Flanked by Speaker of the Council and acting Public Advocate Corey Johnson

and the Queen of Central Brooklyn Politics, the Honorable Annette Robinson, James was glowing as ➔➔ Continued on page 9

As She Elevates, We are Elevated ...

ours before NYS Attorney General Letitia James' Tuesday evening inaugural service at Emmanuel Baptist Church, three members shared insights into what leadership does and what it is.

Left to right, Sis. Ruth Green Smith, 84, Bro. James Mullen, 73 and Rev. Tyrone Morris, all believe in "doing what's necessary when help is needed." And that's exactly what they do at Emmanuel. Rev. Morris, a member of the HIV-AIDS committee, was on

his way to visit a friend on the sick and shutin list; Sis. Green prepared for the Saturday, January 13 anniversary of the Primetime Committee; and Bro. James greeted visitors at the church reception desk.

A key factor in AG James quest for success, according to the three during individual talks, centers around something very basic and simple. "She always showed up,” said Rev. Monroe. "Whether for a senior's birthday or a community Town Hall meeting or cries for help from domestic abuse victims, she and Olanike Alabi are there."

"It's good for seniors to know that they are not forgotten, to know they are not alone and someone cares. It's good for young people, because it exemplifies how people should be respected and shows how it is done. For others, it shows how to carry yourself and the possibilities that rise when you carry yourself correctly."

James regards his neighbor, AG Tish, as a warrior. He watched her "elevation" from a distance. "From city councilwoman to public advocate and now to State Attorney General. It's about time she got to where she is intended to be. She helped us with advice at community meetings; now she

gets the opportunity to help people all around this state. As she elevates, (Brooklyn) is elevated."

Sis. Smith serves the community through the church's Primetime Ministry, whose help-for-the-helpless projects have reached as far as South Africa where houses were painted by committee members. In James, Sis. Smith told us, she sees a “caring spirit” which she says "is so important because it reaches the heart of the people. It shows a leader is concerned for others' welfare. I pray everyday that mean spirits -- bullying, prejudice, hate and war -- will leave us."

"Caring, concern are what's missing," Rev. Morris said forthrightly, adding, ”How someone can become President without a moral base, I do not know. How someone can step out on stage unprepared is beyond me.

"But I do believe the Lord gives us what we need.. He's already planted certain things for us to discover and to see.

Sis. Smith, Rev. Morris and Brother Mullen see AG James as a catalyst for some kind of change."

Brother Mullen said, "She worked hard for this, she prepared for it, and she is more than ready for it; she's capable. As she elevates, we are elevated." (Bernice Elizabeth Green)

VOL. 23 NO. 2

9

OUR TIME PRESS January 10-16, 2019

SHE BRINGS IT HOME! ➔➔ Continued from page 8

one by one, her closest colleagues and friends spoke with love and admiration of the girl from Brooklyn that has reached to the height of Attorney General by speaking truth to power.

The event was hosted by District Leader Olanike Alabi, an Emmanuel congregant, and City Council Majority Leader Laurie Cumbo, who wowed the audience with her boisterous energy, a fabulous pair of knee-high red boots and her toddler son, Prince.

Democratic County Leader Frank Seddio spoke about “our” Attorney General, pointing out that, “She is the youngest woman ever to hold the position. She is the first person from Brooklyn to ever hold the position. And she is the smartest person to ever hold the position!”

Borough President Eric Adams spoke of James as a person who has “calmed the waters” of city politics. He spoke, tongue-in-cheek, about deferring to James in potential head-to-head campaign battles at every chance, proclaiming, “I’m not running against Tish!”

-- an ironic admission given the fact that had the Attorney General position not opened as a result of former AG Eric Schneiderman’s resignation, James might have considered a mayoral run, the race Adams reportedly is strongly contemplating.

Speaker Johnson read aloud the note that James left for him when

he became Acting Public Advocate, explaining, “We have an Attorney General that is going to stand up for everyone. That’s who she is. It is at the core of her being.”

Current Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez reminded the crowd that Tish worked alongside his predecessor, the late former Brooklyn DA Ken Thompson – also an Emmanuel Baptist Church member -- to implement the Begin Again campaign which offers city residents a safe space to resolve old warrants.

Born and raised in Brooklyn, where she attended public schools, James began her law career as a Public Defender. During her three decades she has always given credit to her church and those mentors in politics who inspired her along her journey.

So, it was an emotional moment for the Emmanuel Baptist Church family and guests when “The Queen” and “The Dean” of Central Brooklyn Politics took the stage together to praise their heiress.

The Honorable Annette Robinson explained to the crowd that as Attorney General, James may need to face decisions the community may not enjoy, but she reassured that James will always rise to “the side of right.” She then presented James with a mantle made in Ghana, a shawl designed to protect her from evil.

The Honorable Dr. Al Vann spoke next, adorning James with his memories of her growth and

Senior Pastor, Emmanuel Baptist Church, The Rev. Anthony L. Trufant

development in the political arena, all the while displaying his sharp, matchless wit and long, acute memory of the people and events that shaped Central Brooklyn over the past six decades.

After a video presentation of her historic January 1 swearing-in in Albany, NY at which Rev. Trufant held the Bible, Letitia James took the stage, stunning and regal in a cherry-red dress. She spoke slowly and deliberately, thanking her pastor whom she lovingly referenced as the “timekeeper” and thanking every speaker for their words of faith, love and encouragement.

Speaking for 17 minutes, Attorney General James revealed some of the issues she’s already tackling in her new role, including voter suppression, joining a coalition of attorney generals in a lawsuit against the federal government to block the allowable download of

blueprints that would be used to produce 3D printings of untraceable guns and more.

Referencing the presidential speech scheduled for the same night, James stated, “And as this president takes to the television at 9 o’clock, let me say it loud and let me say it clear: Immigrants and refugees are welcomed here!”

She also spoke directly to community concerns of powerlessness in the hands of profiteers, corporations and the overall “corruption eating away at the bedrock of our society.”

After summarizing the position of Attorney General as “a steward of justice,” she proclaimed, “Under my watch, we take that power back!” and she vowed “to leave no stone unturned.” It was a worthy event for a worthy leader. And a worthy reason to miss the president’s speech.

Female State Committee Member Olanike Alabi, 57 AD

10

OUR TIME PRESS January 10-16, 2019

CLASSIFIEDS Auto Public Auto Auction! Saturday, January 12 @ 9AM. 300± Repos, Trades, Donations & More! 298 J. Brown Dr., Williston, VT. Thomas Hirchak Company. 1-800-4746132. THCAuction.com Auto Donations Donate your car to Wheels For Wishes, benefiting Make-A-Wish.

We offer free towing and your donation is 100% tax deductible.

Call (917) 336-1254 Cable & Satellite TV Spectrum Triple Play! TV, Internet & Voice for $29.99 ea. 60 MB per second speed. No contract or commitment. More Channels.

Faster Internet. Unlimited Voice.

Call 1-855-977-7198 Career Training AIRLINE CAREERS Start Here –Get trained as FAA certified Aviation Technician. Financial aid for qualified students. Job placement assistance. Call AIM for free information 866-296-7094

Health S u ff e r i n g from an ADDICTION to Alcohol, Opiates, Prescription PainKillers or other DRUGS? There is hope! Call Today to speak with someone who cares. Call NOW: 1-833-880-6049 Health DISH TV $59.99 for 190 Channels + $14.95 High Speed Internet. Free Installation, Smart HD DVR Included, Free Voice Remote.

