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| VOL. 23 NO. 11
March 14-20, 2019 |
Since 1996
Movita Johnson-Harrell Makes History in West Philly Special Election Historic Win in West Philly Special Election Sees Muslim Woman Claiming Victory in State First
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By Dan Stamm, NBC Philadelphia
ovita Johnson-Harrell is claiming to have made history as the apparent winner of a special election to serve out the rest of the state representative term for a Pennsylvania district that covers parts of West Philadelphia and North Philadelphia. Johnson-Harrell is the apparent winner of the special election in the 190th Legislative District by taking nearly two thirds of the votes with nearly 94 percent of precincts reporting. She is an advocate of gun violence prevention after the 2011 killing of her son. Johnson-Harrell reacted to her win on Facebook saying she is “honored to be the first Muslim woman elected to the Pennsylvania legislature.” “We ran a race of integrity and class even with the slander and politics,” JohnsonHarrell wrote. “This win is bittersweet. My
seat rests on the grave of my son Charles Johnson. I will fight to protect our communities and tackle this multilayered problem.” She ended her post with Islamic phrase “ALLAH U AKBAR.” The Democratic Johnson-Harrell will serve out the rest of the seat won by former Rep. Vanessa Lowery Brown this past November. Brown resigned after being sentenced to probation in November for a bribery conviction. The other special election Tuesday saw a Democrat also holding onto a seat as Bridget Malloy Kosierowski is the apparent winner over Republican Frank Scavo to serve out deceased Lackawanna County Rep. Sid Michaels Kavulich’s term. Republicans hold the House majority with 110 members. Democrats hold onto 93 seats with the two wins.
AG Letitia James Sends Subpoena to Trump Organization James and the legislature have reached an agreement to amend the state’s double jeopardy laws. The amendment will make it easier to prosecute crime in New York, even with a presidential pardon. Page 3
Movita Johnson-Harrell, “honored to be the first Muslim woman elected to the Pennsylvania legislature.”
Rich, White-Privileged and Still Wanting More: College Admissions Scam of the Rich and Famous “And while many of our children work diligently at their studies, hoping to earn a place at a Stanford or a USC based on their hard work, there are children that don’t have to work at all, who can have that spot if they want it because Mommy and Daddy can pay for it. The only thing that is working to earn them a place is their privilege.” Thinker’s Notebook, Page 5, More on Page 3.
Women's Month Calendar, Page 8 Community Calendar, Page 16
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Climate Change
Implications of Sea Level Rise ■■
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lood, drought, fire, famine and pestilence. These are some of the consequences of the changing world climate. And they are not distant happenings, they are here now and will only become more fearsome with each passing year, and more and more horrifying with each passing decade. Last week, we spoke with Dr. Jayson Evans, a researcher a Stetson University in Florida about the impact and implications of a rising sea level. Dr. Evans confirmed that NYC is particularly vulnerable to sea level rise because of the number of assets that are close to the coast. “Hurricane Sandy showed the vulnerability of New York. "Sea level rise is the storm surge that never goes away. It happens relatively slowly. The first impact is generally seen in storm-water drainage systems built for a different time and that now can get contaminated with seawater. In Miami, when we have what’s called a ‘king tide,’ saltwater comes up through the sewers.” The sea will rise, says Evans, and the big question is by how much. A convenient date that’s used to make projections is the year 2100. Projections of possible rise by then range from one foot to eleven feet. “At 11 feet, we’re talking about the worst case of climate change,” including the collapse of the Antarctica and Greenland ice sheets and melting glaciers. We’d like to think the worst case will not happen, but the longer we put off getting carbon emissions down, the more likely we are at risk of that worst scenario.
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By David Mark Greaves
Evans says change on that level is so massive that we cannot adapt with seawalls and levees. “Even the Dutch, with their massive flood-control infrastructure, understand they cannot cope with an ever-rising sea and now talk about a strategic retreat from areas that are no longer possible to defend” from the rising waters. According to Evans, rather than concentrate resources on adapting, they would be better off on “transforming how we run as a nation and across the world.” “We have to work globally to pull carbon out of the atmosphere through reforestation projects and other kinds of interventions. That’s what the science tells us. If we don’t want to experience large amounts A Google Earth image of Atlantic City in 2100, using extreme - but possible of climate change, if we don’t want sea level rise scenario. (Photo: Courtesy of Climate Central) massive amounts of sea level rise, that’s the way that we have to do it.” whatever, and when you think of taking that would be agricultural production and how “The science of it is very clear,” says throughout the entire U.S. coast, it becomes that is going to adapt. If we’re looking at Evans, but in talks with local groups and of- unfathomable.” a bad scenario, then energy and resources ficials, he finds that there is an understanding “We have to transition as rapidly as should be going into agricultural adaptation.” that the sea is rising, but “they don’t want possible away from the energy sources we And this is in addition to the ecological to talk about the causes, just how they can use, and we’re already seeing the movement disaster resulting from the warming of the adapt.” toward wind and solar. oceans which, as soon as 2050, are projected “If we had a high amount of sea level rise, And, of course, a sea level rise of even to contain more plastic than fish. What will say 5-6 feet by 2100, it is difficult to think 5-6 feet implies a massive climate change that look like in 2100? what adaption to that would look like. Even of which high water is only one indicator. Humankind should be on a war-footing to in New York City, with a lot of resources, ‘You can’t look at sea-level rise in a box.’ It stop the global suicide. The planet will be fine a lot of infrastructure we want to protect, implies a whole other set of climate factors. in the long run, it’s us who’ll have to leave. Next month, Our Time Press is beginning the expense, the complexity, the energy reWhen I think through the planning for that, 80 years in the future. Coastal areas will a monthly STEM column to encourage intersources, all that is tied into that adaptation, be the least of our concerns. The big concerns est in the sciences. the infrastructure, giant seawalls, pumps,
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Trump Signs Seawall Bill into Law
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ongressman Max Rose (D-South Brooklyn, Staten Island) applauded President Donald Trump’s signing into law the Natural Resources Management Act, which includes Rose’s legislation to provide a long-term easement of federal lands allowing construction and maintenance for the East Shore Seawall on Staten Island. Funding for construction of the East Shore Seawall has already been appropriated and authorized by the federal, state and local governments. Last month, Rose toured the site with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, who will be overseeing the development and construction of the project. It is estimated that construction will begin in early 2020 and finish by 2024. To blunt future storms and prevent flooding along the East Shore, the Army Corps of Engineers have put together various proposals to protect New York City and specifically Staten Island, which involves building a series of levees, barriers and gates around New York Bay to shield populated areas from storms coming off the Atlantic—including the East Shore Seawall as an integral part of the plan. “Finally getting the seawall legislation signed into law was a longtime coming, but a huge step for so many families along the East Shore,” Rose said. “Now the real work begins, and I’m going to be working hand-in-glove with the Army Corps and local community to ensure the seawall is built on time and with minimal disruption— because these families have been waiting for too long and we need to make sure this is done right,” added Rose.
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Rich, White-Privileged and Still Wanting More: College Admissions Scam of the Rich and Famous
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tunning details continue to emerge in an alleged multi-million-dollar bribery plot that, just a day after exploding into public view, has exposed what federal prosecutors describe as a corrupt exchange of wealth, fame and influence for admissions to the nation’s most elite universities. Fifty people – from Hollywood stars and top industry CEOs to college coaches and standardized test administrators – stand accused of participating in a scheme to cheat on admissions tests and admit to students to leading institutions as athletes regardless of their abilities, prosecutors revealed Tuesday in a federal indictment. The scandal is being called the largest college admissions scam ever prosecuted. As the alleged culprits, including actresses Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin and fashion designer Mossimo Giannulli, position their defenses, the fallout continues for players across this wide-ranging case, which spans six states and raises seminal questions about how level the post-secondary playing field really is. Still hanging in the balance is the fate of the privileged scholars, at least some of whom may not have known about their parents’ alleged acts. It was no accident that none were immediately charged, US Attorney Andrew Lelling of Massachusetts said Tuesday. “The prime movers of this fraud” were the parents and other defendants, Lelling said, though he noted some students may face charges down the road. Meantime, officials at universities including Yale, Stanford and Georgetown must now examine criminal claims made against key staffers, some of whom already have part ways. Perhaps most critically, they’ll also have to answer for whether qualified students were denied entry into their programs in lieu of the children of the rich and famous. “For every student admitted through fraud,” Lelling said, “an honest, genuinely talented student was rejected.”
Parents spent up to $6.5 million, the FBI says The sums that authorities say the accused parents paid in bribes would, for many, finance a college education many times over. Some spent between $200,000 and $6.5 million to guarantee admissions for their children, FBI Special Agent Joseph Bonavolonta said.
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By Madeline Holcombe, CNN
Cheat. Bribe. Lie. Here’s how the college admissions scam allegedly worked A winemaker, a test proctor and a CEO -- These are the people involved in the alleged scam The relatives of one applicant paid $1.2 million to have the applicant falsely described as the co-captain of a well-known California soccer team, although the applicant did not play competitive soccer, prosecutors said. By comparison, the average annual cost of tuition and fees at a private, four-year college is $29,478, the US Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics’ most recent report shows. “This case is about the widening corruption of elite college admissions through the steady application of wealth combined with fraud,” Lelling said. “There can be no separate college admission system for the wealthy, and I’ll add that there will not be a separate criminal justice system either.”
The ringleader got $25 million, US attorney says Much of the indictment revolves around William Rick Singer, the founder of a for-profit college counseling and preparation business known as The Key. “OK, so, who we are ... what we do is we help the wealthiest families in the US get their kids into school,” Singer told one parent, according to prosecutors. The CEO behind the college admissions cheating scam wanted to help the wealthy. But that’s not all There were dual avenues for carrying out the scheme, Lelling explained. “There were essentially two kinds of fraud that Singer was selling,” Lelling said of the accusations, which run from 2011
Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law Responds to DOJ’s Largest-Ever College Admissions Prosecution
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ASHINGTON, D.C. – As federal prosecutors in Boston announced charges against fifty people in six states as part of an alleged largescale college entrance bribery scheme, Kristen Clarke, President and Executive Director of the Lawyers› Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, issued the following statement: “These disturbing allegations about the extent to which parents, coaches and administrators may have used their wealth, power and privilege to game the college admissions process is a reminder of how essential it is
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for us to ensure equity and opportunity in higher education. We demand greater accountability and transparency in the admissions process on behalf of the thousands of exceptional applicants of color who seek admission to our colleges and universities each year and yet have their qualifications called into question as the result of race-conscious admissions. This is a moment which calls for our institutions of higher learning to review their admissions processes, expose fraudulent practices and commit to addressing the various ways in which privilege and bias have unfairly infected admissions determinations for far too long.”
to 2019. “One was to cheat on the SAT or ACT, and the other was to use his connections with Division I coaches and use bribes to get these parents’ kids into school with fake athletic credentials.” For example, Singer and his co-conspirators used photo-editing technology to superimpose the face of a patron’s student onto stock photos of athletes, prosecutors said. Singer was paid roughly $25 million by parents to help their children get in to schools, the US attorney said. Singer pleaded guilty on Tuesday to racketeering conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy, conspiracy to defraud the United States and obstruction of justice, prosecutors said.
Actresses allegedly were taped discussing the plot Best known for her role on TV’s “Desperate Housewives,” Huffman is accused of paying $15,000 to Singer’s fake charity, the Key Worldwide Foundation, to facilitate cheating for her daughter on the SATs, the complaint says. Her daughter received a 1420 on her test, which was 400 points higher than a PSAT taken a year earlier without the same administrator, the complaint states. Huffman also discussed the scheme in a recorded phone call with a cooperating witness, the complaint says.
