OUR TIME PRESS | April 4-10, 2019

| From the Villa ge of Brook ly n |

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

| VOL. 23 NO. 14

Since 1996

April 4-10, 2019 |

Leaders, Protecting Legacies, Call For Justice Under the Law

Montgomery "Deed Theft" Bill Passes Senate -- on Way to Cuomo's Desk Page 2

AG Letitia James Fights Trump on School Lunches Page 6

Photo: Bernice Elizabeth Green

Sunday, March 31st, at New York State Supreme Court in Kings County, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, standing with homeowners and representatives, vowed to fight for justice on behalf of victims of the City's Third Party Transfer Program. Pg. 3

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OUR TIME PRESS April 4-10, 2019

New York’s 2019-20 State Budget Brings More than Money – аlso Social, Judicial, Environmental & Political Change ■■

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By Maitefa Angaza

here’s a new sheriff in town and its name is The Democratic Party! Newly in legislative power after the demise last fall of the Independent Democratic Caucus, the Dems hashed things out and eventually succeeded in presenting a unified front capable of delivering a $175 billion 2019-20 State budget that brings change concerning issues most important to their constituents.

One of the highest-profile wins is certainly the long-awaited criminal justice reform. The issue was brought into painful focus for the public when 22-year-old Kalief Browder took his life after three grueling years on Rikers Island – two in solitary confinement and the victim of brutal beatings. All because his DBG MEDIA Publishers of Our Time Press, Inc. 358 Classon Avenue Brooklyn, NY 11238 (718) 599-6828 Web site: www.ourtimepress.com e-mail: editors@ourtimepress.com Publisher DBG MEDIA Editor-in-Chief David Mark Greaves

family first could not afford, then was not allowed, to post $3,000 in bail. He was finally released with no trial or conviction and a few months the City paid his family a $3.3 million settlement in a civil rights and wrongful death suit after his suicide.

This new legislation doesn’t completely eliminate cash bail as some lawmakers had hoped, but it does do so for most misdemeanors and nonviolent crimes. The compromise agreement aims at speeding up the trial system and allows greater access and quicker to prosecutor evidence against defendants. Before entering into a plea deal, defendants will be allowed to review documents to see what evidence a prosecutor has against him or her.

Assembly Member Tremaine Wright commented for Our Time Press on some of the new laws and is particularly proud to have voted to pass this legislation.

“No longer will accused people sit in jail awaiting trial for low level, non-violent offenses,” she said. “These bail reforms are part of a comprehensive criminal justice reform package that the Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic & Asian Caucus supports. And while ➔➔ Continued on page 12

VOL. 23 NO. 14

DEED THEFT BILL TO PROTECT HOMEOWNERS IN DEFAULT OR FORECLOSURE AWAITS CUOMO SIGNING

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Praise for Montgomery and Weinstein

enator Velmanette Montgomery’s “Deed Theft Bill” (S1688/A5615 - Weinstein) passed the Senate and now awaits the governor’s signature. This legislation would strengthen and expand upon the Home Equity Theft Act of 2006 (“HETPA”) by providing greater protections for owners of homes that are either in default or in foreclosure. It also strengthens laws regulating distressed property “consultants” who provide services to prevent property loss.

Fraudulent companies target seniors, homeowners struggling financially, and for whom English is not their first language.

They often offer unsolicited assistance with foreclosure or modifications, sometimes claiming that the victim’s home is already up for auction. They are sophisticated operators who take advantage of loopholes in the law by associating themselves with law firms that allow them to avoid legal repercussions.

Homeowners believe these companies will represent them honestly. They often inadvertently sign away the deeds to their homes, sometimes not realizing the mistake until years later. Unfortunately, it seems to be all too easy for fraudulent companies to mislead, defraud and outright steal property from homeowners. But reversing it is nearly impossible when homeowners, many of whom are already struggling, have to take on the cost and time of a lawsuit.

Copy Editor Maitefa Angaza Columnists Eddie Castro Victoria Horsford Michael Johnson Abigail McGrath Marlon Rice

renting while

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is a human right

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NYC has one of the strongest Human Rights laws in the nation. It protects New Yorkers against discrimination and harassment based on race and color.

If you have experienced or witnessed discrimination or harassment, report it to the NYC Commission on Human Rights.

Call 311 or 718.722.3131 or visit NYC.gov/HumanRights today.

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Commission on Human Rights Bill de Blasio, Mayor

Carmelyn P. Malalis, Chair/Commissioner

The Commission can investigate complaints and fine violators up to $250K in civil penalties.

Reports can be made anonymously.

The “Deed Theft Bill” addresses these issues by: • Prohibiting abusive and deceptive behaviors such as pretending to be law enforcement or government representatives, taking temporary ownership of a deed, or engaging in harassment of the homeowner or the homeowner’s family.

• Eliminating the requirement that a homeowner post a bond in order to file a lawsuit to stop a deed transfer.