Some restrictions apply. Call 1-800-943-0838.

Health VIAGRA & CIALIS! 60 pills for $99. 100 pills for $150 FREE shipping. Money back guaranteed!

Call Today: 800-404-0244 Help Wanted JOB OPPORTUNITY: $17 P/H NYC - $14.50 P/H LI If you currently care for your relatives or friends who have Medicaid or Medicare, you may be eligible to start working for them as a personal assistant. No Certificates needed. (347)4622610 (347)565-6200

LEGAL NOTICES SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF KINGS __INDEX NO. 505788/2018 Plaintiff designates KINGS as the place of trial situs of the real property THE BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON, F/K/A THE BANK OF NEW YORK AS TRUSTEE FOR THE REGISTERED HOLDERS OF CWABS, INC., ASSETBACKED CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2006-23, Plaintiff, vs.

BERYL REID; if living, and if she/he 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; such unknown persons being herein generally described and intended to be included in the following designation, namely: the wife, widow, husband, widower, heirs at law, next of kin, descendants, executors, administrators, devisees, legatees, creditors, trustees, committees,

lienors, and assignees of such deceased, any and all persons deriving interest in or lien upon, or title to said real property by, through or under them, or either of them, and their respective wives, widows, husbands, widowers, heirs at law, next of kin, descendants, executors, administrators, devisees, legatees, creditors, trustees, committees, lienors and assigns, all of whom and whose names, except as stated, are unknown to plaintiff; BANK OF AMERICA, N.A.; MORTGAGE ELECTRONIC REGISTRATION SYSTEMS, INC.; NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF TAXATION AND FINANCE; UNITED STATES OF AMERICAINTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE, "JOHN DOE #1" through "JOHN DOE #12," the last twelve names being fictitious and unknown to plaintiff, the persons or parties intended being the tenants, occupants, persons or corporations, if any, having

D O N AT E Y O U R C A R Wheels For Wishes benefiting

Make-A-Wish ® Metro New York * 100% Tax Deductible * Free Vehicle Pickup ANYWHERE * We Accept Most Vehicles Running or Not * We Also Accept Boats, Motorcycle & RVs

WheelsForWishes.org Call:(917)336-1254 * Car Donation Foundation d/b/a Wheels For Wishes. To learn more about our programs or financial information, call (213) 948-2000 or visit www.wheelsforwishes.org.

VOL. 23 NO. 2

Home Improvement B A T H R O O M RENOVATIONS. EASY, ONE DAY updates! We specialize in safe bathing. Grab bars, no slip flooring & seated showers. Call for a free in-home consultation: 888-657-9488.

Miscellaneous A PLACE FOR MOM has helped over a million families find senior living. Our trusted, local advisors help find solutions to your unique needs at no cost to you. Call: 1-800-404-8852

fishing village with a quaint atmosphere yet excellent medical facilities, shopping and restaurants. Direct flights from Newark to Vero Beach.

New manufactured homes from $114,900. 772-581-0080; www.beach-cove.com

Medical Supplies Attention Viagra users: Generic 100 mg blue pills or Generic 20 mg yellow pills.

Get 45 plus 5 free $99 + S/H. Guaranteed, no prescription necessary. Call 877-845-8068.

Miscellaneous DIRECTV CHOICE AllIncluded Package. Over 185 Channels! ONLY $45/month (for 24 mos.) Call Now-Get NFL Sunday Ticket FREE! CALL 1-888-534-6918 Ask Us How To Bundle & Save!

Services Guaranteed Life Insurance!

(Ages 50 to 80). No medical exam. Affordable premiums never increase. Benefits never decrease. Policy will only be cancelled for non-payment.

855-686-5879.

Miscellaneous Earthlink High Speed Internet.

As Low As $14.95/ month (for the first 3 months) Reliable High Speed Fiber Optic Technology.

Stream Videos, Music and More! Call Earthlink Today 1-855-970-1623

Services COMPUTER ISSUES? FREE DIAGNOSIS by GEEKS ON SITE! Virus Removal, Data Recovery! 24/7 EMERGENCY SERVICE, In-home repair/Online solutions . $20 OFF ANY SERVICE! 844-892-3990

Real Estate Sebastian, Florida (East Coast)Beach Cove is an Age Restricted Community where friends are easily made.

Sebastian is an “Old Florida”

Wanted FREON R12 WANTED: CERTIFIED BUYER will PAY CA$H for R12 cylinders or cases of cans. (312)291-9169; www. refrigerantfinders.com

786 SCHENECTADY AVENUE BROOKLYN, NY 11203. 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.

KINGS County is designated as the place of trial because the real property affected by this action is located in said county. NOTICE 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 answer the summons and protect your property. Sending a payment to the mortgage company will not stop the 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. RAS BORISKIN, LLC Attorney for Plaintiff BY: ANDREW FILIPAZZI, ESQ. 900 Merchants Concourse, Suite 310 Westbury, NY 11590 516-280-7675

BANK, N.A., V. SYED AHMED A/K/A A. SYED A/K/A AHMED SYED; ET AL. NOTICE OF SALE NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN pursuant to a Final Judgment of Foreclosure dated September 29, 2015, and entered in the Office of the Clerk of the County of Kings, wherein US BANK, N.A. is the Plaintiff and SYED AHMED A/K/A A. SYED A/K/A AHMED SYED, ET AL. are the Defendants. I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the KINGS COUNTY COURTHOUSE, 360 ADAMS STREET ROOM 224, BROOKLYN, NY 11201, on February 14, 2019 at 2:30PM, premises known as 2298 ATLANTIC AVE, BROOKLYN, NY 11233: Block 1435, Lot 29: ALL THAT CERTAIN PLOT, PIECE OR PARCEL OF LAND, WITH THE BUILDINGS AND IMPROVEMENTS THEREON ERECTED, SITUATE, LYING AND BEING IN THE BOROUGH OF BROOKLYN, COUNTY OF KINGS, CITY AND STATE OF NEW YORK Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index # 21876/2012. Lee M. Huttner, Esq. - Referee. RAS Boriskin, LLC 900 Merchants Concourse, Suite 310, Westbury, New York 11590, Attorneys for Plaintiff. For sale information, please visit www.auction.com or call (800) 280-2832.

Medical Supplies OX Y G E N Anytime.

Anywhere. No tanks to refill. No deliveries. The All-New Inogen One G4 is only 2.8 pounds!

FAA approved! FREE info kit: 866-971-2603 Medical Supplies Have a CPAP machine for sleep apnea? Get replacement FDA approved CPAP machine parts and supplies at little or no cost! Free sleep guide included!

Call 866-430-6489!

or claiming an interest in or lien upon the premises, described in the complaint, Defendants.__ SUPPLEMENTAL SUMMONS Mortgaged Premises: 786 SCHENECTADY AVENUE BROOKLYN, NY 11203 District: Section: Block: 4867 Lot: 22 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, if the complaint is not served with this summons, to serve a notice of appearance on the Plaintiff's Attorney within 20 days after the service of this summons, exclusive of the day of service (or within 30 days after the service is complete if this summons is not personally delivered to you within the State of New York) in the event the United States of America is made a party defendant, the time to answer for the said United States of America shall not expire until (60) days after service of the Summons; and in case of your failure to appear or answer, judgment will be taken against you by default for the relief demanded in the complaint. NOTICE OF NATURE OF ACTION AND RELIEF SOUGHT THE OBJECT of the above caption action is to foreclose a Mortgage to secure the sum of $460,000.00 and interest, recorded on September 21, 2006, at Instrument number 200600053323, of the Public Records of KINGS County, New York, covering premises known as

SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK - COUNTY OF KINGS US

➔➔ Continued on page 12

VOL. 23 NO. 2

11

OUR TIME PRESS January 10-16, 2019

Why Not Have a Real NYC Specialized High School Integration Plan?