Implicated coaches sidelined at Yale and Georgetown Coaches from Yale, Stanford, Wake Forest and Georgetown universities and USC, among others, are implicated in the case.
NAACP Calls for Congressional Hearings on Domestic Terrorism and Government Surveillance of Black Activists BALTIMORE (March 13, 2019)— Today, the nation’s foremost civil rights organization issued letters addressed to the chairs of the House Committees on Homeland Security and the House Judiciary Committee to request hearings on the issues of domestic terrorism; and regarding the ways in which Black activists are being tracked and monitored by government agencies. In the letter addressed to Congressman Bennie Thompson, chair of the House Committee on Homeland Security and Congressman Jerrold Nadler, chair of the House Committee on the Judiciary; the NAACP cites a number of circumstances as problematic and the basis of its concerns including: The recent arrest of an active duty member of the US Coast Guard seeking to commit domestic terrorism targeting a number of African American elected officials A 2018 domestic terrorist plot sending pipe bombs targeting African American legislators and outspoken opponents to the current president. Numerous threats against Congresswoman Maxine Waters A recent report; showing white nationalist groups have “jumped by almost 50 percent” in 2018 and the main focus of these attacks are African Americans Also sent to ranking committee members from both parties, the letter discusses the disturbing issue of surveillance of Black activists as an additional item which the civil rights organization seeks transparency and clarity on. In the letter, NAACP President Derrick Johnson strongly urged both Thompson and Nadler “to use your prerogatives as the Chairmen of the committees of jurisdiction to investigate and hold hearings on terrorism within the United States; especially domestic terrorism, in which both the assailant(s) and the victim(s) reside on American soil.” He also expressed concern regarding “reports of people and organizations being singled out for investigation and surveillance because of their activism.”
NY Attorney General James Issues Subpoena to Trump Organization
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nd so, it begins. During her campaign, Letitia James had said, “the president of the United States has to worry about three things: Mueller, Cohen, and Tish James.” And now as Attorney General, James has issued a subpoena to Deutche Bank regarding, as the NY Times reports, “The request to Deutsche Bank sought loan applications, mortgages, lines of credit and other financing transactions in connection with the Trump International Hotel in Washington; the Trump National Doral outside Miami; and the Trump International Hotel and Tower in Chicago,” as well as the attempt to purchase the NFL’s Buffalo Bills in 2014.
It was the gripping and revealing congressional testimony of Michael Cohen Trump's former lawyer and fixer, that fraudulent documents were processed by a unit of Deutche Bank that handled “ultra-high-income individuals that triggered the State investigation. The bank had given Trump hundreds of millions of dollars in loans and AG James will be asking, “Why, when other banks shied away, did Deutche give so liberally to the Trump Organization?” And now that James and the legislature have agreed to amend the State's double jeopardy laws, presidential pardons will be of no help in New York. Stay tuned for this one. (DG)
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WHAT’S GOING ON ■■
By Victoria Horsford
POLITICS 101 Some say that politics is a blood sport. No one knows that better than New Yorkers. Everyone wants to be an elected official, ideally for some higher office. New York’s Mayor Bill de Blasio says that he has not ruled out a run for the 2020 presidency. Is that why he is behaving like a lame duck? Every weekend, he is off to some strategic early presidential primary location to curry favor with locals. Cannot understand why he is in such hot pursuit with all of the problems dogging him in NYC. He is under constant media surveillance germane to his mental health initiative THRIVE, overseen by his wife Chirlane McCray, which has spent more than $850 million since its inception without proof of its efficacy and outcomes. The NYC public school system is in disarray. N Y C homicides and violent Chirlane McCray c r i m e figures are traveling north, as are homelessness stats. NYCHA is in free fall and Trump announced major funding cuts for HUD. Hizzoner has not mentioned any satisfactory MTA proposals. Meanwhile, City Council Speaker Corey Johnson is making bold announcements about transit solutions: Council/Mayor power sharing and revision of the Mayor’s 2018 City Charter which the electorate blindly approved without fully understanding the power ramifications. The field gets more crowded for the 2021 mayoral race and de Blasio’s successor, Johnson, covets the job, as does Bronx Boro Prexy R u b e n Diaz, Jr., Brooklyn Boro Prexy Eric Adams Eric Adams and NYC
Comptroller Scott Stringer. Don’t know what is on Public Advocate Jumaane Williams’ radar screen. Recent polls show that Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez does well in a mayoral lineup. The Public Advocate Special Election held a few weeks ago is for a provisional period. Victor Jumaane Williams has to prepare for a primary in September, then the November election to secure the seat. Some of his competitors will queue for the primary, but Williams should be safe. That special election altered the lives of local hopefuls for higher office. Former NYC Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito placed a distant third, which sends a sobering message about her future as a Public Advocate or a mayoral candidate. On March 11, Congressman Gregory Meeks was elected the new Queens Democratic Party boss. According to the NYC political rule book, the Queens and Bronx Democratic leaders call the shots re: identification of the NYC Council Speaker. Dem party bosses have the power to recommend judgeships and enjoy a cozy relationship with City Council Gregory Meeks friends. Former NYS Assemblyman Keith Wright is the Manhattan Democratic honcho. Two of the five Democratic boro leaders are African-Americans. There are a few ruptures in Albany between the Democratic legislators and Governor Cuomo. Black legislators want to legalize cannabis in NYS, but with guarantees of economic equity for Blacks. Legalized cannabis in NYS is expected to generate $3 billion. In the 10 states where cannabis is legalized, Blacks have been pretty much shut out of the lucrative licenses, oftentimes owing to previous jail time. Our Black legislators want NY to be the first state to tie legalization to an economic equity program for people of color. Cuomo’s extant cannabis proposal they claim, “could perpetuate the racial inequity that it purports to fight.”
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WOMEN IN THE NEWS Central Harlem’s Community Board 10’s Economic Development Committee hosts a “WOMEN’S SUMMIT: From Income Disparity to Economic Equity” at the National Black Theatre at 2031 Fifth Avenue, 125th Street, Harlem, on March 18, 6-9 pm. Speakers include Aliyaah Baylor, Make My Cake; Shareen Wood, Harlem Haberdashery; and Professor Myrtle Jones. [RSVP: 212.749.3105 or https://bit. ly/2XHCLhh]
Aliyaah Baylor Black women rock in local and national politics in America! At the top of that political pyramid is US Senator Kamala Harris, a 2020 Presidential hopeful. Stacey Abrams, who came this close to winning the 2018 Georgia gubernatorial race, says that she is keeping all options open: the 2020 presidency, the US Senate, the Georgia governorship. A rising star in the Democratic Party, she is an attorney, former Georgia legislator and writer of romance novels who is ready for the next challenge. Then look at the prominent Black women mayors in large cities across the USA. They are Muriel Bowser, DC; Keisha Lance Bottoms, Atlanta; London Breed, San Francisco; Sharon Weston Broome, Baton Rouge; Catherine Pugh, Baltimore; Lovely Warren, Rochester; Diedre Waterman, Pontiac, MI; Karen Weaver, Flint, MI; Karen Freeman-Wilson, Gary, IN; Victoria Woodards, Tacoma, WA. The April 2 Chicago mayoral runoff is the subject of all manner of media coverage from the NY Times, MSNBC, CNN, to the WAPO. The two candidates are African-American women: Lori Lightfoot, 56, former Assistant US Attorney and Chicago civil servant; Toni Preckwinkle, former history teacher and Cook County Executive. The victor makes history as Chicago’s first Black woman mayor.
BUSINESS AFFAIRS The Ethiopian Airlines flight which crashed en route to Kenya, killing 157 people, sounded like the narrative about the Indonesian plane crash, which killed
Lori Lightfoot 189 people last November. Both crashed planes were BOEING Max 8 models and the problems started shortly after takeoff. China and Indonesia immediately grounded their BOEING Max 8 fleet. By Tuesday, the United Kingdom, Australia, Singapore and Oman followed suit, as did scores of other countries. Many European capitals have not only grounded Boeing Max 8, they do not want the plane in their air space. About 2/3 of the Max 8 models worldwide have been grounded, about 6000 planes since the Ethiopian crash. Boeing stock has dropped. Ethiopia is the superstar of air travel—they have the best safety record in Africa and has dominated the continent’s friendly skies for almost a decade. Globalization, a word fallen into disrepute for more than two years, has reared its ugly head during this crisis. It is good to see world leaders exercise prudent policies with dispatch. The USA and Canada continue to use Boeing Max 8 models. The FAA says that it could find nothing wrong with the plane’s efficacy. Boeing is a major DC lobbyist, spending millions annually, which could influence policy. It is pretty hard to justify the loss of 336 lives and continue business as usual. Crises like this require true leadership, something which once emanated from DC, until the Boeing Max 8 crash mystery is solved. The March 4 issue of Crain’s New York Business magazine includes a list of the 25 Largest Thrifts, NY-area banks ranked by total assets. Carver Federal Savings ranked 21 with 2018 assets in the millions at $592.3. Founded in Harlem in 1948, Carver was once the “jewel in the crown” of Black American savings banks.
WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH Toni Morrison’s new book, “The Source of Self-Regard: Selected Essays, Speeches and Meditations,” is divided into three sections: The Foreigners Home, Black Matter(s) and God’s Language. It is required reading any time of the year, according to critics.
Bridgette Davis Margaret Troupe’s Harlem Arts Salon celebrates Women’s History Month with two literary lionesses: Louise Merriwether, who wrote, “My Daddy Was a Numbers Runner,” in conversation with Bridgette M. Davis, who wrote, “The World According to Fannie Davis: My Mother’s Life in the Detroit Numbers.” They will be at the HAS on March 31, 2:30-6 pm at 1925 Seventh Avenue, Suite 7L, Harlem. Reservations are necessary. Proceeds from the Salon conversation will support the Gloster Arts Project, which bring arts programs to Black children in Mississippi. [Visit harlemartssalon] A Harlem-based branding consultant, Victoria can be reached at Victoria.horsford@gmail.com.
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Thinker’s Notebook
When the Haves Have Not ■■
I saw a video once, it was one of these videos that goes viral and winds up on your Facebook newsfeed. The video was a game of tug of war between two kids - one black and the other white. The goal appeared to be that the person that pulled the flag tied at the middle of the rope across their end of the field would win. As soon as they started, the Black kid began pulling the rope towards his end. The White kid put up a struggle, but the Black kid was pulling with all his might, controlling the momentum of the contest. The Black kid got the flag all the way over to his side, and it appeared that the Black kid would win. As the Black kid finally got the flag over the line into his side, his friends along the sideline cheered in victory because he seemingly had won. But, the ref was a White man and he proclaimed that it wasn’t enough for the flag to be pulled over the line. He pointed to yet another line deeper in the sidelines and said that the flag had to cross that line in order for the Black kid to be the victor. The Black kid became despondent because he thought he had won.