• Prohibiting loan modification consultants from requiring up-front fees for services.

• Extending the amount of time a homeowner has to rescind transactions with distressed property consultants from 5 days to 14 days.

• Providing a clear legal path to restore the title of a property when there has been a criminal conviction based on fraudulent actions concerning a property transfer.

“Passing the Deed Theft Bill is a major step forward in addressing one of the most pressing issues among homeowners. These thieves target our most vulnerable homeowners and snatch generations of wealth from our families.

For every one that thinks to call their elected officials or speak out, I know there are a dozen more who do not know where to turn,” said state Senator Velmanette Montgomery. «I am so thankful for the support of my colleagues and the tremendous work that the advocates have put in to get this done.”

“This is such a huge win for Brooklyn and our state. Fraudulent companies have targeted our homeowners for far too long. By passing the Deed Theft Bill, we are moving forward to strengthen protections for homeowners, families and communities,” said Assembly Member Tremaine Wright.

“As the wrongful property seizure crisis threatens the future of families across Brooklyn, I’m so very grateful to state Senator Montgomery, Assembly member Helene Weinstein and my colleagues in the state legislature who have acted decisively to strengthen protections against those seeking to commit deed theft and mortgage scams,” said Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams. «This legislation will assist homeowners in our city and state who are being preyed upon by bad actors, so many of whom live in communities of color at risk of losing significant generational wealth. Our work continues to build upon our investigations, to get and remain one step ahead of scammers and thieves, and I renew my commitment to that ongoing fight as we mark this legislative milestone.”

The New York State Attorney General has indicated that her office receives more deed theft complaints from Brooklyn than the four other boroughs combined, and deed fraud scams disproportionately impact homeowners of color. They are highly concentrated in the rapidly gentrifying areas of BedfordStuyvesant, Crown Heights, Flatbush and Brownsville.

The passage of this legislation comes less than a month after Senator Montgomery, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams and Assembly member Tremaine Wright hosted a legislative hearing to examine Brooklyn’s homeownership crisis, responding to the many homeowners who lost their property and equity and have been left without support.

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OUR TIME PRESS April 4-10, 2019

Third-Party Transfer & the Loss of Intergenerational Wealth

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he attack on Black and Brown people in the Americas has been unremitting since Europeans first set foot on the land. Whether it’s the border wall, the criminal justice system or a malevolency in bureaucratic DNA, the end result is particularly harmful to African-Americans.

This time, once again, it’s about real estate.

“This is not some bank coming in and doing some miscarriage of justice, this is a city-sponsored program that has taken away the homes of people for pennies on the dollars.” Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams was speaking of the Third-Party Transfer program that has been stripping millions of dollars in real estate wealth from communities of color since 1996.

Adams was at a press conference held in front of the NYS Supreme Court building in Brooklyn. With him were homeowner attorney Yolanda Nicholson and homeowners Lamar Jones and Marlene Saunders and James Caldwell, President of the 77th Precinct Council.

“Look at that period, 1996 to 2019,” said Adams, highlighting that it was during that time that communities of color in Crown Heights, Bedford-Stuyvesant and Canarsie underwent a transformation during the “Gold Rush” for the undervalued real estate in those communities.

Snapping up properties was seen as a way to get rich quick and Attorney Adams says, “There is a terrible picture that is being reflected here.”

“Homeownership is the cornerstone of Black wealth,” the borough president said, and he called on the city, state and federal government to conduct a “forensic investigation” to follow the paper trail from the initial targeting of the home to its eventual end use “to determine if there was any wrongdoing” along the way.

A major step was taken a week ago Thursday when Kings County Supreme Court Judge Mark Partnow vacated a foreclosure judgment against six property owners who lost their properties in Brooklyn through the Third-Party Transfer program.

Adams said this was the first time that a “Judicial Magistrate actually acknowledged what these property owners were saying all the time--they should have not lost their property in the first place.”

The Third-Party Transfer program was designed to designate sponsors to purchase and rehabilitate distressed properties.

“Although the intention appears to be good – to preserve affordable housing – TPT’s misuse includes cases where properties were seized due to bureaucratic errors or provisions as minimum as late payments.

We have some cases where people lost their homes due to water bills.”

Judge Partnow’s 69-page decision was clear and forceful, saying “Unjust seizures of property was not an isolated occurrence, rather, it is a widespread occurrence being experienced by many property owners who are being inequitably stripped of the valuable property rights.”

Adams said the justice also concluded that the judgments were unconscionable and ‘shocking to the conscience of the court’ based on the amount of the lien versus the value of some of the properties.

“This is horrific when you think about it,” said Adams. “Some of the cases had millions of dollars in equity but they were losing their property for thousands of dollars.”

■■

By David Mark Greaves

(Credit Image: © Richard B. Levine/Levine Roberts/Newscom via ZUMA Press)

Adams was particularly offended that there were city agencies that participated “in the removal of properties from Black and Brown communities predominantly” and throughout the city. “The justice stated, “In some instances, the City’s misleading malfeasance resulted in a manifest injustice.”