■■

Giants Wrap Up 2018

N

■■

Eddie Castro

early a week and a half ago, the New York Giants wrapped up their 2018 campaign in what was another tough season for Big Blue. The team ended the season with a win-loss record of 5-11, a 2-win improvement from last year. It is significant that although the team failed to make the playoffs, it should be noted that their last-place finish isn’t that bad as it sounds. Ok, it’s bad, but let’s take into consideration that the team did not have their rookie sensation running back Saquon Barkley, and for the most of last season did not have star receiver Odell Beckham, Jr. due to a season-ending ankle injury. It definitely was a long season for the team.

During their first half stint, in which they lost seven of their first eight games, the Giants traded away two of their well-known defensive players in Damon “Snacks” Harrison and Eli Apple, which seemed to be an indication that the Giants will look to clear up some cap room in hopes of continuing the rebuilding process which is expected to be focused around Beckham, Jr. and Barkley. The lack of tangible success didn’t seem to faze first-year General Manager Dave Gettleman. During his postgame wrap-up interview, he reflected on the season telling reporters that the team is “headed in the right direction.” Although the team finished in last place in the NFC East Division, there seems to be a lot of an optimistic swagger with the Giants as if they are just a season or two away from returning to a January-caliber team. That may be “going out on a limb” just a bit, considering the Giants have had the second-fewest wins in the past two seasons.

Even though the Giants closed out the season with three straight losses, their second half was a lot more productive finishing at 4-4. Quarterback Eli Manning seemed to be getting his “mojo” back and had the team playing better, but it was too little, too late. There is a lot to look forward to as we talk about the team’s future. Saquon Barkley proved that his success at his alma mater Penn State was no fluke. His numbers alone should very well be good enough to win him the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Year. The Giants will be faced once again will Eli Manning questions and if he is still the guy to lead the team at quarterback. My belief is that he will remain the starting quarterback for the Giants at least for another year. There is not a strong volume of quarterbacks in this year’s free agent class.

Clemson’s freshman quarterback Trevor Lawrence and his long-flowing hair are returning for his sophomore year, which leads the Giants one less option they could have had looking into drafting.

They hold the No. 6 overall pick and without no question, the team should look to add an offensive lineman considering the Giants O-line for the past three years has been dreadful. With that said, the future has the capability of looking quite bright with 2 franchise players in the fold. We shall see what the next pieces will be for the Giants heading into the 2019-20 season.

Sports Notes: (Baseball) After losing a fan favorite and one of the best relief pitchers in David Robertson, who signed a free agent contract with the Philadelphia Phillies, the Yankees made sure they would not lose another key pitcher to their bullpen as Zach Britton agreed to a 3-year/$39 million deal to remain with the team. Britton was acquired by the Yanks in late July in a trade from the Baltimore Orioles. (Football) Should Eli Manning be the quarterback for the Giants next year? If not, who?

E-mail me at Castroeddie714@gmail.com and let’s have the conversation.

By David Greaves

Part 2: The real history behind the NYC Specialized High School (SHS) ‘Integration Problem’ and how it could be fixed, if fixing it is really the objective…

“How many effective schools would you have to see to be persuaded of the educability of poor children? If your answer is more than one, then I submit that you have reasons of your own for preferring to believe that pupil performance derives from family background instead of school response to family background. We can, whenever and wherever we choose, successfully teach all children whose schooling is of interest to us. We already know more than we need to do that. Whether or not we do it must finally depend on how we feel about the fact that we haven't so far." -- Ronald Edmonds

T

hose with knowledge of NYCDOE history know that the newly discovered Specialized High School (SHS) “integration problem” conversation really has its roots in an earlier (1990’s) period when a “clandestine-concern” emerged about the declining white student population (and the rapidly rising Asian student numbers) at the SHS. And since a: “We shall overcome Asian students outperforming white students on the SHSAT exam” movement would come across as unseemly, we find ourselves in the present state of affairs, where Black and Latino kids are serving as political cannon fodder in a war that will not truly serve their best educational interest.

One of my greatest disappointments with the present SHS integration conversation is that Asian parents and other parents of color are being “played” and drafted into opposing enemy camps; when in fact, the system has the resources and sufficient numbers of diverse high schools to properly serve all of NYC’s children if it chose to do so. The divide and conquer: “My child can only win if your child loses” is one of the shameful by-products of a public educational system that is based on the principle that parental money and political entitlement will defeat the dreams of those parents who lack the money and/or the political organization to effectively fight for their children.

The present cynical use of Black and Latino kids has nothing to do with factors of equity and equality, rather it has more to do with scoring political points while avoiding making the hard, political choices that would immediately and in the future raise the numbers of Black and Latino students attending SHS. After all, if you only do the politician’s obligatory “Black church tour” and ask the congregants: “Are you for SHS integration or segregation?” Well, given the past and present history of this nation’s “racial behavior” toward Black people, of course they will raise their hands in favor of SHS integration. What those Black church attendees don’t realize is that the real and more insidious segregated situation is the separate and unequal learning experiences their children are forced to endure every day in schools down the street from their churches.

The real integration mountain that (appointed, anointed or elected) leaders in NYS/NYC seem reluctant to climb, because it is so politically unattractive, is the integration and equalization of the quality of learning in all NYC K-8 schools.

Politically unattractive because to make it work, student learning would need to take precedence over money-making business interests (education companies and consultants who promise much, but deliver little) and adult employment satisfaction; e.g., unhelpful work rules, regulations and labor agreements that primarily penalizes children of color.

And while we are waiting for that righteous battle to begin, there are some “right now” and very “doable” actions that could expand the numbers of Black and Latino students who could not only successfully

gain admission to SHS, but who could also be well-prepared to succeed at any NYC high school.

Let’s start by: (1) Going strong early!

We have a wonderful Pre-K G&T model school (Little Sun People) in Brooklyn that succeeds in not only empowering students academically but also empowers their self-esteem, pride and confidence. We will never be successful long-term by limiting ourselves to doing educational integration “patchwork” fixes, we must build a sustainable pipeline of academic success starting with Pre-K to: (2) Expanding K-8 G&T programs citywide in many more schools and in every school district in the city (to their credit, several Black & Latino elected officials have repeatedly asked for this!).

And despite what NYC citizens of color are led to believe, there is no “regulatory cap” on the number of K-8 G&T programs that can be established. We proved that in CSD 29 Queens (2000-2003), where without asking for NYCDOE permission, we expanded our G&T programs, including some of our “lowest-performing” and poorest (Title 1) elementary schools.

We know from much experience that the best path for preparing any student to do well on the SHSAT (or Regents exams, AP, SAT, ACT, etc.) is to start informal and formal Standards-Based Instruction & Learning (SBIL) as early as possible, provide consistent and rigorous SBIL along with qualified and quality instruction at every grade/class level, and then provide students with a “strategically smart” testprep program. Anyone who tells you otherwise, check to see what their own educational experience has been and/or the educational plans they had/have for their own children! (3) While the SHSAT exam is still in place, have a “real” school-based “test-preparation” after-school/weekends/ summer program. “Real Test-Prep” meaning similar to the SHSAT-Prep curriculum that was developed in a joint effort between Princeton Review and Community School District 29 Queens 2000-2003. The key to our SHSAT-Prep program success was combining the work of our expanded G&T programs with our focused SHSAT-Prep classes; having a district-wide “Readersto-Leaders” program to bolster English Language Arts skills; a concentrated effort to make all students “pre-algebra”-ready by the end of 8th grade; placing dedicated STEM labs and science teachers at the elementary level, including an early childhood school, and in every middle school; we also expanded music, art, dance and drama (part of our “growing” smartness and thinking skills objectives, and prepping students for gaining access to the “arts” SHS) programs in all schools.