By Marlon Rice
His momentum was depleted the second the ref pushed the finish line further back. The White kid realized that this was his chance. He began pulling the rope back across the field towards his side. The Black kid made an attempt to fight back, but his spirit was broken. The White kid had the momentum. He pulled the rope across his sideline and won. The ref was perfectly fine allowing the White kid to win without creating a second finish line for him, in the same way he did for the Black kid. On Tuesday, Federal agents charged 50 people with carrying out a nationwide fraud intended to get the children of the rich and elite into prestigious colleges and universities. The culprits included two SAT/ACT administrators, coaches, an exam proctor and of course the parents, two of which are famous television actresses. The fraud was two-pronged. On the one hand, parents were paying a college prep program to take the SAT/ACT exams for their children, or to correct their answers and boost their grade. On the other hand, the organization was bribing coaches
to accept children on scholarship as student athletes, regardless of whether or not the child was actually an athlete. The FBI states that the parents paid anywhere from $200,000 to $6.5 Million to ensure their child a space at one of the elite colleges and universities. So, rich people bribed academic institutions to get their kids into schools? I thought that was normal. I didn’t even know that it was illegal to do. Our capitalist corporatocracy is so innately corrupt that the rich buying seats at Harvard and Yale for their children actually seems normal. We already know that every son of an oil baron or daughter of an actress doesn’t get a seat at the table based on their own merits. Daddy buying a spot for you is the American way, no? And while many of our children work diligently at their studies, hoping to earn a place at a Stanford or a USC based on their hard work, there are children that don’t have to work at all, who can have that spot if they want it because Mommy and Daddy can pay for it. The only thing that is working to earn them a place is their privilege.
Money is the root. Ted Dibiase, a wrestler from WWF in the 80’s used to say that “everybody has a price”. Somewhere in this chain of deceit, there was a middleclass exam proctor that looked the other way for a payoff that was enough to clear his debts, or to buy that vacation home. As much as we want to believe that we wouldn’t allow ourselves to be a cog in this type of chain, the right amount would indeed have one considering it. And, when we do engage in pay to play, or in simply normalizing acts of privilege we help fortify this ideal that the haves should have more than those who have not. We consciously accept the fact that there are two games, and the one you’re playing depends on how well you know the referee. And, if you know the referee well enough, or if he identifies with you, he will move the finish line to ensure that you win. I’m not sure what Americans want more - for the concept of privilege to be eradicated, or for the chance to get into position to utilize privilege for themselves.
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez Unveils Sweeping Reforms His Office is Implementing as Part of the Justice 2020 Initiative, Establishing a National Model of a Progressive Prosecutor’s Office
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his week, Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez announced his plan for a groundbreaking initiative to transform Brooklyn’s justice system into a progressive model designed to keep Brooklyn safe and strengthen community trust by ensuring fairness and equal justice for all. The new approaches were developed following months of intensive consultations with dedicated committees made up of reform experts, defense attorneys, service providers, law enforcement, formerly incarcerated individuals, clergy and others. Justice 2020 is the first program in the nation to take a truly comprehensive and holistic approach to implementing a new model of a progressive and modern prosecutor’s office in the 21st century. Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said, “Justice 2020 will reshape the Brooklyn District Attorney’s office into a model of progressive prosecution that keeps the public safe and strengthens community trust by ensuring fairness and equal justice for all. We will move away from over-reliance on incarceration, engage all stakeholders as partners in justice, focus resources on those who do the most harm and make my Office more strategic and mission-driven. “I am deeply grateful to all of the people, many of whom have personal experience within the system – who helped develop this comprehensive blueprint, which we have already begun implementing. As we continue to reap the benefits of historic decreases in crime here in Brooklyn and across the country, now is the time to focus on reforming injustices in the system that have led to over-reliance on incarceration and a lack of trust in the criminal justice system. In many cases, incarceration does not keep us safer, and I am committed to shifting to ways of holding people accountable and increasing public safety that don’t rely on incarceration as the default option.” Justice 2020 envisions a level of community engagement with the DA’s office
much deeper than currently exists, a true partnership in developing responses to crime. The panel of experts that led the process to study, create and select these reforms was led by Medgar Evers College President Dr. Rudy Crew and former Chief Judge of the State of New York Jonathan Lippman. DA Gonzalez plans to make measurable progress towards enacting all 17 recommendations of the Committee by the end of 2020. Medgar Evers College President Rudy Crew, Launch Committee Co-Chair said, “Justice 2020 has the potential to transform the relationship between communities and the criminal justice system. At a time when communities lack faith in law enforcement to keep them safe and treat them fairly, Justice 2020 envisions a partnership that gives communities a real voice in what safety and justice should look like. I know of no other DA’s office in the country that builds bridges in this way, and I commend Brooklyn DA Eric Gonzalez for his leadership.” Former New York Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman, Launch Committee Co-Chair and current Counsel at Latham & Watkins LLP said, "Justice 2020 isn't just an agenda - it's a comprehensive roadmap to improve public safety while diverting those who do not pose a threat to public safety out of the criminal justice system and into community-based services. I am honored to be part of DA Gonzalez's Justice 2020 Initiative and hope to see prosecutors' offices across the country
use it as a model for truly progressive criminal justice reform." The full list of all 17 action points is below: 1. Change the office culture so that ADAs consider non-jail resolutions at every juncture of a case. 2. Offer pre-plea alternatives for all drug possession charges and reduce barriers to participation. 3. Seal or expunge past marijuana convictions. 4. Consider recommending parole when the minimum sentence is complete and participate more robustly in parole proceedings. 5. Empower community residents and leaders through neighborhood justice partnerships. 6. Partner with community-based organizations and service providers to expand community justice options. 7. Reduce prosecution of school-based offenses and divert youth from the criminal justice system. 8. Develop new protocols for investigations and prosecutions of police misconduct to improve accountability and transparency. 9. Identify high-risk individuals early and explore early interventions to deter violent behavior. 10. Interrupt gun violence and gang affiliation by intervening after a major enforcement action. 11. Enhance prosecution of cases of gender-based violence, including acquaintance rape and sexual assault cases. 12. Create a single point of contact for hate crime charges. 13. Establish a transformation office and data/analytics team to drive metrics, best practices, and reform. 14. Train all staff in cultural competency. 15. Realign staffing so that each case is the responsibility of a single ADA (vertical prosecution).
16. Promote accountability by establishing an office of professional responsibility and ethics. 17. Streamline case handling and enhance fairness and transparency with e-discovery. Evidence shows that relying on incarceration as the automatic response frequently undermines public safety by breaking apart families and communities and preventing people from pursuing the very educational and employment opportunities that reduce crime and strengthen communities. The District Attorney’s Office has already begun implementing Justice 2020, evidenced in their recent work to: • Erase past marijuana convictions. • Develop new protocols for investigating and prosecuting police misconduct and create a Law Enforcement Accountability Bureau. • Establish a Hate Crimes Bureau as a single point of contact for these offenses. • Begin revamping the Office’s data management system. These efforts will serve to create fairness within Brooklyn’s criminal justice system and maintain the highest levels of public safety, both priorities for DA Gonzalez. Brooklyn is uniquely positioned to take on this endeavor thanks to a true partnership with community organizations and leaders. The borough is safer than it's ever been as 2018 ended with the lowest number of homicides since record-keeping began. The Brooklyn DA’s office has put in place notable reform-minded programs, such as a bail policy that decreased reliance on cash bail, an immigration policy aimed at minimizing collateral consequences of criminal convictions, a Conviction Review Unit that is a national model and an initiative to vacate hundreds of thousands of outstanding summons warrants that were generated due to failures to pay fines for minor infractions.
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#BHEARD Town Hall: Economic Inequality ■■
By Akosua K. Albritton
he #BHEARD Town Hall is the space where Brooklyn residents of all ages, local leaders, social scientists, advocates and the elected convene to discuss crucial issues of our time. As the name implies, it is a space for Brooklyn residents to exercise their agency by airing concerns, questions and offering ideas to solve social problems of our time. These town halls are free to the public and are held in BRIC Arts Media House’s ballroom, located at 647 Fulton Street. Moderator Brian Vines is BRIC-TV’s Senior Correspondent and Managing Editor. The beauty of these events is that each town hall presents five professionals, coming from different institutions, to the public who would not otherwise know about them. Therefore, the people have the opportunity to build their personal contact list. Getting acquainted with these people is thought-provoking and empowering. BRIC-TV, Brooklyn’s nonprofit cable station, presented the latest live #BHEARD Town Hall after a hiatus of five months on March 1, 2019 and uploaded it to BRICTV’s YouTube Channel on March 4, 2019. Entitled “The Widening Gap: Economic Inequality in NYC,” it opened with a barrage of alarming statistics: “Brooklyn ranks #1 with children living in poverty,” “15% of Brooklyn student loan borrowers are late on their payments,” and “over 30% of renters spend over half their income on rent.” Be that as it may, Brooklynites continued to perpetrate a fraud by presenting themselves in the latest fashions, jewelry and wigs. Teen girls flash long polished false nails while holding cell phones and the debt keeps rising. The subject was the debt crisis stemming from student loans, high housing costs and stagnant wages and salaries for too many job categories. People are hiding their income from others out of shame. Many people believe their hard work and determination should solve their problems. Marxist sociologists would call this situation “false consciousness.” The problem is not stemming from not knowing what to do or not putting in enough effort. Rather, it is the economic system and those that run that system. The six people invited to shed light on this situation included Natalia Abrams, Executive Director of Student Crisis; Dr. Guillermina Jasso, Professor of Sociology, Silver Professor of Arts and Sciences, New York University; Dr. L. Toni Lows, Founder and President of Liberation Health Strategies and former Chair of SEIU Health Care; Helaire Olen, Author and Journalist at the Washington Post, Personal Finance; Dr. Jonas Shaende, Chief Economist at the Fiscal Policy Institute; and J. Phillip Thompson, NYC Deputy Mayor for Strategic Policy Initiatives. Dr. Guillermina Jasso, in wise owl form, offered a series of suggestions to affect our thinking and behavior rather than give socioeconomic facts and figures based on the logic model, “If you do X, then equality will be reduced.” The more voters the better. Secret ballots are very important. Too often, how we spend enriches the wealthy. Try not to assess ourselves by our net worth, but by other human qualities. There is an old idea that if you don’t value the things the powerful value, then they lose their value. Be mindful about where and what we spend money on. One female audience member posed a question about the Universal Basic Income (UBI). UBI is a regular allotment that would be given to every resident which would keep households above the poverty level. The woman and Brian Vines acknowledged that people such as Dr. Martin L. King, Richard
Nixon and Elon Musk have been in favor of it. To put things into perspective, Dr. Jonas Shaende asked, “What kind of problems are we trying to solve?” If some jobs are becoming obsolescent, are there other jobs that require manpower that people can transition to? It is one of the things we can do that involves spending money on the safety net. “What does capitalism look like in 20 years with everyone having a basic income?” J. Phillip Thompson forwarded the importance of learning and understanding the economy. “We are actually a rich country. There is the scarcity myth that underlies our economy; however, household wealth was over $1 trillion in 2018. Poverty is actually a construction because we decided not to share, [although] politicians are saying we don’t have. The economy is actually a social relationship about how we decide how we take care of ourselves. For example, slavery is a human relationship. Another telling remark from Thompson was, “Every time working people decide to come together, wealthy people find racist people like Donald Trump. Race is the divide. The 14th Amendment is now being used to protect corporations. The US Supreme Court says corporations are legal entities with rights.” Natalia Abrams concurred by saying, “As soon as we come together like the Occupy Wall Street Movement, the 1% comes in to shut us down. Once white people are hit with debt and income insufficiency, then these things are problems wanting to be solved. If it could be contained within the communities of color, it is not a crisis. It is a state of being.” Turning to student debt, Abrams remarked, “The college students don’t realize the debt they have incurred. They have been enjoying the party while in school. It is not until they have graduated and away from campus that the reality and weight of the debt falls upon them as they are waking up and seeing their $30, $40 and $100,000 student loan debt.” Dr. Toni Lewis expounded on pay equity. After listening to Brian Vines explain that a white woman earns 86% of what a man earns, a Black woman earns 60% of it, and Latino and indigenous women earn 40% of it, Lewis called for more town halls and meetings with elected officials for free. She stated, “There is money here. It is not scarce. We have to access the pots of money that we have paid into. Brilliance must be valued regardless of color. What is holding us back is the stigma of debt. Rather, we need to understand the history of our economy.” It is Jonas Shaende’s position that, “The most effective indicator of one’s life circumstances is one’s parents’ income.” This is because the family’s income and investments give access to many resources, schools, programs and people of means. Shaende went on to assess the impact of Specialized High Schools. “It is Schools Chancellor Richard Corranza with whom I concur that we shouldn’t be rationing our education. All of our kids are capable. We need to create opportunity for all of our children.” Helaire Olen, Washington Post columnist who writes about personal finances, contended people must push back on the “pulling up from your boot straps” ideation. Rather, Americans ought to own their debts and successes. There are systemic reasons for poverty. For example, it is not until recently that domestic workers got Social Security. Phillip Thompson concurred. He said, “We have to fight for domestic workers to get adequately paid. We have to fight for women.”