There were four action points Adams said needed to be addressed. First is for the City to “return all four family houses and smaller that are involved.” He finds the taking of these properties totally unwarranted, saying a simple lien could be in place and recouped when the property is sold.

“There was no reason to go after these small homes.”

Secondly, they, the group of homeowners and supporters, “want HPD to review all large buildings in the TPT program” because many small multiunit homes were owned by members of the community who had “eked out a living to purchase a home” and now had it taken away for a tax or water bill. “We want the City to immediately return these properties to the homeowners.”

Thirdly, the property owner, or their heirs, must be made whole and the City pay the lost equity in all of the TPT seizures.

“Family members and our seniors held on to property with hopes of transferring that wealth to their family members… …all of that equity is lost.” Equity in a home is usually “the only institutional wealth that communities of color possess,” said Adams.

“We’re seeing and witnessing it being lost every day because of a program that the city sponsored.”

Yolanda Nicholson, attorney for the homeowners, said, “Judge Partnow’s decision affirms what we allege in the class-action complaint which was filed on Lamar March 11th that the City’s use of in re powers to take these buildings is not only improper, it’s a nullity because they do not have that power. But even more to the ‘shocking conscience’ comment

made in the opinion, it is a violation of the equal protection laws of the United States Constitution of the due process laws and the City has continued to champion this and to disregard calls from state legislators, from the borough presidents across this city and it continues to barrel through people’s homes and lives and properties with impunity.”

Attorney Nicholson wants to move on to the discovery phase of the class-action suit. “We are awaiting the City’s response so we can begin to identify each and every property that was taken from 1996 to determine what the borough president said.

Who lost their equity? Was the property actually in distress? Was the property actually owing an amount that met the statutory requirement?”

James Caldwell, President of the 77th Precinct Council, said he first heard about the case when the Council’s own vice president, Marlene Saunders, brought to his attention that the city was taking her $2.2 million property for a $3,792.20 bill.

“We were totally outraged, so without any hesitation, we went right to our Councilman Robert Cornegy, and he basically told us, nothing they can do because the judge had already signed on it. But at that point, we as a community said, ‘Well, there is something that we could do.’

So, we’re going to give a big shout-out to Kings County Politics. We called Steve Witt on Saturday, he came out on Sunday, and on Monday, the story was on the website. Because of that, we got a reversal on Miss Saunders’ properties because of this great writing of the team of Steve Witt and Kelly Mena.”

But the Saunders situation was only the tip of the iceberg and Caldwell said they went back to the old-fashioned way of getting things done, “We started protesting.” They protested judges, law firms and specifically the Kings County Democratic Committee. “We hit them, and we started

hitting everybody else, let them know that you cannot take our people’s property. You can’t do that,”[just come in and take 30-40 years of a homeowner’s equity].

Homeowner Marlene Saunders recounted the tale from when she was in the kitchen and heard the sound of a notice being put on her front door. The notice was telling her tenants to no longer pay her rent but to give it to Neighborhood Restore. After speaking of going through the red tape of the city bureaucracy and the courts, Ms. Saunders’ message to homeowners was to “get involved, support Eric and everyone who wants change for us the people, especially people of color, and just don’t take anything for granted. Be on top of everything you do, no matter how simple it may look, put it in a file. It might come up in ten years.”

Homeowner Lamar Jones also had his family home of 60 years restored and spoke of how “daunting” it is to go up against the Department of Finance or HPD, or any time you file a case against the City of New York.

“When going through this, it all came back to community and how in a ‘galvanized’ community, no one’s issue is in isolation.”

And while six of the judgments were vacated, “there are still 20 left on that same round that haven’t been vacated yet,” said Jones.

“The real tragedy here is that the City of New York, HPD and other agencies don’t see this as their tragedy,” Adams said. “They see it as just a course of doing business, as just another number, and we’re saying ‘No.’ These are families who are being traumatized by the City of New York. That is what we need to address.”

Attorney Nicholson further noted that, “What’s most interesting about what the city has done, to the borough president’s point, is that buried in TPT, HPD was required, if the sole owner has fallen behind on taxes… to examine stabilization, retention, first and foremost. They haven’t done that.”

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OUR TIME PRESS April 4-10, 2019

WHAT’S GOING ON ■■

By Victoria Horsford

APRIL 2019 The month opens with April Fools’ Day on April 1. April is National Poetry Month.

A few notable April 2019 dates and observations: Palm Sunday, 4/14; Good Friday, 4/19; Easter Sunday, 4/21; Passover begins 4/19; Earth Day 4/22; Ethiopian Easter Sunday, 4/28; International Jazz Day, 4/30.