But all of these academic strengthening efforts must be simultaneously joined to a “ramping-up” of the quality of the child’s daily instructional experience. We should be totally honest with parents, no test-prep program, no matter how well “titled,” can be fully effective if it is not connected to a student’s daily classroom curriculum and instruction; this teaching and learning experience must be driven by the standards that will be assessed on that standardized exam. Students can’t possibly do well on the SHSAT or any standardized exam if the first time they encounter the test’s rigor, conceptual standards and language is when they sit down to take that exam.

Equalizing the exposure to a quality K-8 education (G&T or not) throughout the city would eliminate the need for any type of racial quotas for SHS admissions. The SHS admission administrators would then only need to devise an algorithm that would admit some equal percentage/number of the highest-ranking students from every public middle school in the city since these students would have all been equally prepared to survive and thrive in the SHS competitive environment.

Instituting a “racial admissions quota” will allow the city to temporarily cover up and color over the real problem of students of color being overexposed to a separate and unequal K-8 educational product.

Hopefully, Black and Latino parents will get wise to this school integration “sleight of hand” distraction game and justifiably demand, from their leaders, a quality K-12 education for their children wherever they go to school. This will not be a fantasy request, for there was a not-too-far-back time when a poor/working-class NYC child of any color could receive a world-class education at any one of NYC’s neighborhood (“zoned”) high schools. I think that Black and Latino parents are already smart and politically savvy enough to conclude that it is not the symbolic piecemeal victory of racial integration that they want (as nice as that is); rather, what they really want is the concrete victory of the integration of a K-12 high educational quality and opportunity for their children… Simply stated: The Equality of Quality.

Michael A. Johnson has served as a public schoolteacher, Science Skills Center director, principal, and a school district superintendent. He also served as an adjunct professor of Science Education in the School of Education at St. John’s University. He recently completed a book on school leadership: “Report to the Principal’s Office: Tools for Building Successful High School Administrative Leadership.” [http:// reporttotheprincipalsoffice.net/]

Any time two high school teams get to substitute the school gym for an away game at the Barclays Center, has got to be a winner all around. Big thanks to NYC Basketball and Playbook for organizing the experience.

School for Classic 41 Medgar Evers College 56

12

OUR TIME PRESS January 10-16, 2019

LEGAL NOTICES ➔➔ Continued from page 10 NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF KINGS HSBC BANK USA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION AS TRUSTEE FOR WELLS FARGO ASSET SECURITIES CORPORATION, MORTGAGE PASS-THROUGH CERTIFICATES SERIES 2006-AR8, Plaintiff AGAINST Marie A. Valerus, et al., Defendant(s) Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly dated November 09, 2018 I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the Room 224 of Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, New York 11201, on February 07, 2019 at 2:30PM, premises known as 65 MONROE STREET, BROOKLYN, NY 11216. All that certain plot piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York, BLOCK 1986, LOT 60. Approximate amount of judgment $1,404,565.41 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment for Index# 2528/2014. Leonard C. Spector, Esq., Referee Gross Polowy, LLC Attorney for Plaintiff 1775 Wehrle Drive, Suite 100 Williamsville, NY 14221 60260 NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT- COUNTY OF KINGS U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS TRUSTEE, ON BEHALF OF THE HOLDERS OF THE ASSET BACKED SECURITIES CORPORATION HOME EQUITY LOAN TRUST, SERIES MO 2006-HE6 ASSET BACKED PASSTHROUGH CERTIFICATES, SERIES MO 2006-HE6, Plaintiff, AGAINST JANET DUNKLEY, et al. Defendant(s) Pursuant to a judgment of foreclosure and sale duly entered on August 13, 2018.

I, the undersigned Referee, will sell at public auction at the Room 224 of Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201 on February 7, 2019 at 2:30 PM premises known as 231 EAST 37TH STREET, BROOKLYN, NY 11203.

All that certain plot piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York. Block 4874 and Lot 43. Approximate amount of judgment $860,528.83 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed judgment. Index #17774/2011. BRUNO F CODISPOTI, ESQ., Referee, Aldridge Pite, LLP Attorneys for Plaintiff - 40 Marcus Drive, Suite 200, Melville, NY 11747 SUPREME COURT – COUNTY OF KINGS WELLS FARGO BANK, N.A. AS TRUSTEE F/B/O HOLDERS OF STRUCTURED ASSET MORTGAGE INVESTMENTS II, INC., STRUCTURED ASSET MORTGAGE INVESTMENTS II TRUST 2007-AR4, MORTGAGE PASS-THROUGH CERTIFICATES SERIES 2007-AR4, Plaintiff against ADRIAN JOI BROWN a/k/a ADRIAN J. BROWN A/K/A ADRIAN BROWN, et al, Defendants. Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered on October 3, 2017. I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction in Room 224 of the Kings County Courthouse, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, N.Y. on the 14th day of February, 2019 at 2:30 p.m. premises 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 Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State

of New York, bounded and described as follows: BEGINNING at a point on the westerly side of East 7th Street distant 467 feet southerly from the corner formed by the intersection of the southerly side of Avenue Z with the westerly side of East 7th Street; THENCE westerly parallel with Avenue Z and part of the distance through a party wall, 100 feet; THENCE southerly parallel with East 7th Street, 22 feet; THENCE easterly parallel with Avenue Z and part of the distance through a party wall, 100 feet to the westerly side of East 78th Street; THENCE northerly along the westerly side of East 7th Street, 22 feet to the point or place of BEGINNING. Said premises known as 2658 East 7th Street, Brooklyn, N.Y. 11235. (Block: 7243, Lot: 30). Approximate amount of lien $ 630,308.72 plus interest and costs.

Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed judgment and terms of sale. Index No. 22483-13. Steven Z. Naiman, Esq., Referee. Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott, LLC Attorneys for Plaintiff 10 Bank Street - Suite 700 White Plains, New York 10606 (914) 949-2574 NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF KINGS, CITIMORTGAGE, INC., Plaintiff, vs. DWAYNE N. MCKAY, ET AL., Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly filed on April 13, 2016, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the Kings County Supreme Court, Room 224, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, NY on January 31, 2019 at 2:30 p.m., premises known as 966 Madison Street, Brooklyn, NY. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York, Block 3366 and Lot 19. Approximate amount of judgment is $779,050.85 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index # 507058/2013. William D. Bowman, Esq., Referee Knuckles, Komosinski & Manfro, LLP, 565 Taxter Road, Suite 590, Elmsford, NY 10523, Attorneys for Plaintiff Cash will not be accepted.

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF KINGS Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., as Trustee for the Certificateholders of Banc of America Mortgage 2007-4 Trust, Mortgage PassThrough Certificates, Series 2007-4, Plaintiff AGAINST Reynold Lavache; et al., Defendant(s) Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly dated March 21, 2016 I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street, Room 224, Brooklyn, NY 11201 on January 31, 2019 at 2:30PM, premises known as 1162 E 99TH Street, Brooklyn, NY 11236. All that certain plot piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of NY, Block 8244 Lot 74. Approximate amount of judgment $912,416.49 plus interest and costs.

Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index# 13593/08. Julie Clark, Esq., Referee Shapiro, DiCaro & Barak, LLC Attorney(s) for the Plaintiff 175 Mile Crossing Boulevard Rochester, New York 14624 (877) 430-4792 Dated: December 3, 2018 59588 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC AUCTION Supreme Court of New York, KINGS County. HSBC BANK USA, N.A., Plaintiff, -against- ESTHER MATEO; PLINIO MATEO; JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A.; CITY OF NEW YORK TRANSIT ADJUDICATION BUREAU;

NYC DEPARTMENT OF FINANCEPARKING VIOLATIONS BUREAU; NEW YORK CITY ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL BOARD; CARLA PARRA; FRANCISCO HERNANDEZ; CARLOS GARCIA; JOSE MORALES; BERNARDO FLORES; JOHN DOE #1#2 AND JANE DOE #1-#2 occupants of the mortgaged premises whose identities remain unknown to plaintiff, Index No. 21581/2012. Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly dated, July 20, 2017 and entered with the Kings County Clerk on August 10, 2017, Bernard M. Alter, Esq., the Appointed Referee, will sell the premises known as 856 Wyckoff Avenue, Brooklyn, New York 11237 at public auction in Room 261 of Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, New York 11201, on February 7, 2019 at 2:30 P.M. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York known as Block: 3386; Lot: 51 will be sold subject to the provisions of filed Judgment, Index No. 21581/2012. The approximate amount of judgment is $658,011.38 plus interest and costs. FRIEDMAN VARTOLO LLP 85 Broad Street, Suite 501, New York, New York 10004, Attorneys for Plaintiff.

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF KINGS U.S. BANK TRUST, N.A., AS TRUSTEE FOR LSF9 MASTER PARTICIPATION TRUST, Plaintiff, Against Index No.: 6482/08 RICHARD BUCKHEIT, ESQ. AS PUBLIC ADMINISTRATOR OF KINGS COUNTY ON BEHALF OF THE ESTATE OF GREGORY BISCOMBE; et al, Defendant(s) Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale, duly entered on 1/17/2018, I, the undersigned Referee, will sell at public auction, in Room 224 of the Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201, on 1/31/2019 at 2:30 pm premises known as 40 Weirfield Street, Brooklyn, NY 11221 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 in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York, and designated on the tax maps of the Kings County Treasurer as Block 3401 and Lot 24 The approximate amount of the current Judgment lien is $723,250.09 plus interest and costs. The Premises will be sold subject to provisions of the aforesaid Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale; Index # 6482/08. Angelique Moreno, Esq., Referee. STIENE & ASSOCIATES, P.C. (Attorneys for Plaintiff), 167 Main Street, Northport, NY 11768 Dated: 11/27/2018 File Number: 201202875 LF -NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF KINGS, WILMINGTON SAVINGS FUND SOCIETY, FSB D/B/A CHRISTIANA TRUST NOT IN ITS INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY BUT SOLELY AS TRUSTEE FOR WINSTED FUNDING TRUST 20151, Plaintiff, vs. ALDURELL CHARLES, ET AL., Defendant(s). Pursuant to an Order Confirming Referee Report and Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly filed on December 11, 2018, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the Kings County Supreme Court, Room 224, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, NY on January 31, 2019 at 2:30 p.m., premises known as 125 Cornelia Street, Brooklyn, NY 11221. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York, Block 3375 and Lot 59. Approximate

VOL. 23 NO. 2 amount of judgment is $962,700.99 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index # 516197/2016. If the sale is set aside for any reason, the Purchaser at the sale shall be entitled only to a return of the deposit paid. The Purchaser shall have no further recourse against the Mortgagor, the Mortgagee, the Mortgagee's attorney, or the Referee. Philip L. Kamaras, Esq., Referee Peter T. Roach & Associates, P.C., 6901 Jericho Turnpike, Suite 240, Syosset, New York 11791, Attorneys for Plaintiff NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF KINGS, VANDERBILT MORTGAGE AND FINANCE, INC., Plaintiff, vs. WILBUR L. MAZYCK, ET AL., Defendant(s).

Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly filed on February 2, 2018 and an Order for Extension filed on October 31, 2018, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the Kings County Supreme Court, Room 224, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, NY on January 31, 2019 at 2:30 p.m., premises known as 17 Dodworth Street, Brooklyn, NY 11221. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York, Block 3229 and Lot 37. Approximate amount of judgment is $813,905.94 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index # 8717/14. For sale information, please visit Auction.com at www.Auction.com or call (800) 280-2832 Aaron Maslow, Esq., Referee Greenspoon Marder, 100 West Cypress Creek Road, Trade Centre South, Suite 700, Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33309, Attorneys for Plaintiff NOTICE OF SALE Supreme Court County Of Kings Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., as Trustee, on behalf of SASCO 2007MLN1 Trust Fund, Plaintiff AGAINST Neville Romain a/k/a Neville Roman, David Cohan, et al, Defendant Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly dated 5/7/18 and entered on 5/24/18, I, the undersigned Referee, will sell at public auction at the Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, NY on January 24, 2019 at 02:30 PM premises known as 2049 Atlantic Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11233. All that certain plot piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements erected, situate, lying and being in the County of Kings, City and State of New York, BLOCK: 1565, LOT: 44. Approximate amount of judgment is $817,845.11 plus interests and costs.

Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index # 506073/2014.

Doron A. Leiby, Referee FRENKEL LAMBERT WEISS WEISMAN & GORDON LLP 53 Gibson Street Bay Shore, NY 11706 NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF KINGS HSBC Bank USA, National Association as Trustee for Wells Fargo Asset Securities Corporation, Mortgage Asset-Backed Pass-Through Certificates Series 2007AR7 Plaintiff -against-Mohammad M. Rahman Mohammed M. Hossain, Ahmed H. Bhuiyan, New York City Parking Violations Bureau, New York City Environmental Control Board, New York City Transit Adjudication Board, United States of America- Department of the Treasury - Internal Revenue Service, New York State Department of Taxation & Finance, Workers’ Compensation Board of the State of New York, Discover ➔➔ Continued on page 14

VOL. 23 NO. 2

13

OUR TIME PRESS January 10-16, 2019

He Dodged Prison Because He Rapes Black Girls & Women!

P

roducer Dream Hampton’s Surviving R. Kelly docuseries – a three-night Must-See-TV event -- was a ratings success for the Lifetime Network with a record-breaking 1.9 million viewers!!

Most of us had heard about R&B singer-songwriter’s Robert Sylvester Kelly’s 1992 marriage to then-15-year-old singer Aaliyah and about his 2002 child pornography tape. But we had no idea about the pedophile’s reign-of-rape terror against a slew of other sexual assault victims--UNTIL NOW!!

Let’s keep it 100, shall we? R. Kelly did not have sex with underaged girls and women, HE RAPED THEM!! Why isn’t anyone calling it that?? And for those of you who have been under a rock and haven’t seen #SurvivingR.Kelly yet, I share this: Kelly HAD ACCOMPLICES!!

Andrea Kelly, Robert Kelly’s ex, says she was abused by her former husband during their 13-year marriage. I believe her. BUT my spidey sense tells me that DreaKelly may be lying!! No way she did not know WHAT WAS GOING ON!!