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he late Bedford-Stuyvesant-born author John Steptoe’s award-winning children’s books, written more than three decades ago, have powerful relevance in today’s world. Now, three of his classic works, Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters: An African Tale Baby Says and Stevie (written in 1969 when he was 16 and published three years later) were reissued recently. On Saturday, March 30, 11am, Steptoe’s daughter, Bweela, also a writer, will be at the Macon Public Library (361 Lewis Avenue, BK) reading from all three books for which she wrote the forewords. “His books focus on a variety of different life lessons. He wrote and illustrated books that people of color could relate to when there were no children’s books reflecting on the Black Diaspora and the basic life experiences that we all go through.” “All three books can be used in STEM programs; all three focus on nature,” she reflected. In Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters” everything is authentic to Zimbabwe: every plant, animal and structure. My father did a lot of research with this book. A lot of us may never get to go to Zimbabwe, or Africa for that matter; reading this book takes us there. The crown that I wear on my head on the front cover of the book actually is from Japan. Zimbabwe was once a main port where they traded with other countries.
“The Story of Jumping Mouse” is based on a folktale about a mouse who travels throughout the forest giving and receiving gifts from other animals, learning a lesson from each animal and realizing his special gifts during his journey. This is the only book that my father created with the animals as characters. “Mother Crocodile,” an African folktale, is multidimensional in its perspective on history and ecology. On the eve of the 30th Anniversary of his untimely passing at age 38, Steptoe’s children, daughter Bweela - one of the models for many of his books, and his son, Javaka, the award-winning writer and illustrator, continue promoting his legacy--will read and sign books at different events throughout New York City, including Greenlight Bookstore on Fulton Street (4/20), Strand Bookstore in Greenwich Village (4/7) and Sisters Uptown Bookstore in Harlem (5/4). Steptoe, Sr. was Bweela Steptoe, artist and clothing designer, the illustrator of 16 books, of and model for her father's classic, which he wrote ten. For more "Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters: information, visit: bweelastepAn African Tale." toe.com. (bg)
2ND ANNUAL
Date: Saturday, March 23, 2019 Location: M.S. 57 / Global Finance H.S. Campus 125 Stuyvesant Avenue (enter on Lafayette Avenue) Brooklyn, NY 11221 Time: 10:30 a.m.—2:00 p.m.
“60 minute workshops that are right for your mind, body, and soul” Continental Breakfast & Snacks Provided
Table Vendors, Raffles & Giveaways Childcare Provided for Children Ages 4-10
District 16
R ah e sh a Amo n -H a r ri son, Sup er int end ent 1010 La fa ye t t e Ave nu e | Br oo kl yn, N Y 1122 1 P hone (718) 574 - 2834 | F a x: (718 ) 453 - 1048
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In Pursuit of Excellence
Photo: Courtesy MEC School of Science, Health and Technology
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n astronaut. A doctor. A teacher. A lawyer. A mathematician. A psychologist. A nurse. An artist. These were some of the responses from middle and high school students to the question posed by a professor at Medgar Evers College’s School of Science, Health and Technology, last Saturday: What do you want to be when you grow up? Within the next 10 years all professions will interface with computer technology and the sciences, those students were advised. The acquisition of such knowledge has a practical outcome, too. It possibly can mean the difference between having a $15 per hour job and a $150K to start profession. At Medgar Evers College, science educators are breathing life into the dreams of young people from Central and East
Brooklyn by activating their minds through critical thinking and intellectual curiosity. On March 9, students began a 10-week Saturday intensive course in Geospatial Technology. It’s a first step into the future for them and the communities in which they live, Dr. Terrence Blackman, dean of the school, told Our Time Press. It is designed to expand their knowledge in such areas as Nanosatellite spacecraft design, coding, producing select/targeted products via 3D printers and more. Rocket science has never been more fascinating, interesting and accessible because of the way MEC professors are teaching it. The key, Dr. Shermane Austin told Our Time Press, is compassion, “an element missing from the science instruction equation far too long.”
Dean Blackman and Dr. Christopher Blaszcczak Boxe co-developed the program grant with Professor Sunil Bhaskaran, founding director, BCC Geospatial energy, CUNY CRED Institute. They agree with Dr. Austin. Blackman noted that in a few years, men and women will be on Mars -- some to set up homesteads and never to return to Earth. How they get there, if they want to live there, how they will survive – will be up to young people like those gathered on the steps of the School of Science Health and Technology building. “There will be nearly two million jobs in the sciences in a few years,” said Natural, a Medgar Science school graduate, who is a teacher in the program. “And NASA, Google and other places are waiting for them. We MEC professors want to get them ready,”
said Boxe. “The first day of their future is today.” As we reported last week, the MEC science professors have turned their sights also on sending knowledge to the neighborhoods where these young people live. “While we look forward to inspiring these young men and women to becoming the best they can be,” Dr Dereck Skeete told us, “we also want to contribute to informing their communities about the work going on in the sciences, so our stories can be told.” It does not stop this Spring. Dr. Austin has obtained a grant for a summer program. Next month, her MEC college students will launch a balloon into the stratosphere from a site under the stars in Vermont. We will talk more about this in the April 4 issue. (BG)
Mrs. Rogers’ Milestone
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ALVIS ROGERS CELEBRATES 100TH BIRTHDAY
n Saturday, April 13, 2019, Ms. Alvis Rogers will celebrate her 100th Birthday with family and friends in New York City. Born April 14, 1919 in Mississippi, she is the oldest of six siblings; two of whom are still living in Detroit where Ms. Rogers grew up. When Ms. Rogers was an infant, her dad, learning he might be lynched in Mississippi, dressed as a woman and fled to Detroit leaving behind his wife and two young children. In Detroit, he found a job at Ford Motor Company for a weekly salary of $5. He eventually saved enough money to bring his wife and two young children to Detroit. Ms. Rogers’ mom travels from Mississippi to Detroit on a “segregated” train with two young children was not easy. The “colored section” had no luggage racks so suitcases had to be crammed under your seat, the bathroom was small with little or no toilet paper and soap and, of course, there was no food or water. Additionally, Ms. Rogers’ mom could not buy a one-way ticket for her trip to Detroit but rather was forced to get off the train at every stop to buy a ticket. But life in Detroit was fairly good for Ms. Rogers and her family. Upon graduation from high school, Ms. Rogers was encouraged by her dad to take a job at
Ford Motor Company, (1920)--affording her the but after a few months right to vote, including she realized a factory job three very special elecwas not the career for her, tions: Shirley Chisholm so she quit and traveled (1968), the first Africanalone to New York City American woman where she has enjoyed a elected to Congress from wonderful life for nearly Brooklyn, New York; 80 years. Mayor David Dinkins Full of adventure, (1990), the 106th Mayor almost immediately of New York and the first upon her arrival in the African-American elected “big city,” she found to serve as Mayor of New both employment as York City and the votes of a bookkeeper and an which she was most proud apartment in Harlem to cast; President Barack - she was and still is Obama (2008-2016), the fearless. Throughout her first African-American to career as a bookkeeper, serve as President of these she held only two jobs United States. and will tell you, “Back Ms. Rogers loves in the day, there were no New York City – the calculators or computers, Alvis Rogers, at 98. energy, the culture, the only trusty, manual addvibrancy and all it has to ing machines.” Her last employer plans to offer, all of which she takes full advantage attend the celebration. racing around town in her private limousine She has survived the Great Depression, (NYC’s Access-A-Ride). On any given day, Jim Crow, the passage of the Civil Rights Act you might find her at Bed, Bath and Beyond (1964) and the Voting Rights Act (1965), ex- looking for the latest gadgets, Chico or perienced the passage of the 19th Amendment Talbots shopping for the latest fashions and
before her beloved Lord & Taylor closed, she almost always trotted across 5th Avenue after her standing Wednesday hair appointment. Oh, yes, she is quite stylish – always beautifully groomed. Alvis declares that there is no other place she could live the independent life she enjoys – there is no place like New York. While she has no living peers, she has lots of “young” friends; she is healthy and more than capable of taking care of herself. She lives alone, is an avid reader, stays up on current events, enjoys a good margarita, loves to dine out with friends, enjoys entertaining friends and takes care of all her personal, medical and financial needs. At almost 100 years young, she has no plans to leave her beloved New York. During her lifetime, Ms. Rogers has been identified as “colored,” “Black” and now “African-American.” When asked about these titles she quoted Zora Neale Hurston: “The world is to the strong, regardless of a little pigmentation--more of less”. Ms. Rogers is delightfully vibrant, strong, proud, spirited and healthy who brings so much joy to all who know and love her. Like Sadie Delaney (Having Our Say), Ms. Rogers’ motto is: “Life is short, it’s up to you to make it sweet.”
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Black Women Confronting Racism, Overcoming Through the Arts
arch Women’s History month holds special meaning in Black history: Tubman died in 1910 in Auburn, NY; Dorothy Height was born two years later in Richmond, Virginia. In 1956, the great Civil Rights strategist Diane Nash, a founding member of SNCC, didn’t plan for a peace march over the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Ala., to turn bloody on March 7th. But it did. Over the issue of Black people’s quest for Voting Rights. Last month, J.E. Franklin, the matriarch of Black playwriting, invited us to attend this month’s production of her new groundbreaking play, “Race-Aid.” The invitation comes on the eve of the 50th anniversary of her compelling, “Black Girl,” ahead of its time, and considered the progenitor of the current Black Girl movements in its exploration of the issues and experiences of young womanhood. The timeless Ms. Franklin, a youthful and vibrant 81, marches on with her latest play, designed to change the conversation on racism. Following is the press release from her office. A review will be featured in Our Time Press in the future. Last week, Our Time Press published an excerpt from Dr. Gloria Van Scott’s new memoir. The passage authored by Melony McGant was presented as Ode to Glory. It celebrated the great friendship of Dr. Glory and her mentor, dance legend Katherine Dunham. This week we’re presenting another compelling section from her memoir. At the time of Dr. Scott’s “coming of age” in 1955, her cousin Emmett Louis Till, at 14, was brutally murdered. Artists like dancer Dr. Glory and playwright Franklin have always, in the words of Dr. Glory, “translated anger and grief into passions, and praised the transformative power of art as a tool to combat the ugliness of prejudice. Below, Dr. Glory and Ms. Franklin.