WEEK IN REVIEW NY STATE: There was a meeting of disparate minds and temperaments. The new “three men in the room” configuration—African-American Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, African-American Senate Majority Leader Andrea StewartCousins and Governor Andrew Cuomo, all Democrats who were able to agree on a $175 billion NYS budget by April 1. According to Governor Cuomo, who is monopolizing media coverage of the budget, it is the most progressive budget in the nation.

Incremental salary increases for the legislators and the governor was a part of the deal.

Some of the budget highlights like congestion pricing, a revenue enhancement for the Metropolitan Transit Authority; criminal justice reform, ending cash bail for nonviolent misdemeanors and felonies; new commission on campaign financing; a 2% property tax cap; a plastic bag ban; education budget increase to $27.9 billion; and environmental safeguards will attract as many advocates as detractors. Alas, recreational marijuana and its distribution failed to make the budgetary deadline cut.

There has got to be some equitable access to “cannabis” business for people of color.

In the 10 states where cannabis is legal, few Blacks are engaged as entrepreneurs.

The legislative session is not over for a few months.

NYC Reminder: Participatory Budgeting Vote Week NYC is March 30-April 7. It is an opportunity for most NYC residents to identify and cast a vote for funds flowing to their City Council District

Lori Lightfoot

totaling up to $1 million, which will be included in the 2020 NYC fiscal city budget.

Vote online: pbnyc.org/vote or call your Council member.

USA: Congrats to Chicago, Illinois Democratic Mayor-elect Lori Lightfoot, who will be the city’s first Black woman mayor and the first openly gay mayor. A former prosecutor, a political outsider, an avowed progressive who once headed the Chicago Police Board, Lightfoot has a platter full of problems with which to deal: violent crime stats, pension funds, decades-long government corruption, and local police department/ Black community relations.

BUSINESS MATTERS I first wrote about the former Congressman J.C. Watts, Jr.’s idea, “The Black Television News,” in 2008 during the Obama/McCain presidential campaign season. TBTN was hyped as a Black-owned cable channel which would be devoted to Black people with a Black perspective. The demographics today are 43 million people with $1.2 trillion buying power, or 2 out of every 3 minority dollars spent. It was an idea whose time had come. Its gestation period was long. It has been renamed the “Black News Channel,” which will be based at Florida A&M University, with an official

which dangles tax cuts to the same class of private equity funds of ‘opportunity’ from other people’s distress…..Using capitalization to fix the racial wealth gap will work only if there is a means to trans capital, assets, wealth or housing.”

Columbia University’s Graduate Schools, Business, Law, International and Public Affairs will co-host Columbia’s 16th Annual African Economic Forum which convenes April 12. Forum keynoters include Muhamudu Bawuma, VP, Ghana; Mostafa Terrab, CEO/Chair OCP Group; and Wale Adeosun, Founder and Chief Investment Officer of Kuramo Capital Mgmt. Forum features six panels.

OUT OF AFRICA The 4/1 NY Times cover story, “Moscow Gains Clout in Africa,” details a new Russian strategy on the Continent designed to bolster its military and political goals, which has been in evidence since 2017. Russia is a major weapons supplier to autocratic African heads of state and to weaker governments.

Russia has renewed ties with former USSR friends in Mozambique and Angola. Its military ties with the Central African Republic are disconcerting.

Russian clout is ascending while American influence in Africa – humanitarian, military and economic aid – is descending. The Russian presence and interference in Africa is making America reassess its disengagement with Africa.

ARTS/CULTURE/ HISTORY

J.C. Watts November 18 launch date. [Visit: blacknewschannel.com] Addicted to business pages? You don’t want to miss this April 1 NY Times OPED, “The Roots of Black Capitalism,” by Mehrsa Baradaran, were not firmly planted in any federal government investment into sound Black economic reform.

Black capitalism began with Nixon’s free market and American private enterprise, the cureall. That morphed into Reagan’s “enterprise zones,” Clinton’s new markets’ tax credits and Obama’s “prime zones.” Baradaran says those programs failed because “the benefits of capitalism always accrue to the owners of the capital,” who are not Black.

Baradaran adds, “Trump’s tax cuts reform of 2017 and the ‘opportunity zones,’ a program

MUSIC: The City College Center for the Arts presents “A SOULFUL MUSIC CELEBRATION,” which tells Harlem History through song, gospel, Negro Spirituals and African drums at Aaron Davis Hall, CCNY, Convent Avenue at 135th Street, on Saturday, April 6 at 3 pm. Narrated by film, theater, TV actress Barbara Montgomery, the music celebration features M a r v i n Lowe, Brandi Sutton, Lucian Bradford, S a m u e l McKelton, La Fredrick Coaxner and Voices from Barbara Montgomery Harlem.

FINE ARTS: Visit the DC Moore Gallery’s new exhibit, “David Driskell, Resonance: Paintings 1965-2002,” which opens April 11 and runs through June 8. The art world’s triple threat, Driskell is fine artist, art historian and curator. The DC Gallery is located at 535 West 22nd Street, in the heart of the Chelsea art district, Manhattan. [Visit: dcmooregallery.com or call 212. 247.2111] The NY-based Shared Interest nonprofit

VOL. 23 NO. 14

David Driskell hosts its 25th Anniversary Awards Gala on Thursday, April 25 at the Edison Ballroom, located at 240 West 47th Street, Manhattan.