In the docuseries, many of Kelly’s #SexualAssultSurvivors said Drea was home during times when he had them held captive in the house, too. Now, I am very sensitive to the fact that she could have very possibly been going through #BatteredWomensSyndrome at the time, and it would have been a struggle for her to help those young women when she was being abused herself. But and however … her marriage ended many years ago. So now, why won’t she simply say, “I knew!?” Is she

■■

By Lisa Durden

ashamed because Kelly made her participate in the sexual assault of those girls, too??

And can a child rapist like R. Kelly turn off his sickness when he’s around his own kids??

I doubt it!! Which makes me wonder: Has he raped his children and is Drea in denial??

Demetrius Smith, R. Kelly’s former tour manager and personal assistant, confessed in the series that not only was he the one who lied about Aaliyah’s age on their marriage certificate -- listing her as 18 when in fact she was only 15--he also gathered girls’ numbers when he and Kelly combed the malls and high schools hunting for underage prey.

THE WHAT?? Which begs the questions: How many others in the Robert Kelly camp witnessed this child rapist “in the act?” Are there other sexual predators in the midst hiding in plain sight?? Are there other rapists in his crew? #Ebro In the Morning on Hot 97FM is my dude!! He called himself a “piece of shit” for interviewing R. Kelly and taking a picture with him on an occasion after the 2002 rape tape came out. I concur!! Then he dropped this comprehensive list of artists in the hiphop community who also worked with R. Kelly post the rape tape: #JayZ, #SwizzBeatz, #SnoopDog, #Nelly, #Camillionaire,

"R. Kelly did not have sex with underaged girls and women, HE RAPED THEM!!

Why isn’t anyone calling it that??"

Conkaline-wearing, pimp-looking music producer Craig Williams said he saw beds in the music studio and underage girls waiting around in various rooms. Yet, HE DID ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!!

Backup singer Jovante Cunningham, who was 14 when she got in the R. Kelly camp, never accused him of raping her, but she did say she observed him “having sex” with Aaliyah on the tour bus. She says she also once saw him “having sex” with one of her girlfriends who was then 17.

No way do I blame her for anything that happened because she was a minor, too. But when she ended her statement with, “We were all right there!” my ears began to burn!! I was like, WHAT

#TI, #TPain, #Ludacris, #KeyshiaCole, #KeriHilson, #RobinThicke, #TheDream, #Tyrese, #KellyRowland, #TwoChainz, #Future, #Migos, #JuicyJ, #LilWayne, #Tinashe and #WizKid. The only artist who seems to have stepped up like a grown-ass and admitted that he made a mistake working with R. Kelly is #ChanceTheRapper. Chance said he thinks he saw Robert as a victim in the past because of the culture of hypersensitivity around #BlackMaleOppression. #JadaPinkettSmith joined the discussion when she posted on her #Instagram that she wants to know if the reason why R. Kelly’s music sales are up after the #SurvivingRKelly

documentary is because Black girls don’t matter enough??

Great question! So, let me unpack this: Sadly, no one cares about Joycelyn Savage and the other young women who have been raped or who are alleged to still be held captive in R. Kelly’s house. Why? Because they’re Black women. If they were white abducted women, they would have been diagnosed with Stockholm Syndrome as the reason they didn’t leave. Because the young ladies who Kelly kidnapped are Black, authorities have dismissed it as them choosing to stay there on their own free will. Simply put, when people ask how Robert Kelly dodged jail. Answer: He rapes Black girls and women.

It took the producer, #DreamHampton, twenty years to complete the #SurvivingRKelly docuseries and it paid off!! R. Kelly is heated and will allegedly be launching a new website in an attempt to expose all of his sexual assault survivors as liars.

Well, thanks to Dream’s unyielding tenacity, #TMZ reports that the Fulton County District Attorney's Office has FINALLY opened an investigation into allegations against Kelly that launched over the past few days.

Lisa Durden is a TV personality and #SubjectMatterExpert in the areas of pop culture, politics and social issues. She’s an “A-Plus Panel” Contributor on My9’s “Chasing News.” Ms. Durden is also an award-winning director/producer in film & TV. In 2005, she launched Lisa Durden Unlimited Productions, a Multimedia Company headquartered in Newark, NJ. Twitter/Instagram: @lisardurden

14

OUR TIME PRESS January 10-16, 2019

NEW BUSINESS FORMATIONS Accelerate Product LLC Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 09/19/2019. Office: Kings County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to Melissa Perri, 60 Maspeth Ave. Apt. 1B, Brooklyn, 11211. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

Chow 51 St LLC Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 12/05/2018. Office: Kings County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to Chow 51 St LLC, 815A 51 St,

LEGAL NOTICES ➔➔ Continued from page 12 Bank, American Express Bank, Midland Funding NCC-2 Corporation, Nancy T. Sunshine – Commissioner of Jurors, Metro Portfolios Inc., Citibank (South Dakota), NA, Portfolio Recovery Associates, LLC, RAB Performance Recoveries, LLC, Capital Equity Management LLC, Capital One Bank, Cypress Financial Recoveries, LLC, Palisades Collection LLC, Empire Portfolios Inc., Colorado Capital Investments, Inc., Criminal Court of the City of New York, LVNV Funding LLC APO American Express, Department of Housing Preservation & Development, Arrow Financial Services, LLC, NY Institute of Technology, FIA Card Services NA, CACH of Colorado LLC, Advantage Assets II Inc., T-Collection Inc. SUCC ASSOC FINCL SVS, Sage Financial LTD., OFM Group Inc., Great Seneca Financial Corp., Presidents TR CO SUCC INT Bank NA, Hassanba WA/ RO P SO TH Hempstead, National Credit Acceptance Inc., NIF ND CCR Partners as Assignee, Velocity Investments, LLC, Summit Recoveries Inc., Unifund CCR Partners as AAO Citibank, ORI Financial Services Inc., Jane Smith (Name Refused), Bibi Khan, Aki Khan Defendant(s) Pursuant to a judgment of foreclosure and sale entered on November 19, 2018 I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction to the highest bidder at ROOM 224 F/K/A ROOM 274 OF KINGS COUNTY SUPREME COURT, 360 ADAMS STREET, BROOKLYN,, NEW YORK 11201 on January 24, 2019 at 2:30 PM premises known as 133 Hale Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11238-1251. ALL that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of KINGS and State of New York. Block: 3931 Lot:3 Approximate amount of lien $554,266.75 plus interest and costs.Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed judgment Index # 505521/2014 Steven Naiman, Esq., REFEREE STEIN, WIENER AND ROTH, L.L.P., ATTORNEYS FOR THE PLAINTIFF ONE OLD COUNTRY ROAD, SUITE 113 CARLE PLACE, NY 11514 DATED: December 19, 2018 FILE #:WELLS 69684 SUPREME COURT, COUNTY OF BRONX, JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association, vs. Patricia Campbell, Chase Manhattan Bank USA, N.A. Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc. as nominee for Alliance Mortgage Banking Corp., New York City Environmental Control Board, New York City Parking Violations Bureau, New York City Transit Adjudication Bureau, People of the State of New York, Chase Bank FKA The Dime Savings Bank of NY FSB, Anthony Harris,

Bsmt., Brooklyn, NY 11220. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

NOTICE OF FORMATION JHW BOOKS LLC. Art. of Org. filed with the Secy of State of NY (SSNY) on 099/13/2018.

Off. Loc.: Kings County. SSNY has been desig. as agent upon whom process against it may be served. The address to which the SSNY shall mail a copy to is: JHW Books, LLC, 74 Rutland Road, Brooklyn, NY 11225. Purpose: Any lawful act.