In Memory of Daisy Bates and Her Mother
Mamie Till mourns her son, Emmett Louise Till, kidnapped at gunpoint from his great-uncle’s house in Money, Mississippi, August 1956 and brutally beaten and lynched
For My Cousin, Emmett Till Dear Emmett, More than sixty years later and I am still looking for answers, so I am writing this missive to you and sending it out into the universe. I’m wondering if, on the other side of life, there is a beautiful field of flowers that has sections divided up according to the way that a person lived. If so, you, I am sure, are where the fourteen-year-old Archangels live. Fourteen—that’s how old you were on August 28, 1955, when your mother Mamie called to tell her cousin, my mother, that you weren’t coming home to Chicago from your vacation. You had been killed by racists while visiting family in Sunflower County, Mississippi. We were seated around our dining room table in Chicago when my mother told me of your death. I stood up from the table, looked at her and crystallized my gaze, and then turned and walked out of the room without saying a word. My mind couldn’t take in the trauma and shock of that moment. I let the news slide into a safe holding space, and
Carolyn Bryant, who claimed Emmett Till whistled at her, watches court proceedings that acquitted her husband, Roy, one of the two men who beat, shot and disfigured the teenager. Roy Bryant admitted he and his half-brother killed Till. Carolyn admitted she lied before her death that is where the horror of your death stayed for decades. In 2017, the newspapers printed a story about an artist, Dana Schultz, who had drawn a painting of the casket in which you took your final rest. Some people protested the displaying of this picture in the Whitney Museum, but, for me, the art was what broke down the walls of the safe space I’d carved out decades before. As I sat that morning reading about the painting in the New York Times, time seemed to slow and the silence in my apartment suddenly seemed deafening, and sixty-two years of held-back tears made their way down my cheeks in a pilgrimage that startled me. My immediate thoughts went to Carolyn Bryant, the woman who had lied about you and set the wheels in motion that caused your death. -Dr. Glory Van Scott
Daisy Lee Gatson Bates
Daisy Lee Gatson Bates (November 11, 1914 – November 4, 1999),an American Civil Rights, activist, co- publisher and co-founder of the Arkansas Press Weekly, journalist, and lecturer who played a leading role in the Little Rock Integration Crisis of 1957. Bates grew up in southern Arkansas in the small sawmill town of Huttig. Bates was born in a shotgun house to her father, Hezakiah Gatson, a lumber grader, and mother Millie Riley. After the murder of her mother, Daisy was handed off to her father’s
close friends, Orlee Smith, a World War I veteran, and Susie Smith. Daisy never saw her biological father after that. In The Death of My Mother, Bates recounted learning at eight years old, of her birth mother being first raped, then murdered, by three local white men who then dropped her body into a pond. Knowing that nothing was ever done about it fueled her anger. Her adoptive father told her the killers were never found due to the lack of devotion to the case from the police.
Race-Aid: J.E. Franklin’s New Play Crosses Boundaries to Deliver Balm for Racism’s Scars Have you grown weary of the race-rhetoric which passes for scholarship in the Institutional White-Race system? If so, Race-Aid is available! Playwright J. E. Franklin, whose Drama Desk Award-winning play “Black Girl,” was directed by Shauneille Perry in 1971 and by Ossie Davis, the following year as a feature ➔➔ Continued on page 9
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Black Women ➔➔ Continued from page 8 film for Hollywood, has created The Race-Aid Project, to take us beyond the rhetoric, with an attractive dialogue Model which fuses art and scholarship. The Race-Aid Project was introduced in 2016, by the International Communications Association with the presentation of “One Drop: Dead or Alive,” three Race-themed plays written by Miss Franklin, about real-life people caught up in the intrigues of America’s blood-fraction laws, which establish guidelines for who is “white,” and for how one becomes “un-white.” Along with a play, Franklin includes Spoken Word, visual art and music, to “prep” the audience for sober conversation. With a coveted Award from the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone (UMEZ) and the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council (LMCC), the Race-Aid Project will continue to be presented on the last Sunday of each month throughout 2019. So how does The Race Aid Project differ from other dialogue models on Race? First, according to J.E. Franklin’s account of her play, The Race-Aid Project collapses all the “stock” definitions of The Institutional White-Race system. Recognizing that flawed definitions have led to flawed strategies,
J. E. Franklin Franklin has designed the Race-Aid Model to re-frame our understanding of Race. By re-setting the definition of The Institutional White-Race system, boundaries are established around the term to include what belongs to it and exclude what does not, so as to prevent overlap or confusion. In so doing, the focus shifts automatically from the fallout—presented to us in the form of endless encounters, injustices and interactions of the racial kind—to the core system, with its complex, experiential machinery, methodically devised by The Church and installed in all the nation’s organs, to induce into the
world an “immaculate” species, between Man and God, on Aristotle’s “Great Chain of Being.” Second, through the use of a skilled facilitator and structured questions connected to the ideas reflected in the art forms presented, the dialogue is steered away from rhetoric and confrontation. Each presentation is evaluated through written responses from the audience. Here are a few of those responses: “Very intriguing conversation with in-depth answers drawn from intellects.” “The word race should be eliminated from the 2020 census and changed to ethnicity or ethnic.” “Initially, I thought I understood the one-drop theory, but now I know I need to read more up on it.” The Race Aid offering for this month will be “Nana Bessie’s Big Question,” the story of a young woman’s efforts to help her great-grandmother answer a haunting question of the racial kind. A sit-down meal follows the presentation. “Nana Bessie’s Big Question” will be directed by Jeannine FosterMcKelvia, and will be presented on Sunday, March 31, 2019, 3 p.m., at The Dwyer, located at 258 St. Nicholas Avenue at 123rd Street, in Harlem. For information, contact: thedwyercc@ gmail.com, visit theraceaidproject.com or call (212) 222-3060.
Journalist Joy-Ann Reid, MSNBC
Race-Women, Action Women, at Sharpton’s Annual Network Convention, April 2-6 at Sheraton Journalist/MSNBC Anchorwoman Joy Reid, gospel great Shirley Caesar, non-profit leader Jennifer Jones-Austin, NAN official Dominique Sharpton Bright, and political leaders Valerie Jarrett, Elizabeth Warren and Alexandra OcasioCortez are among the dynamic women participating in the National Action Network’s 2019 Annual Convention at The Times Square Sheraton, April 2-6. For more information, www.nationalactionnetwork.net
evening with saxophonist and bandleader Lakecia Benjamin presenting “A Woman’s Perspective, We March On” as a part of her “A Women’s Perspective” series, paying special tribute to Aretha Franklin, Nancy Wilson and Nina Simone. Tickets at Eventbrite.
Tuesday, March 19th WE WANT TO DO MORE THAN SURVIVE,
Anu Prestonia Philosopher Myisha Cherry
Philosopher Devonya N. Havis
Saturday, March 16th BLACK WOMEN PHILOSOPHER’S CONFERENCE, DAY TWO CUNY Graduate Center 9:30am-7pm FREE. What does a philosopher look like? Join brilliant women who will present on: Race, Pain Management,
and Epistemic Credibility, Disappearing Black People through Failures of White Empathy and Breaking Rules through Rage, Blues alchemy and the Ethics of Refusal, etc. RSVP at https://bit.ly/2SFVpGG
Sunday, March 17th
women on the rise and on the grind. On the lineup are Anu Prestonia, (Anu Essentials and Khamit Kinks), Amelia Moore (Buzz Builder Consulting), Dr. Rhonda Cambridge-Phillip (Food Is Your Medicine), Robin Sokoloff (Town Stages and Sokoloff Arts), Jeanne Marie Boes (Artist), Dr. Maha Nasrallah-Babenko (Bond Better), and Raquel Olmo (Play4Promise) and others. Tickets at www.mldigitalart. com/we-event.html.
Monday, March 18th
A DAY OF WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
SALUTE TO WOMEN IN JAZZ
Town Stages, 221 West Broadway, Manhattan, $35. 9:30am-3:30pm.$35 Celebrating the diverse voices and insights of
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, 515 Malcolm X Blvd., Manhattan, 7-9pm, $35. Join us for a special
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, 515 Malcolm X Blvd., Manhattan, 6-8pm FREE. Join the abolitionist movement to imagine radical new ways of teaching and organizing for social change. Dr. Love will be joined in discussion by Yolanda Sealey-Ruiz, associate professor of English education at Teachers College, and Genevieve DeBose Akinnagbe, a former New York City Public School teacher. RSVP at Eventbrite.
Monday, March 25th 21ST CENTURY/NEW AFRICAN AND AFRICAN DIASPORA WRITINGS AND ARTS: CARIBBEAN NYU Global Center for Academic and Spiritual Life, 238 Thompson St., 5th Fl., 6-8pm, FREE. Join in a discussion with artist Renee Cox; Vanessa Pérez Rosario (Modern Languages and Literatures, Brooklyn College); Rosie Gordon-Wal➔➔ Continued on page 15
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House Chair Waters leads charge to return consumer protection to CFPB
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n March 7, the House Financial Services Committee, chaired by Congresswoman Maxine Waters, marked the first time that the new Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) appeared for a hearing in this capacity. Entitled “Putting Consumers First: A Semi-Annual Review of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau,” the session is the first of two mandated by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Financial Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Twice a year, CFPB’s Director must report to each chamber of Congress. But before the hearing, other actions signaled that Director Kathy Kraninger would likely be forced to defend both the bureau’s actions and inactions that occurred at the hands of Trump political appointees. Under Mick Mulvaney, CFPB’s former Acting Director, a series of actions turned the agency’s focus away from consumers, regulation and enforcement to make its policies and structure more favorable to deregulation and business. One day before the hearing, Congresswoman Waters and other majority members of the Financial Services Committee held a news conference to announce the reintroduction of the Consumers First Act. Initially filed in 2018 by Waters, the 2019 version has the same intent: to block and reverse the Trump Administration’s anti-consumer agenda. This year, Waters has the support of co-sponsoring lawmakers representing 19 states as diverse as California, Florida, Michigan, North Carolina and Virginia. Another boost - the bill is also
By Charlene Crowell
supported by 51 consumer, civil rights and labor advocates. “The bill reverses the harmful structural changes Mulvaney and his deputies made to damage the agency one-by-one,” said Chairwoman Waters at the news conference. “We will be asking all of the questions that our members deem necessary to find out whether or not she is on the road to restoring much of the damage that was done by Mr. Mulvaney.” Ohio’s Rep. Joyce Beatty, one of the bill’s co-sponsors, took direct aim at the bureau’s changed perspective on payday lending adding, “Under Trump’s CFPB Director Mulvaney, the CFPB has reduced transparency and accountability, weakened enforcement… and became more interested in helping payday lenders who allegedly misled consumers and charged exorbitantly high interest rates, rather than protecting the American consumers they were sworn to serve.” In response, consumer, clergy and civil rights advocates received updated information from the Center for Responsible Lending that pinpoints state by state, how current triple-digit interest rates (APRs) continue to harm consumers across the country. Regardless of a state’s population size or average incomes, the cost of borrowing payday loans remains a debt trap. Further, in states where these loans remain legal, lenders continue to squeeze billions of dollars of fees from borrowers whose annual average earnings are $22,500. Although Director Kraninger announced a plan to suspend the payday rule, changes
Congresswoman Maxine Waters in how the bureau operated with regard to these lenders began under Mulvaney. While at CFPB, he urged Congress to repeal the rule and joined a lawsuit brought by a payday lender that sought to indefinitely suspend the rule. Earlier and as a member of Congress representing South Carolina, Mulvaney opposed the idea of creating the CFPB and counted payday lenders among his top donors. The 2017 payday rule was promulgated after five years of hearings from a variety of stakeholders and everyday citizens. There was also extensive research and a public
comment period where literally thousands of statements documented this financial exploitation wrought by payday loans. “Eliminating this protection is plain and simple a huge gift to predatory lenders so they can keep borrowers trapped in unaffordable debt with interest rates exceeding 300 percent,” concluded Diane Standaert, a CRL EVP and Director of State Policy. Charlene Crowell is the Center for Responsible Lending’s Communications Deputy Director. She can be reached at Charlene.crowell@responsiblelending. org.