The distinguished honorees are Advocate Thulai Madonsela, former Public Protector, South Africa; Dr. John Kani, playwright/ actor, The Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility; and South African Airways.

Founded in 1994, coincidental with the nascent South African democracy and the beginning of the Nelson Mandela Presidency, Shared Interest has helped provide economic foundations for the new democracy and provided access to credit and opportunity for low-income people to build businesses and sustainable communities. [Visit: sharedinterest.org]

NEWSMAKERS RIP: New Yorker William Francis Gaulman, Jr., 74, died on March 22. Billy joined the US Marine Corps and completed a 13-month tour in Vietnam in 1965. That indelible experience was the subject of his quasi memoir, “DANAAN POSTSCRIPTS,” a poignant page-turner, antiwar book, self-published a few years ago. Back to NY, Billy got married, had children and earned a BS in biology, coincidental with his long and productive career as a NYC fireman, then as a fire marshal. His 40-year love affair with sailing resulted in owning boats, navigating destinations along the Atlantic, the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean. William Gaulman is survived by his wife, Saundra, two children, Dara and LeShan, two grandchildren, JahiAamir and Kijani-Ali, his sister Joan, and one stepson, Donnie.

William Gaulman

Criminal Justice Lecture Series in Ken Thompson’s Honor, Launched

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ongratulations are in order to LuShawn Thompson on March 27 launched the inaugural Kenneth P. Thompson ‘92 Lecture on Race and Criminal Justice Reform, with NYU’s Centers on Administration of Criminal Law and Race Inequality and the Law. The discussion examined the issue of wrongful convictions and the roles that the prosecutors and various participants in the criminal justice legal system can play to ensure greater fairness in the delivery of justice.

Professor Rachel Barkow moderated the conversation. The panelists included Patricia Cummings, supervisor, Conviction Integrity & Special Investigations Unit, Office of the District Attorney, City and County of Philadelphia; Derrick Hamilton, exonoree; Nina Morrison ‘98, senior staff attorney, Innocence Project; and Ronald S.

Sullivan Jr., the Jesse Climenko Clinical Professor of Law, Harvard Law School and architect of the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office’s Conviction Review Unit.

Thompson was a dedicated and hard worker even as a child, serving his neighbors in Co-op City as a paper boy along with his brother, Dean, for several years.

He attended NYC public schools; John Jay College in New York City, from which, in 1989, he graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice.

From New York University Law School, he received his J.D. in 1992 and was awarded the prestigious Arthur T. Vanderbilt Medal for his outstanding contributions to the law school community. Ken’s strategic legal mind offered him the unique opportunity to serve as Special Assistant to the U.S. Treasury Department Undersecretary for Enforcement in Washington, D.C., and in

Ken & Lu-Shawn Thompson the General Counsel’s Office at the Treasury.

During his tenure there, he assisted in the investigation and contributed to the report ordered by President Bill Clinton regarding the 1993 raid on David Koresh and the Branch Davidian Compound in Waco, Texas. Ken later went on to serve as a federal prosecutor in the Eastern District of New York under the leadership of U.S. Attorney Zachary W. Carter. There, he delivered an impassioned and convincing opening statement that led

to the successful prosecution of former New York City Police Officer Justin Volpe in the brutal 1997 beating and torture of Haitian immigrant Abner Louima.

Ken was elected as Brooklyn’s first African-American District Attorney in 2013, having campaigned on the promise of restoring confidence in the criminal justice system. Among many innovations and initiatives, District Attorney Thompson established a model Conviction Review Unit, which, in only three years, moved to vacate or support the dismissal of the convictions of 21 people who were wrongfully convicted of murder and other offenses. He also implemented a groundbreaking policy not to prosecute low-level marijuana possession arrests in order to spare young people from the burden of a criminal record.

District Attorney Thompson died on October 9, 2016.

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OUR TIME PRESS April 4-10, 2019

Thinker’s Notebook ■■ By Marlon Rice

The Marathon Continues

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Luke 4:24 – And he said, “Truly I say to you that no prophet is accepted in his hometown.”

ast Sunday evening I was in my home with my two younger children.

Mikaela was asking me to do her nails. Delasi was trying to eat loose Apple Jacks from the floor. It was a normal Sunday evening, not unlike any of the dozens of Sunday evenings that I’ve spent in my home with my children. Just like the rest of us, I’m connected at the hip with my cell phone, and you can find me checking my social media pages every ten minutes, like the news from 1010 WINS. Around 7pm, I’m scrolling through FB and I see that a friend posted an article that reads, “Rapper Nipsey Hussle Shot in front of his Store.”