NOTICE OF FORMATION of 39 West 72 Debt LLC. Art. of Org. filed with the Kemeisha Robinson, Sandra Tyndale, Trevor Grant, Donald Lee Davenport, Defendant(s).Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated November 5, 2018 and duly entered thereafter, Steven B. Shapiro, Esq., the court appointed Referee will sell at public auction in Room 224 of the Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201 on Thursday, January 17, 2019 at 2:30 p.m., the premises known as 1301 St. Johns Place, Brooklyn, NY 11213; all that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the County of Kings, City of New York, and State of New York Block 1377, Lot 149. Approximate amount of judgment is $1,037,948.72 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of said Judgment Index No. 27873/2009. Steven B. Shapiro, Esq., Referee Lawrence & Walsh, P.C., 215 Hilton Avenue, Hempstead, NY 11550, Attorneys for Plaintiff NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF KINGS, WILMINGTON SAVINGS FUND SOCIETY, FSB, D/B/A CHRISTIANA TRUST, NOT INDIVIDUALLY BUT AS TRUSTEE FOR PRETIUM MORTGAGE ACQUISITION TRUST, Plaintiff, vs.

DOROTHY ALEXANDER, ET AL., Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly filed on May 24, 2018 and an Order Pursuant to CPLR 2004 Extending the Time to Set Sale and to Ratify Sale Nunc Pro Tunc duly filed on November 29, 2018. I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the Kings County Supreme Court, Room 224, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, NY on January 24, 2019 at 2:30 p.m., premises known as 420 Autumn Avenue, Brooklyn, NY. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York, Block 4170 and Lot 25. Approximate amount of judgment is $465,190.34 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index # 512372/2015. Helene Blank, Esq., Referee Knuckles, Komosinski & Manfro, LLP, 565 Taxter Road, Suite 590, Elmsford, NY 10523, Attorneys for Plaintiff Cash will not be accepted.

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT: KINGS COUNTY. NATIONAL PAYMENT RELIEF LLC, Pltf. vs.

ELESHA CAMPBELL, et al, Defts. Index #12400/13. Pursuant to judgment of foreclosure and sale dated Nov. 5, 2018, I will sell at public auction in Room 224 of the Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams St., Brooklyn, NY on Thursday, Jan. 10, 2019 at 2:30 p.m., prem. k/a 155 Legion St., Brooklyn, NY a/k/a Block 3536, Lot 8. Said property located at a point

VOL. 23 NO. 2

Secy of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/14/18.

Off. Loc.: Kings County. SSNY has been desig. as agent upon whom process against it may be served. The address to which the SSNY shall mail a copy to is: The LLC, 225 Broadway, 32nd Flr, New York, NY 10007. Purpose: Any lawful act.

Urban Tea Kitchen, LLC filed Arts. of Org. with the SSNY on 10/24/2018. Office location: Kings County. SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to the Urban Tea Kettle, 426 East 22nd Street #3H, Brooklyn, NY 11226. Purpose: any lawful act.

Sports Guardian Group, LLC filed Arts. of Org. with the SSNY on 11/30/2018.

Office location: Kings County. SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to the David Geffrard, 8922 Avenue L Brooklyn, NY 11236. Purpose: any lawful act.

AL TALENT AND MEDIA LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 10/02/2018.

Office: Kings 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, 110 Broadway # 705 Brooklyn Ny 11249. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

on the easterly side of Barrett St. distant 150 ft. 5 ½ in. northerly from the corner formed by the intersection of the easterly side of Barrett St. with the northerly side of Blake Avenue; being a plot 100 ft. x 25 ft.

Approx. amt. of judgment is $137,194.33 plus costs and interest. Sold subject to terms and conditions of filed judgment and terms of sale. LEO SALZMAN, Referee.

THE MARGOLIN & WEINREB LAW GROUP, LLP, Attys. for Pltf., 165 Eileen Way, Ste. 101, Syosset, NY. #96098 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK - COUNTY OF KINGS NATIONSTAR MORTGAGE LLC, V. FARVEZ HOSSAIN; ET AL. NOTICE OF SALE NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN pursuant to a Final Judgment of Foreclosure dated September 13, 2018, and entered in the Office of the Clerk of the County of Kings, wherein NATIONSTAR MORTGAGE LLC is the Plaintiff and FARVEZ HOSSAIN; ET AL. are the Defendants. I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the KINGS COUNTY COURTHOUSE, 360 ADAMS STREET, ROOM 224, BROOKLYN, NY 11201, on January 17, 2019 at 2:30PM, premises known as 235 VERMONT STREET, BROOKLYN, NY 11207: Block 3706, Lot 10: ALL THAT CERTAIN PLOT, PIECE OR PARCEL OF LAND, WITH THE BUILDINGS AND IMPROVEMENTS THEREON ERECTED, SITUATE, LYING AND BEING IN THE BOROUGH OF BROOKLYN, COUNTY OF KINGS, AND STATE OF NEW YORK. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index # 513568/2016. Jacob N. Gelfend, Esq. - Referee. RAS Boriskin, LLC 900 Merchants Concourse, Suite 310, Westbury, New York 11590, Attorneys for Plaintiff. For sale information, please visit www.auction.com or call (800) 280-2832.

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF KINGS, BANK OF AMERICA, N.A., Plaintiff, vs.

JEAN ROBERT SELAMY, JEAN GUY SELAMY, ET AL., Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly filed on April 06, 2016, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the Kings County Supreme Court, Room 224, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, NY on January 17, 2019 at 2:30 p.m., premises known as 1315 Troy Avenue, Brooklyn, NY. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York, Block 4978 and Lot 64. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index # 13825/09. Deborah M. Marshall, Esq., Referee Berkman, Henoch, Peterson, Peddy & Fenchel, P.C., 100 Garden City Plaza, Garden City, NY 11530, Attorneys for Plaintiff

The Government Shutdown Hits Home and Close to Home ➔➔ Continued from page 2 York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. The bill that covers FEMA does not allow for a shutdown of his department. But while he considers himself fortunate, he also feels for others.

"I'm paid from different funds appropriation, so I'm actually not furloughed at this moment," he says.

"Some of my co-workers in the agency are currently not as fortunate as I am.

I’m concerned for them. I am concerned about the challenges many of my fellow Americans are facing now."

If you have friends who’d planned vacations to NYC months ago, you may be concerned that some air traffic controllers, frustrated by mandatory work without pay, are calling out sick.

So are TSA agents. At a time when Trump professes to be horrified by the prospect of terrorism, our airports are less safe and secure, as are the borders, where some federal workers have been declining to show up to work their patrols. The year 2013 is a cautionary tale – when during that government shutdown close to 1,400 inspections to prevent workplace fatalities were postponed. Food safety inspections were delayed over at health and Human Services. Inspections were also halted at 1,200 hazardous chemical and water sites back then.

People furloughed can receive unemployment benefits, but must reimburse the government out of their back pay once they return to work. We might think those fortunate enough to be working should have no complaints, but in New York City, many employed people are the working poor. They’re anxious about what the shutdown might mean for their tax returns.

Heather Best, a Bedford-Stuyvesant based CPA, does taxes each year for her clients across the city. She's been letting them know that although they can file starting at the beginning of the year as usual, money will certainly be delayed.

"Returns are not going to be processed in the usual three-to-four weeks that is customary when you file early," she said. "Who knows when the shutdown will be over? This situation can be severe for some, because people rely on their tax returns to pay or catchup on rent or utilities, pay childcare expenses and such. Not everyone gets to go on vacation with their tax return."