Proposed Development Project Challenged by Cumbo
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Double-duties: Councilwoman Laurie Cumbo, seen here with her son Prince at Weeksville last Saturday (March 9), is growing a future as she builds her community. (Photo: Bernice Green)
public scoping meeting on the 960 Franklin Avenue Rezoning, (also known as the Spice Factory), took place on Tuesday, March 12, 2019 at 1:00 PM at the New York City Department of City Planning, City Planning Commission Hearing Room. Below is City Council Majority Leader’s testimony is below: Whether it’s an 80-story tower on Flatbush Avenue or a private equity firm purchasing an entire portfolio of historic buildings in Bed-Stuy, real estate development pressure in my district seems to increase by the day, threatening to transform our neighborhoods into a cookie-cutter luxury product unrecognizable to longtime Brooklyn residents and familiar only to those living in Anytown, USA. Market-rate apartments are priced far above what most community residents can pay and sometimes even the so-called “affordable” housing has rents over $2,000 a month. And all of this new development has a cumulative impact, placing increasing stress on our infrastructure – our schools, our parks, our subways, our roads, our sewage lines, and everything else. The current pattern of real estate investment and development in Central Brooklyn is clearly not serving our existing communities in an inclusive and holistic way. At first impression, a project that proposes “50 percent affordable housing” and touts 100% union labor and union financing sounds like a much-needed improvement. And while these commitments to good jobs with livable wages both during and postconstruction cannot be overlooked, we are also faced with Downtown Brooklyn-sized towers overshadowing the Brooklyn Botanic Garden and Prospect Park, shattering all precedent for height and scale. This proposal, developed with zero community consultation or input, may need a
full reset, not just tinkering around the edges. But for now, I’ll go through point by point on my numerous areas of deep concern.
Height and Shadows The large soon-to-be vacant “Spice Factory” does indeed represent an opportunity to bring much needed truly affordable housing to Crown Heights. But that should not give a developer carte blanche to propose 40-story downtown-style glass towers in the middle of this community. While there is some precedent in Tivoli Towers and the Ebbets Field apartments for building larger towers to bring affordable housing to this part of Crown Heights, the 960 Franklin proposal would rise far above even these buildings. Indeed, there is no precedent for zoning higher than R8 anywhere outside Downtown Brooklyn. In December, I approved a rezoning just north of this site to R8X, allowing 17 stories roughly in line with the surrounding zoning and bringing an extra nearly 100 units of deeply affordable housing beyond the developer’s MIH at an included non-profit development site. Comparing this proposal to that one is apples and oranges. To even consider a development of this size and scale outside of Downtown Brooklyn, the public benefits would have to be massive and the site uniquely appropriate. This location immediately to the east of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden’s conservatory greenhouses may actually be an inappropriate location for a development of this size. Let me be perfectly clear – I will not support any proposal that would substantively harm the operations of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. The garden’s conservatory greenhouses and nursery are a ➔➔ Continued on page 15
VOL. 23 NO. 11
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OUR TIME PRESS 14-20 March, 2019
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y now, it has been well-documented on just how long and bad the New York Giants regular season was after having just won 5 games and 3 the year before. Although the team did not have crazy money to spend in free agency this year, the thought for Giants fans is that management would take the necessary steps to improve the team around wide receiver Odell Beckham, Jr. and running back Saquon Barkley. Since the free agent legal tampering has begun this week, the Giants organization have given Giants fans a reason to scratch their heads. Earlier this week, the Giants have decided to trade their top pass rusher Olivier Vernon to the Cleveland Browns. Vernon led the team in sacks during his time with the team. Then the team decided that they would not be bringing back their talented Pro Bowl
safety Landon Collins. Collins has now signed a 5-year/$84 million deal with the rival Washington Redskins. With those moves already made by the team, they made another one this past Tuesday evening that sent shock waves throughout the NFL. The team has decided to trade their best player, Odell Beckham, Jr., to the Browns. In his 5 years with the team, Beckham, Jr. has established himself as one of the best players at his position in all of football. With those moves now official, the big question will be what made them press the restart button on the team. Beckham, Jr. was just a year in from a 5-year/$95 million-dollar deal. They just got a first and third round pick and safety Jabril Peppers in the trade, which does not seem to be equivalent to the caliber player and talent that Beckham, Jr. possesses. There were other needs they could have addressed but it is now clear the organization has decided to rebuild for the future. The Giants now have the No. 6 and 17th picks in next month’s draft
and with quarterback Eli Manning towards the end of his illustrious career, you would think the team would draft at quarterback to ensure they will actually have one moving forward. This week alone indicates you just don’t know what the Giants organization is really up to. Sports Notes: (Football) BREAKING NEWS! As we go to press, news came out early Wednesday morning that the New York Jets have signed running back Le’Veon Bell to a 4-year/$52 million deal. Bell was considered the best free agent on the market this year. Eddie’s Question of the Week: With so much going on for New York football, I have two questions for the Our Time Press universe. What do we think about the Giants deciding to trade Odell Beckham, Jr.? With recent injuries/ suspension and sitting out a year, is the risk worth the Jets deciding to sign Le’Veon Bell? E-mail me at Castroeddie714@gmail.com and let’s have the conversation.
NYC Mayor abandons $773 million ‘school improvement’ plan: We all abandon the children it purported to help
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ne could imagine NYC’s Black and Latino elected, appointed, civic and religious leaders on hearing this news would be U-hauling the “no mas confidence” guillotines over to City Hall. After all, the children most hurt by this debacle look a lot like them! Well, we’ll see what happens. Mayoral Control of Schools promised to remove the deleterious stench of politics from public education. But the truth is that “politics” as a corrupting operating principle in our public-school systems has, in fact, been “supersized” under mayoral control, leaving the least politically organized parents in the place they have always been, ignored and underserved. If elected school boards were problematic (and they were), the solution was surely not to consolidate public education’s political machinations into the hands of the city’s biggest politician. *The $773 million tragedy... Tragedy #1: Large numbers of children were irreversibly educationally harmed. Tragedy #2: Lots of money was wasted to produce so little. Tragedy #3: We already know (and have known for years) everything we need to know about radically transforming failing schools and dramatically raising student academic achievement scores for Title 1 (poor) students (see Community School District 29, Queens 2000-2003). The present political/economics of public education’s “school
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reform-improvement” schemes are about putting millions into the pockets of smooth-talking, “closing the gap” edupreneurs who scavenge-hunt underperforming school districts. And yet in city after city, across this nation, the only “gaps” they seem to close are the ones that exist in their bank accounts. It’s about the quality of instruction! We know it has always been about the quality of instruction. Our “weakest” students need our most effective, experienced and efficacious teachers. Struggling schools can’t support both high numbers of struggling (often inexperienced) teachers and struggling students; and asking them to do so is being either professionally cynical or pedagogically uninformed. Further, Title 1 schools will really struggle to “consistently” raise student academic achievement if we don’t invest in making those schools full health, counseling and social services support schools. Public schools unfortunately are structured on the premise that children can only be properly educated if they have the “right” parents. A parent desperately wanting their child to succeed but is lacking “parent-push” and “best practices” parenting skills; parents without the information on how to “maneuver” their child through the system’s undermining/ learning “minefields;” the children of these parents can only achieve academically by way of some school-level, powerful intervening
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force that stands up and fights for these students. To have the best chance of succeeding, struggling students must attend a school where the adults in the building essentially step in and serve as that “pushy,” “mindfully maneuvering,” knowledgeable, advocating parent. Invest and Focus on the Principalship! We know principals play a critical role in the success or failure of a school. An effective principal can make a school achieve at its “personal best” even with a roster of not a lot of “stellar” teachers. Conversely, an ineffective principal can hinder a school’s success even though the staff consists of a majority of good teachers. To hold principals accountable, we need to establish some very clear and high leadership standards that go beyond the principal’s job description. As a superintendent, I saw the “unofficial rubrics” and “real job requirements” of the “effective principal” expose the school leadership gaps between principals who led demographically similar schools. Principals can do a lot more if we offer them more professional support. Acquiring a principal’s license is one thing, being a good principal is quite another. Principals need the coaching and supervision of superintendents who themselves were excellent principals. The principalship is (literally) a lonely professional journey, therefore, principals need ➔➔ Continued on page 14
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LEGAL NOTICES NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF KINGS E*TRADE BANK, Plaintiff AGAINST David Rudy; et al., Defendant(s) Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly dated January 14, 2019 I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street, Room 224, Brooklyn, NY 11201 on April 11, 2019 at 2:30PM, premises known as 702 Ave R, Brooklyn, NY 11223. 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 6683 Lot 1. Approximate amount of judgment $230,131.93 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index# 514581/2015. Jack Segal, Esq., Referee Shapiro, DiCaro & Barak, LLC Attorney(s) for the Plaintiff 175 Mile Crossing Boulevard Rochester, New York 14624 (877) 430-4792 Dated: February 5, 2019 61347 SUPPLEMENTAL SUMMONS SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF KINGS INDEX NO. 509464/2018 Plaintiff designates KINGS as the place of trial situs of the real property Mortgaged Premises: 93 LOTT STREET BROOKLYN, NY 11226 Block: 5128 Lot: 40 _OCWEN LOAN SERVICING, LLC, Plaintiff, vs. DENISE MALTAY 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; MICHAEL CULLEY; ARROW FINANCIAL SERVICES, LLC; PALISADES COLLECTION, LLC; CAPITAL ONE BANK (USA), NATIONAL ASSOCIATION; NEW YORK CITY PARKING VIOLATIONS BUREAU, FRANK ROBINSON, JUNIOR JACKSON, ED CUMMINGS, THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, “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 or claiming an interest in or lien upon the Subject Property described in the Complaint, Defendants.___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 $170,246.00 and interest, recorded on July 24, 1995, at Liber 3550 Page 2292, of the Public Records of KINGS County, New York, covering premises known as 93 LOTT STREET BROOKLYN, NY 11226. 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: Matthew Ingber, Esq. 900 Merchants Concourse, Suite 310 Westbury, NY 11590 516-280-7675 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF ROCKLAND _INDEX NO. 031486/2014 NAT I O N S TA R M O RT G AG E LLC, Plaintiff, Plaintiff designates ROCKLAND as the place of trial situs of the real property vs. ROCKLAND COUNTY COMMISSIONER OF FINANCE, AS THE LIMITED ADMINISTRATOR OF THE ESTATE OF EDWARD JOSEPH DETORRE A/K/A EDWARD DETORRE; LOUIS MAIO III, INDIVIDUALLY, AND AS THE ADMINISTRATOR OF THE ESTATE OF PATRICIA DETORRE A/K/A PATRICIA ANN DETORRE; DANIELLE MAIO, AS HEIR AND DISTRIBUTEE OF THE ESTATE OF PATRICIA DETORRE A/K/A PATRICIA ANN DETORRE, HEIR AND DISTRIBUTEE OF THE ESTATE OF EDWARD JOSEPH DETORRE A/K/A EDWARD DETORRE; if living, and if she be dead, any and all persons unknown to plaintiff, claiming, or who may claim to have an interest in, or general or specific lien upon the real property described in this action; 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; NICHOLAS MAIO, AS HEIR AND DISTRIBUTEE OF THE ESTATE OF PATRICIA DETORRE A/K/A PATRICIA ANN DETORRE, HEIR AND DISTRIBUTEE OF THE ESTATE OF EDWARD JOSEPH DETORRE A/K/A EDWARD DETORRE; if living, and if 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.; NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF TAXATION AND FINANCE; UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, “JOHN DOE”, said name being fictitious, it being the intention of Plaintiff to designate any and all occupants of premises being foreclosed herein, and any parties, corporation or entities, if any, having or claiming and interest or lien upon the mortgaged premises, Defendants._ SUPPLEMENTAL SUMMONS Mortgaged Premises: 17A CAMP HILL ROAD POMONA, NY 10970 Section: 33.13 Block: 1 Lot: 41 To the abovenamed 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 Consolidation and/or Modified Mortgage to secure the sum of $420,442.62 and interest, covering premises known as 17A CAMP HILL ROAD POMONA, NY 10970. 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. ROCKLAND 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: DYZIO J. GUZIEROWICZ, ESQ. 900 Merchants Concourse, Suite 310 Westbury, NY 11590 516-280-7675 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK - COUNTY OF KINGS DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONAL TRUST COMPANY, AS TRUSTEE FOR SOUNDVIEW HOME LOAN
VOL. 23 NO. 11 TRUST 2006-OPT3, ASSET-BACKED CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2006-OPT3, V. VALERIE L. WILLIAMS, ET AL. NOTICE OF SALE NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN pursuant to a Final Judgment of Foreclosure dated January 14, 2019, and entered in the Office of the Clerk of the County of Kings, wherein DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONAL TRUST COMPANY, AS TRUSTEE FOR SOUNDVIEW HOME LOAN TRUST 2006OPT3, ASSET-BACKED CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2006-OPT3 is the Plaintiff and VALERIE L. WILLIAMS, 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 April 11, 2019 at 2:30PM, premises known as 8614 AVENUE L, APARTMENT 404, BROOKLYN, NY 11236: Block 8065, Lot 1016: THE CONDOMINIUM UNIT (HEREINAFTER REFERRED TO AS THE “UNIT”) KNOWN AS UNIT 404 IN THE BUILDING (THE “BUILDING”) KNOWN AS THE ROCHELLE COURT CONDOMINIUM AND BY STREET NUMBER 8614 AVENUE L, IN THE BOROUGH OF BROOKLYN, CITY AND STATE OF NEW YORK TOGETHER WITH AN UNDIVIDED 3.4744% INTEREST IN THE COMMON ELEMENTS ALL THAT CERTAIN LOT, PIECE OR PARCEL OF LAND, 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 # 514448/2017. Helene Blank, Esq. Referee. RAS Boriskin, LLC 900 Merchants Concourse, Suite 310, Westbury, New York 11590, Attorneys for Plaintiff. 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 April 11, 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. SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF KINGS STATE OF NEW YORK MORTGAGE AGENCY, Plaintiff -against- DENISE DRAXDORF AS ADMINISTRATRIX OF THE ESTATE OF ROBERT DRAXDORF A/K/A ROBERT JOHN DRAXDORF A/K/A ROBERT J. DRAXDORF, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered ➔➔ Continued on page 13
VOL. 23 NO. 11
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OUR TIME PRESS 14-20 March, 2019
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New York County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it 55 Meadow Street, Brooklyn, NY 11206. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Chef Simi, LLC filed Arts. of Org. with the SSNY on 11/26/2018. 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 Chef Simi LLC 720 E. 93rd Street, Brooklyn, NY 11236. Purpose: any lawful act.