For those who aren’t (at all) familiar with Nipsey, allow me to give you a brief description. Nipsey is from South Central LA, home to the Crips and the Bloods, home to Snoop and Dre and Ice Cube and NWA and The Game and a bunch of other talented genius minds that used the medium of music to transcend meager upbringings and the common pitfalls of growing up in an underserved community. Musically, Nipsey is akin to his predecessors, an agile lyricist that speaks about his life and times in Crenshaw. He has stated that he is a member of the Rolling 60’s Crips. Rolling 60’s was noted by the Los Angeles Daily News in 2004 as being the largest Black street gang in the city of Los Angeles, their rank and file number more than 1,600.

Gang life, though seemingly acute to those who haven’t been raised in such an environment, is presented with unbothered normalcy by those from it. In South Central LA, gang culture is ghetto culture. If you are raised in the ghetto, at some point you will need to make a decision about gang life.

Other rappers have. Snoop is a Crip, like MC Eiht, Kurrupt, Nate Dogg and Eazy-E. The Game is a Blood, like YG, DJ Quik and Suge Knight. Rappers from the West Coast who become famous often rep their set in the same way that rappers from New York City rep their boroughs. Biggie said Spread Love, it’s the Brooklyn Way. P Diddy introduced the Harlem Shake. When you come from little to nothing, only to rise like yeast into a position of influence and fame, the one thing you do have that speaks to your truth is where you are from, the set that you claim.

So, in that way, Nipsey is no different than rappers before him or rappers since.

But Nipsey was different. Ten years ago, as a young 23-year-old just finding his footing in the entertainment industry, he was asked about whether or not he was going to spend money on gold chains. His answer was, “Yeah, all that is cool for the image or whatever. But they are liabilities. I’d rather invest in real estate and other kinds of assets.” To put this statement into context, understand that materialism and hyper-consumerism are staples in today’s hip-hop. Most rappers, by and large,

seek to portray a lavish and decadent lifestyle, rhyming about the hottest cars, clothes and diamonds. The effects of this messaging have had grave consequences for many inner-city communities, and the cause of it is layered and too nuanced to explain in one article. But Nipsey already understood the trap even before he began seeing any money from rap. He understood that assets were more powerful than liabilities, and as he began making inroads in the industry, he also began to make good on his vision to invest in assets. Nipsey purchased an entire strip mall in the heart of Crenshaw. He opened his own store, Marathon Clothing, in the strip mall, and he had plans to eventually scrap the mall and replace it with a six-story residential property anchored by commercial businesses along the ground floor. In every interview, at every occasion, Nipsey used his platform to speak about investing and actually owning a piece of your neighborhood. He loved his neighborhood. He loved his children. He loved his girlfriend, actress Lauren London.

This is what he used his voice for to share with the world. And in that way, he was a prophet, an inspired teacher who used his space and time to educate others on how to live.

An hour after I read that Nipsey was shot, CNN reported that he had died of his wounds. He was killed in the strip mall he owned, in front of the store he created, in the

neighborhood he grew up in. His death sent ripples through the entire nation, coast to coast.

And while he was a Grammy-nominated musician, those that mourn him speak first about his mind and his heart and his consideration for community and for the love he showed for his family. They say Nipsey was a good man first, and a good rapper second.

On Tuesday, the LAPD arrested Eric Holder for the murder of Ermias Asghedom, the man we know as Nipsey Hussle. Eric Holder is a member of the Rolling 60’s Crips, like Nipsey. He’s from the same neighborhood as Nipsey. In the Bible, Luke 4:24 states that, “No prophet is accepted in his hometown.”

Nipsey supported, helped and educated hundreds, if not thousands, of people from his community, but he couldn’t fix the jealousy that is created when people that come from the same nothing as you cannot understand how you have ascended out of that nothing and into greatness, even if you spend your entire life telling them how.

Thank you for your service Nipsey. Thank you for using your life as a living example.

Those of us who understood your ideals will continue to educate the communities that need it the most. The race isn’t over. The Marathon continues.

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AG James Leading Fight Against Trump Administration’s “Illegal” Requirements for School Breakfasts and Lunches Says Nutritional Standards for Meals Will Be Gutted

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re 1.6 million New York schoolchildren destined to dine on fake food? Not if Attorney General Letitia James has anything to do with it.

And she’s already doing battle, leading a multi-state coalition against the Trump Administration for illegally weakening key federal nutritional standards for breakfasts and lunches served to nearly 30 million schoolchildren in the United States.

For James, who attended public schools in Brooklyn, it›s a matter of life and health.

She made the announcement of this new battle, from the steps of P.S. 67, the red brick building in the center of the Ingersoll Housing Projects in Downtown Brooklyn on St. Edwards Street -- the first AfricanAmerican School in Brooklyn, started in 1815.

“Over a million children in New York – especially those in low-income communities and communities of color – depend on the meals served daily by their schools to be healthy, nutritious, and prepare them for learning,” said Attorney General Letitia James.