VOL. 23 NO. 2

15

OUR TIME PRESS January 10-16, 2019

Saturday, January 12th

Monday, January 14th BROOKLYN FIFTY YEARS AND COUNTING: LESSONS FROM THE OCEAN HILLBROWNSVILLE TEACHERS

The Roots of Rap art by Frank Morrison

THE ROOTS OF RAP BOOK LAUNCH / EXHIBITION

Richard Beavers Gallery, 408 Marcus Garvey Blvd., 6-9PM, FREE. Celebrate the launch of this stunning, rhyming, triple-timing picture book and exhibition.

“The Roots of Rap,” by veteran author Carole Boston Weatherford, is illustrated by noted artist Frank Morrison. Original art from the book will be exhibited, books will be available for purchase and the author will be signing copies. Refreshments will be served. Register at Eventbrite.

A SPECIAL REPORT BACK IN THE CASE OF MUMIA ABU-JAMAL

Brooklyn Historical Society, 128 Pierrepont St., 6:30-8PM (doors @ 6), $5. In 1968-69, the local Ocean Hill-Brownsville community, in an effort to gain self-determination, clashed with the United Federation of Teachers, resulting in a citywide strike. Hear Charles Isaacs, former teacher and author of Inside Ocean Hill–Brownsville: A Teacher's Education, 1968-69, and Monifa Edwards, 1969 valedictorian at JHS 271, where the movement began.

Joining them is Heather Lewis, author of New York City Public Schools from Brownsville to Bloomberg: The Community Control Movement and its Legacy. Moderated by Mark Winston Griffith, Executive Director of Brooklyn Movement Center.

Tuesday, January 15th FREE LEGAL SERVICES FOR ALL: VETERANS’ ISSUES

Brooklyn Borough Hall, 209 Joralemon St., Every Tuesday 9AM-12PM, FREE. The Office of Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams partners each week with the Veteran Advocacy Project’s Urban Justice Center to provide free legal assistance to veterans. Get help with housing issues, benefits and other

MLK on call paintings, drawings, collage, sculpture and photography by some of the most brilliant and inspired artists of the time.

Thursday, January 17th “BROOKLYN VANGUARD” OPENING RECEPTION

Hudson Guild, 441 W. 26th St., Manhattan, 6-7:30PM, FREE. Curated by visual artist Danny Simmons, this exhibition honors some of the broad shoulders a new generation of Black Art Stars stood firmly upon.

Join in the celebration of cherished cultural warriors. Featuring work by (among others): Jamilah Ausby, Che Baraka, Ramona Candy, Mary Chang, Jimmy James Greene, Myrah Brown Green, Kathleen Hayek, MLJ Johnson, Anders Knutson, Karl McIntosh, Otto Neals, Deborah Singletary and Ken Wright. The show is up until 2/27.

Contact Hudson Guild for hours.

Saturday, January 19th SMALL BUSINESS EXPO

Oceran Hill-Brownsville Strike The People’s Forum, 320 W. 37th St., 3PM, FREE. Hear about momentous new developments in the Mumia Abu-Jamal Case. For the first time in 37 years, he’s won a favorable ruling in Philadelphia by allowing him to present evidence of innocence. This event features five powerful voices discussing these developments, the history of the case and what’s necessary to secure Mumia's freedom. Speakers include: Mumia’s attorney Judith Ritter, Pam Africa, longstanding activist in this movement, Johann Fernandez, filmmaker and specialist in the case and journalist Glen Ford, founder of Black Agenda Report.

Sunday, January 13th THE ROOTS OF RAP CHILDREN’S BOOK-SIGNING

Richard Beavers Gallery, 408 Marcus Garvey Blvd., 3-5PM, FREE. Kids will learn about how rap evolved from folktales, spirituals and poetry to the showmanship of James Brown, graffiti art and break-dancing.

Written in lyrical rhythm by award-winning author and poet Carole Boston Weatherford with flowing, vibrant illustrations by Frank Morrison, with a foreword by Swizz Beatz.

Register at Eventbrite.

VA Claims, discharge updates and more. Appointments are required. Call 718-802-3777.

Wednesday, January 16th RACE AND GENDER IN AMERICAN POLITICS

Brooklyn Historical Society, 128 Pierrepont St., 6:30-8PM (doors @ 6), $5.

Christina Greer, author of Black Ethnics: Race, Immigration and the Pursuit of the American Dream; Tsedale M. Melaku, author of the forthcoming, You Don't Look Like a Lawyer: Black Women and Systemic-Gendered Racism; and author Jamila Michener, (Fragmented Democracy: Medicaid, Federalism and Unequal Politics), reflect on the successes (and setbacks) of women and people of color as candidates, and evolving participation and representation in American politics.

GALLERY TOUR – SOUL OF A NATION: ART IN THE AGE OF BLACK POWER

Brooklyn Museum, 200 Eastern Parkway (meet in the Rubin lobby), 2-3PM, FREE w/museum admission, which is a suggested donation. Join a Museum Guide for a tour of this remarkable special exhibition featuring

First Baptist Church of Crown Heights Fellowship Hall, 450 Eastern Parkway, 10AM2PM, FREE. Don’t miss this year’s expo, where you might win a free raffle and have great choices of Valentine’s Day gifts to purchase. The event features a marketplace with a variety of vendors showcasing and selling edible creations for special events, customized floral arrangements, beautiful vegan nail paint, photography, men’s jewelry, Afrocentric printed apparel, housewares, telecommunication services and much more. RSVP at Eventbrite. Vendor registration ends at noon on 1/15: contact Natalie at FBCCHsmallbusinessexpo@gmail.com.

Sunday, January 20th

confirmed. A Special Recognition Award will be given to Kwame Brathwaite, Sr., renowned photo documentarian of the Black is Beautiful Movement. For information call 347-804-5810.

Monday, January 21st BROOKLYN TRIBUTE TO DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

BAM Howard Gilman Opera House, 30 Lafayette Ave., 10:30AM, FREE tickets distributed first-come, first-seated, starting at 8AM. This annual community event features civic leaders and a keynote address by “Me Too” movement founder Tarana Burke. Enjoy the music of The Brooklyn Interdenominational Choir and Oddisee & Good Company. Borough President Eric L. Adams is the Master of Ceremony.

Following the film attend (at 1PM) the free screening of Dolores, a documentary about Latina activist Dolores Huerta. For info contact Sarah Garvey at 718-724-8025.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS

Friday, February 15th DEADLINE TO APPLY FOR A COMMUNITY BOARD SEAT

Consider joining one of Brooklyn’s 18 community boards, which are the epicenter of grassroots democracy in our borough. Applicants must be at least 16 years of age to qualify, you must live, work in or have a professional or other significant interest in that board’s district.

To submit an application online, visit brooklyn-usa.org.

CULTURAL CARAVAN CELEBRATES DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

Bedford-Stuyvesant Restoration Plaza, 1368 Fulton St., 1st Fl., 3-7PM, FREE (donations accepted). The public is invited to join in this celebration of Dr. King and panel discussion on:” 400 Years Later (1619-2019): “Reflecting Back and Moving Forward.” The panel, to be moderated by CCPTV host and founder Louise Dente, will feature WBAI 99.5 FM radio host and producer Bob Law, WBLS 107.5 FM host Ann Tripp and Our Time Press publisher David Greaves.

Other invited panelists will be

Brooklyn Vanguard art by Lamerol A. Gatewood

16

OUR TIME PRESS January 10-16, 2019

VOL. 23 NO. 2