NAMES CHANGES Notice is hereby given that an Order entered by the Civil Court, Kings County on the March 4, 2019 bearing Index Number NC-000314-19/KI a copy of which may be examined at the office of the clerk, located at 141 Livingston Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201, grants me the right to assume the name of PENINA RUTH GOLD. My present name is PINNY GOLD FKA PINCHOS GOLDBERG. My present address is in Brooklyn New York. Notice is hereby given that an Order entered by the Civil Court,
Kings County on the March 4th, 2019 bearing Index Number NC-000317-19/ KI a copy of which may be examined at the office of the clerk, located at 141 Livingston Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201, grants me the right to assume the name of EMILY JOSEPH. My present name is EMILY JOSEPH KLOPPENBURG AKA EMILY KLOPPENBURG AKA EMILY J KLOPPENBURG. My present address is in Brooklyn, New York. My place of birth is Manhattan, NY. The month and year of my birth is April 1989.
LEGAL NOTICES ➔➔ Continued from page 12 herein on February 13, 2019, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the Kings County Courthouse 360 Adams Street, Room 224, Brooklyn, NY on April 11, 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 and designated as Block 6912 and Lot 70. Said premises known as 2656 MILL ROAD, BROOKLYN, NY Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale. We are a debt collector attempting to collect a debt. Any information obtained will be used for that purpose. Index Number 524570/2017. PHILIP KAMARAS, ESQ., Referee STAGG, TERENZI, CONFUSIONE & WABNIK, LLP Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 401 Franklin Avenue, Suite 300, Garden City, NY 11530 NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT KINGS COUNTY U.S. BANK NA SUCCESSOR TRUSTEE TO BANK OF AMERICA NA SUCCESSOR IN INTEREST TO LASALLE BANK NA ON BEHALF OF THE HOLDERS OF THE WAMU MORTGAGE PASS-THROUGH CERTIFICATES SERIES 2005-AR 15, Plaintiff against ALON FISCHER, et al Defendants Attorney for Plaintiff(s) Fein Such & Crane, LLP, 1400 Old Country Road, Suite C103, Westbury, NY 11590 Attorney (s) for Plaintiff (s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered September 19, 2018, I will sell at public auction to the highest bidder at the Kings
County Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street, Room 224, Brooklyn, NY 11201 on April 4, 2019 at 2:30 PM. Premises known as 1230 East 72nd Street, Brooklyn, NY 11234. Block 8357 Lot 48. 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 NewYork. Approximate Amount of Judgment is $648,914.15 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index No 501674/2016. Doron Leiby, Esq., Referee SPSJN181 SUPREME COURT – COUNTY OF KINGS NATIONSTAR HECM ACQUISITION TRUST 2016-2, WILMINGTON SAVINGS FUND SOCIETY, FSB, NOT INDIVIDUALLY, BUT SOLELY AS TRUSTEE, Plaintiff against JEANETTE BRINKLEY AS ADMINISTRATRIX AND AS HEIR TO THE ESTATE OF GENEVA BRINKLEY, DAVID BRINKLEY AS HEIR TO THE ESTATE OF GENEVA BRINKLEY, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered on January 28, 2019. 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 4th day of April, 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 ➔➔ Continued on page 14
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LEGAL NOTICES ➔➔ Continued from page 9 of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York. Said premises known as 645 East 53rdStreet, Brooklyn, N.Y. 11203. (Section: 15, Block: 4774, Lot: 65). Approximate amount of lien $ 428,393.98 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed judgment and terms of sale. Index No. 500600-16. Jeffrey Dinowitz, Esq., Referee. McCabe, Weisberg & Conway, LLC Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 145 Huguenot Street – Suite 210 New Rochelle, New York 10801 (914) 636-8900 NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF KINGS HSBC Bank USA, National Association as Indenture Trustee for First NLC Trust 2005-3, Mortgage-Backed Notes, 2005-3, Plaintiff AGAINST Elisha Johnson; et al., Defendant(s) Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly dated January 29, 2016 I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction in Room 224 of Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201 on March 28, 2019 at 2:30PM, premises known as 551 Kosciuszko Street, Brooklyn, NY 11221. 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 1603 Lot 163. Approximate amount of judgment $699,825.04 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index# 12021/2012. Charlene Brown, Esq., Referee Shapiro, DiCaro & Barak, LLC Attorney(s) for the Plaintiff 175 Mile Crossing Boulevard Rochester, New York 14624 (877) 430-4792 Dated: January 31, 2019 61196 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC AUCTION Supreme Court of New York, KINGS County. CITIBANK, N.A., NOT IN ITS INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY, BUT SOLELY AS TRUSTEE FOR NRZ PASS-THROUGH TRUST VI, Plaintiff, -against- ANDY MCALPIN; NEW YORK CITY TRANSIT ADJUDICATION BUREAU; NEW YORK CITY PARKING VIOLATIONS BUREAU; NATIONAL CITY BANK; NEW YORK CITY ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL BOARD; GLENDA MCALPINE; SEAN GLOVER; NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE, Index No. 15785/2013. Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly dated, January 17, 2019 and entered with the Kings County Clerk on January 29, 2019, Ernest E. Badway, Esq., the Appointed Referee, will sell the premises known as 55 Chester Street, Brooklyn, New York 11212 at public auction at 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, New York 11201, on March 28, 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: 3499; Lot: 113 will be sold subject to the provisions of filed Judgment, Index No. 15785/2013. The approximate amount of judgment
is $1,023,572.13 plus interest and costs. FRIEDMAN VARTOLO LLP 85 Broad Street, Suite 501, New York, New York 10004, Attorneys for Plaintiff. SUPPLEMENTAL SUMMONS SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF KINGS_ INDEX NO. 512190/2018 Plaintiff designates KINGS as the place of trial situs of the real property Mortgaged Premises: 753 GEORGIA AVENUE BROOKLYN, NY 11207 Block: 4321 Lot: 47 LAKEVIEW LOAN SERVICING, LLC, Plaintiff vs. CLAUDETTE GUMBS; if living, and if she be dead, any and all persons unknown to plaintiff, claiming, or who may claim to have an interest in, or general or specific lien upon the real property described in this action; 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; NEW YORK CITY ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL BOARD; PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK; UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, “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 or claiming an interest in or lien upon the premises, described in the complaint, Defendants.__ 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 $468,400.00 and interest, recorded on November 24, 2006, at CRFN 2006000652959, of the Public Records of KINGS County, New York, covering premises known as 753 GEORGIA AVENUE BROOKLYN, NY 11207. 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: DYZIO J. GUZIEROWICZ, ESQ. 900 Merchants Concourse, Suite 310 Westbury, NY 11590 516-280-7675 SUPPLEMENTAL SUMMONS SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF KINGS_ INDEX NO. 511037/2017 Mortgaged Premises: 674 HANCOCK STREET BROOKLYN, NY 11233 Block: 1662 Lot: 18 Plaintiff designates KINGS as the place of trial situs of the real property NATIONSTAR MORTGAGE LLC D/B/A CHAMPION MORTGAGE COMPANY, Plaintiff, -against- LEAMON GRADY AS HEIR AND DISTRIBUTEE OF THE ESTATE OF ELIZABETH GRADY A/K/A ELIZABETH G. AUSTIN A/K/A ELIZABETH GRADY AUSTIN, JOSEPHINE GRADY AS HEIR AND DISTRIBUTEE OF THE ESTATE OF ELIZABETH GRADY A/K/A ELIZABETH G. AUSTIN A/K/A ELIZABETH GRADY AUSTIN, EARL GRADY AS HEIR AND DISTRIBUTEE OF THE ESTATE OF ELIZABETH GRADY A/K/A ELIZABETH G. AUSTIN A/K/A ELIZABETH GRADY AUSTIN, FREEMAN GRADY AS HEIR AND DISTRIBUTEE OF THE ESTATE OF ELIZABETH GRADY A/K/A ELIZABETH G. AUSTIN A/K/A ELIZABETH GRADY AUSTIN, JOHN GRADY AS HEIR AND DISTRIBUTEE OF THE ESTATE OF ELIZABETH GRADY A/K/A ELIZABETH G. AUSTIN A/K/A ELIZABETH GRADY AUSTIN; UNKNOWN HEIRS AND DISTRIBUTEES OF THE ESTATE OF ELIZABETH GRADY A/K/A ELIZABETH G. AUSTIN A/K/A ELIZABETH GRADY AUSTIN 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
VOL. 23 NO. 11 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; SECRETARY OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT, NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF TAXATION AND FINANCE; UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 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 or claiming an interest in or lien upon the premises, described in the complaint, Defendants. To the abovenamed 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 $360,000.00 and interest, recorded on June 7, 2010, at Liber Page, of the Public Records of KINGS County, New York, covering premises known as 674 HANCOCK STREET BROOKLYN, NY 11233. 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: GLENN W. CAULFIELD, ESQ. 900 Merchants Concourse, Suite 310, Westbury, NY 11590 516-280-7675
NYC Mayor abandons ‘school improvement’ plan ➔➔ Continued from page 11 mentors and “critical friends” who are retired exemplary principals. We should help principals acquire and develop a bank of “talents;” e.g., knowledge of curriculum, instruction, operational effectiveness-efficiency, standardized assessment analysis, “people (leadership) skills” and strategic planning. All schools need an “assistant principal of operations” who can take responsibility for
the daily “heavy” bureaucratic-administrative duties related to school operational management; allowing principals to spend more time in classrooms doing formal/informal observations; moving around the school building analytically studying the school’s operational environment; having the time to coach, talk and listen to students and staff members. With schools, you can’t lead effectively what you don’t experience effectively first-hand. Principals need the authority (including staff hiring) that matches their responsibility,
or they have very little chance of succeeding with our most vulnerable children. Good principals shouldn’t be forced to invest so much time and energy in “breaking rules” and working to “outmaneuver and outsmart” unhelpful, external political stakeholders and/or school system bureaucracies just so that they can give their students a chance to learn. If we really want to help underperforming schools then let’s start with some political courage, commitment and a good strategic plan. I’m sure that won’t cost $773
million. *https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/26/ nyregion/deblasio-school-renewal-bill. html Michael A. Johnson has served as a public schoolteacher, Science Skills Center director, principal and a school district superintendent. 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/]
VOL. 23 NO. 11
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Photo: David Greaves
Brooklyn's Spring began last Saturday at the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens, with gardeners from around the boroughs showcasing their ecology programs. Brooklyn - Queens Land Trust was represented by, from left, Anne Schoeneborn, Chair Grants Committee; April Greene, Board Member; Dorothy Mills, Chair Nominations Committee; Moriba Jackson, Vice President; Irene Van Slyke, Treasurer; Sawdayah Brownlee, Chair Garden Operations Committee; Domica Roberts, Program Associate.