“The Trump Administration has undermined key health benefits for our children – standards for salt and whole grains in school meals – with deliberate disregard

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for science, expert opinion, and the law. My office will use every tool at our disposal to fight back against these shameful rollbacks and ensure our children our protected.”

The coalition contends that the Trump Administration’s Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) rollback of sodium limits and whole grain requirements for school meals lacks legally-mandated scientific basis, and, in further violation of law, was adopted without public notice and opportunity to comment.

Established in 1946, the National School Lunch Program is a federally subsidized program that provides students with healthy, balanced meals in schools at

low- or no-cost. Since that time, Congress has taken action to ensure that program’s nutritional guidelines keep current with the best scientific evidence with the most recent modernization occurring in 2010 with the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act. In 2018, nearly 30 million children consumed nearly five billion school lunches, and more than 14 million children ate school breakfasts under the national school lunch and breakfast programs with over 1.6 million children participating in New York alone. School meal programs are especially important for children in low-income families; in 2018, more than 74 percent of school lunches and 85 percent of school breakfasts provided to schoolchildren in the United States were offered free or at a reduced price. Further, according to USDA’s own figures, a disproportionately high share of students participating in the national school lunch and breakfast programs are black or Hispanic.

In 1994, Congress acted to require school meals to be consistent with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (Dietary Guidelines), nutritional and dietary information, and guidelines for the general public that are jointly issued by USDA and the Department of Health and Human Services.

In 2010, Congress directed USDA to update the nutritional requirements based on a 2009 study by the Food and Nutrition Board, which is part of the National Academy of Sciences.

The Food and Nutrition Board study found that the daily sodium intake for schoolchildren “clearly was excessive,” and at levels significantly above the Dietary Guidelines. The study cited scientific evidence showing a relationship between sodium intake and blood pressure in children as well, and that “high blood pressure responds to a reduction in salt intake in children as in adults.” Consequently, the Food and Nutrition Board Study recommended sodium limits for school meals based on the Dietary Guidelines.

The study also found “extremely low” consumption of whole grains by schoolchildren. USDA has recognized that whole grains are an important source of iron, magnesium, selenium, B vitamins, and dietary fiber, and that eating whole grains in nutrient dense forms may lower body weight and reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. The study recommended that grain products served in schools be “whole ➔➔ Continued on page 14

AG James Brings the NY Pain to Big Pharma Sackler Family

n amended lawsuit was filed

by New York State Attorney General Letitia James, updating one filed last year against OxyContin creator and manufacturer Perdue Pharma. Last week’s updated suit names the Sackler Family, owners

of the company and beneficiaries of massive wealth gained at the expense of New Yorkers who have been – and are – addicted and dying as casualties of the Opioid Epidemic.

New York State averages nine opioid-related deaths a day, while Perdue Pharma has

sent sales representatives on over a million visits to doctors’ offices. The suit alleges that doctors were encouraged to increase dosages, though Perdue Pharma knew of the danger to patients. AG James says the company betrayed its mission and the people “in order to profiteer from the plague they knew would be unleashed.”

Johnson & Johnson and Janssen Pharmaceuticals; Cardinal Health and Rochester Drug Cooperative Inc, Israeli pharmaceutical company Teva and the drug distributors McKesson, Dublin-based Endo and Allergan and others are also named in the suit. Some of these also manufacture opioids and others distribute them after purchasing them in bulk. The manufacturers hid and denied harm and the distributors conspired to get around prescription guidelines limiting the number of pills patients could safely take.

But the lawsuit names the Sackler Family as, “the masterminds behind this crisis.” It states: “The Sacklers” said James, “as the owners of Purdue involved with each and every material decision relating to the development and sale of Purdue’s opioids, were actively involved in marketing Purdue’s opioids in a way that deceptively minimized those risks and overstated the benefits… “[The Sacklers] put profit over patients. As Purdue sold more and more opioids, the Sackler family transferred more and more and more wealth to their personal account.”

James says she is open to settlement talks. But she may seek to ban the companies named in the suit from selling drugs in New York and lawsuit damages could be in the tens of millions of dollars. She’d also require the companies to participate in funding for public campaigns to end opioid addiction.

The Sackler family has said it faces bankruptcy if forced to provide compensation to the now close to 2,000 lawsuits that have been filed against it, ranging from charges by individuals and families

“New York State averages nine opioid-related deaths a day"

to class-action suits such New York State’s.

Late last month the Sackler family and its company settled a suit brought by the state of Oklahoma, agreeing to $270 million and partially fund a new Oklahoma State University addiction treatment and research center.

However, the Sacklers may be balking at playing ball in New York’s court. Speaking about New York, a family representative said in a public statement: “Expanding this baseless lawsuit to include former directors of Purdue Pharma is a misguided attempt to place blame where it does not belong for a complex public health crisis. We strongly deny these allegations, which are inconsistent with the factual record, and will vigorously defend against them.”