Project Challenged ➔➔ Continued from page 10 jewel of Brooklyn – a jewel that needs to be preserved. The EIS should go beyond the CEQR standards by analyzing shadows in every month of the year and studying the potential impacts on the specific collections of the garden and the operations of its nursery.
Density and Impacts on Local Infrastructure Height and shadow are not my only concern – there is also the issue of the overall density of the project and the proposed addition of over 3,000 new residents to the neighborhood in an additional 1,500 apartments. According to Census Data, this would increase the population in a quarter mile radius of the site (roughly bounded by the Botanic Garden, Union Street, Rogers Avenue, and Lefferts Avenue) by over 20%. Indeed, this project is so large that the EAS flags potentially significant impacts on schools, libraries, child care, transportation, and many other areas.
With a project of this size, we need to take a careful look at potential impacts on transit service in particular – our subways and buses – to make sure we do what we need to improve transit access including potential ADA improvements at the adjacent subway stations. The prospect of adding such a massive new development without comprehensive consideration for its integration into the fabric of the neighborhood is of great concern. The developer should be proactive in proposing measures to address these impacts and not simply wait for the environmental review to identify the bare minimum thresholds.
Residential Affordability and Residential Displacement The murky status of the legal commitment to affordability beyond MIH is also a real concern. The scoping materials state that an HPD regulatory agreement will be negotiated and executed, but at what point in the process will this happen? Since it is not part of the zoning like MIH, is it truly guaranteed? Will it be permanent? None of that is clear.
Cumulative Impacts Unbelievably, none of the materials that are the subject of this hearing include the Franklin Avenue rezoning approved in December 2018 just to the north of this site. The maps and all narrative descriptions show the prior R6A zoning extending up Franklin Avenue. Of course, the projected impacts of the R8X development with a total of over 500 units must be taken into account cumulatively with the impacts of development at the 960 Franklin site.
Alternative Development Scenarios As currently proposed, there appears to be no firm guarantee that the developer will arrive at an agreement for HPD financing for the extra 20% of income-restricted units or be compelled to use the Special Permit that would enable the specific proposed design. The application should be transparent with all possible outcomes including an R9D development scenario without the Special Permit – which would be a bulkier, squatter alternative, and a development without extra affordable housing above MIH.
For this location in particular, it is crucially important to understand all potential bulk scenarios and their impact on the shadows on the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. The proposed rezoning would also include part of the MTA’s Franklin Avenue Shuttle rail beds, adding nearly 130,000 square feet of development rights to this parcel. With the MTA searching for potential revenues, it is not unfeasible that the MTA would seek to sell and transfer these development rights in the future and this scenario should be fully analyzed in the EIS.
Conclusion In conclusion, Crown Heights Brooklyn deserves development that addresses our needs for affordable housing, community services, and infrastructure; fits the character and context of our historic community; and respects our institutions like the Botanic Garden. I urge the developers to drop this “take it or leave it” posture and work towards a more viable proposal and I look forward to hearing public input from my constituents on this project.
Discussion, March 25th tions of cis girls and TGNC folks of color is a marathon, not a sprint. From our founding in 2001, we have been calling on government to protect girls and youth of color from sexual and gender-based violence, and we’re continuing that work by heading to Albany on March 26th to talk to our New York State elected officials. Will you join them?
Artist Management and Vinnie Knight, vocalist. For info: cbjcwomeninjazz. eventbrite.com.
Saturday, March 30th JAZZ: THE WOMEN’S VIEWPOINT
➔➔ Continued from page 9
lace (founder and senior curator of Diaspora Vibe Gallery and Diaspora Vibe Cultural Arts Incubator); and Myriam J. A. Chancy (Hartley Burr Alexander, Chair of the Humanities at Scripps College); moderated by Ifeona Fulani (Global Liberal Studies, NYU). Books will be available
for sale. RSVP at 212-998-IAAA.
Tuesday, March 26th GIRLS FOR GENDER EQUITY LOBBY DAY 2019 Departing from 25 Chapel Street, at 6am FREE. The fight for the rights and protec-
Lafayette Avenue Presbyterian Church, 85 So. Oxford St., 3pm, by donation. In its 20th season the Central Brooklyn Jazz Consortium, Inc. (CBJC), in partnership with International Women in Jazz, Inc., honors Women’s Month with performances and women musicians in a panel discussion hosted by WBGO co-founder Dorthaan Kirk. Panel participants will include vocalist Antoinette Montague; Gabrielle Garo, Flutist; Gayle Boyd,
Jazz Singer Antoinette Montague
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VOL. 23 NO. 11
Saturday, March 16th SWEET HONEY IN THE ROCK 45TH ANNIVERSARY CONCERT Symphony Space, 2537 Broadway, Manhattan, 8-10pm, tickets start at $38. Sweet Honey in the Rock remains among the most vibrant, versatile and ever-relevant musical collectives in music today. The iconic group currently consists of members Carol Maillard, Louise Robinson, Nitanju Bolade Casel, Aisha Kahlil and featured musician Romeir Mendez on upright acoustic bass and electric bass. Tickets at symphonyspace.org
Tuesday, March 19th FREE TAX PREPARATION Shirley Chisholm State Office Building, 55 Hanson Plc., 9th Fl., 10am-4pm, FREE. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, in partnership with Urban Upbound, offers free tax prep to those earning an annual income of $66,000 or less. To schedule an appointment, call 718-784-0877 and press 1 for English or 2 for Spanish.
Wednesday, March 20th CIVILIAN COMPLAINT REVIEW BOARD PUBLIC MEETING Van Dyke Community Center, 392 Blake Ave., 6:30pm, FREE. Come hear and share about police-community relations in your neighborhood. For more info visit: nyc.gov/ccrb
FILM FESTIVALS IN NY YOU SHOULD KNOW AND TIPS ON FESTIVAL STRATEGY Shepard Hall, Room 290, 259 Convent Ave., Manhattan. Attention filmmakers! Hear from the staff of NYC festivals that should be on your radar – the Asian-American International Film Festival, NewFest, New York Latino Film Festival and Reel Sisters of the Diaspora. Co-sponsored by Third World Newsreel and the Documentary Forum at CCNY. RSVP at Eventbrite.
Thursday, March 21st FREE TAX PREPARATION Shirley Chisholm State Office Building, 55 Hanson Plc., 9th Fl., 10am-4pm, FREE. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, in partnership with Urban Upbound, offers free tax prep to those earning an annual income of $66,000 or less. To schedule an appointment, call 718-784-0877 and press 1 for English or 2 for Spanish.
Friday, March 22nd MAYA ANGELOU: AND STILL I RISE Central Library, 10 Grand Army Plaza, 8-10pm, FREE. See the first feature documentary on the singer, dancer, poet, writer and activist who inspired generations with modern African-American thought that pushed boundaries. Best known for her autobiography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Maya Angelou (1928-2014) also blazed a brave and original life as a performer, giving people the freedom to think about their history in a way they never had before. With unprecedented access, the film traces her incredible journey, shedding light on the untold aspects of her life through never-before-seen footage, rare archival photographs and videos in her own words.
SWEET HONEY IN THE ROCK 45TH ANNIVERSARY CONCERT
Sunday, March 24th WHAT’S WRONG WITH OUR PAROLE SYSTEM? Plymouth Church Reception Room, 75 Hicks St., 12:30pm, FREE. New York State’s Parole System is broken. Almost half of the people on parole in New York wind up back in prison, with most re-incarcerations due to technical violations that are not crimes. Learn about our current system, the proposed reforms and Eric Gonzalez what you can do to help people get back on their feet and stay out of prison. Featuring: Eric Gonzalez, Brooklyn District Attorney; Vincent Schiraldi, Senior Research Scientist at Justice Lab of Columbia University; Rob De Leon, Associate Vice President of Programs at The Fortune Society; and Donna Hylton, Director of the Women and Girls Project at The Katal Center for Health, Equity and Justice. Moderated by Celeste Katz, co-host of WBAI-FM’s “Driving Forces.”
HOLISTIC HEALTH AND WELLNESS EXPO Geb Hetep Wholistic Center, 1344 Pacific St., Lower Level, 2-8pm, FREE. Uplift your body, mind and soul with workshops, demonstrations and therapies
Mela Berger
designed for your well-being. Featured will be Ray Morgan, MD, ND, Ph.D. / therapist presenting, “Natural Approaches to Health and Emotional Wellness through Holistic Medicine and Psychotherapy;” Mela Berger, HHP, BCMT/ Bodyworks Therapist demonstrating, “Healing Emotions with Bodywork;” Dr. Jeffrey Vincent Noble on “Pranic Healing and Neuro-Linguistic Programming;” Dr. Leni Gray-Wilson sharing about, “Herbal Medicine for Hair Loss and Hair Growth;” and Bale Shabaka, Master Chef and creator of holistic skin care products. Reflexology massage, foot detox, NES testing and pranic healing are available by appointment. Vegan meals, health products and giftware vendors on-site. RSVP at 718-501-6044/45
MARK YOUR CALENDARS
Thursday, March 28th SIXTH ANNUAL WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH CELEBRATION Brooklyn Borough Hall, 209 Joralemon
Chef Bale Shabaka St., 6-9pm, FREE. The theme this year for the Borough President’s annual festivities is Honoring Brooklyn’s First: Diverse Women Breaking Barriers and Blazing Trails. Brooklyn Borough Hall is ADA-accessible and breast-feeding-friendly. RSVP to 718-802-3946 or brooklynusa.org/2019WHM