Tish James’ lawsuit does not stop there, though. It takes to task New York arts and cultural institutions that have served as money-launderers of sorts for the Sackler family.

Among them, the Guggenheim Museum’s Sackler Center for Arts Education; the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Sackler Wing; American Museum of Natural History’s Sackler Educational Library; the Dia Foundation’s Sackler Institute; and the $6 million to New York Presbyterian Hospital in 2015 by Dr. Mortimer and the Theresa Sackler Foundation.

“Ultimately,” said James, “the Sacklers used their ill-gotten wealth to cover up their misconduct with a philanthropic campaign intending to whitewash their decades-long success in profiting at New Yorkers’ expense.”

The Guggenheim and the Met are reviewing their gift-acceptance policies.

No word yet, as to if they will return any monies or change the names of those wings.

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OUR TIME PRESS April 4-10, 2019

Free SAT s p l e h g n i t s te n e d r u b e h ease t . s e i l i m a f on

MAYORAL ACCOUNTABILITY MEANS EQUITY, EXCELLENCE & EMPOWERMENT.

Public schools under MAYORAL ACCOUNTABILITY do more for kids and families because parents have someone to hold accountable for results.

Learn more at nyc.gov/mayoralaccountability

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VOL. 23 NO. 14

Join Boys & Girls High Celebrating Their Return to Excellence, 4/11 at 5:30

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he road to success has been a long one, but also a steady one for the “High.” Boys and Girls High School (BGHS) has had an historic legacy in sports, academics and career development. Despite its setbacks in recent memory, many of the remarkable men and women who have graced the halls of the “High,” its alumni, parents and supporters in civic, business and the arts have continued to support the school and its progress toward excellence. We are thrilled, delighted and grateful that their persistence, determination and faith have resulted in its reemergence as a “school of distinction.”

It is no wonder that during this “springtime,” community leaders, elected officials, teachers, parents and students will celebrate the “Return to Academic Excellence” for BGHS. It will be a festive and informative celebration considering that only three years

Op Ed

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By Richard Jones

ago it was designated as one of the mayor’s and DOE “Renewal Schools” and expected not to reach the necessary benchmarks to avoid “Receivership Status” by the New York State Education Department.

Due to the academic leadership and dedicated work of its Principal, Ms. GrecianHarrison Walker, and former Principals, Dr. Michael Wiltshire and Bernard Gassaway, the commitment, devotion and tenacity of the teachers and staff to ensure our youth were provided with the educational and career skills for success and the ongoing faith and involvement of parents, Boys and Girls High School exceeded every benchmark and every expectation. This posed a daunting challenge, but through the commitment and dedication of the team of educators who viewed our children as their children, BGHS has exceeded expectations and exceeded the state-mandated benchmarks in graduation

rates, math and English Regents pass rates, the School Safety Index, the Student College Readiness Index and many more. Moreover, its daily attendance rate is over 82% (the highest in 7 years). Furthermore, it offers the highest number of AP courses it has ever provided, and its passing rate has increased 100% since 2015.

The school is especially proud of its graduation rate of over 70%; three years ago, it was 40%. We witnessed last spring, handsome and beautiful young men and women receive their diplomas, providing yet another example and opportunity to realize that our children are brilliant, fearless and capable of overcoming all of the obstacles that life presents when academic quality is at its best and the environment is safe and conducive to learning.

These remarkable advances and accomplishments have come in recent years due

to an extraordinary leader, a committed staff and faithful parents. The Principal, Grecian-Harrison Walker, has worked with teachers and community stakeholders to foster the belief that they have the power to collectively strengthen the educational and cultural conditions that support students.

These efforts have influenced students’ academic achievement, attitudes toward learning, self-efficacy and entrepreneurial skills. She has introduced “Keeping It 100” to inspire students to do their best, and she has created and strengthened programs that have multiple pathways for engagement of students in the learning process and that inspire them to take ownership of their future and the demands of the 21st century. These programs reflect an increase in academic programs such as: Advance Placement ➔➔ Continued on page 18

How I Got into Stuyvesant High School ■■

By Judge Randolph Jackson, Ret.

ately, there is an uproar over In turn, I took my own the paucity of Black stuchildren to church every Friday dents in the New York City night for choir rehearsal. Every Specialized High Schools. Only 7 Saturday morning, I took them of 895 students admitted this year to church for piano lessons. to Peter Stuyvesant High School in Every Sunday morning, I took Manhattan were African-American. them to church for Sunday This is nothing new. The exact same School. During the week, their condition existed in 1960 when I mother handed out vocabulary graduated from Stuyvesant High lists, administered weekly spellSchool. There were only 7 Blacks in ing tests and mandated monthly our graduating class of 698 students. book reports. Television was a Randy with his mother The school was 90% Jewish at the privilege, reserved for Fridays Rathenia Jackson time and there was no outcry about and Saturdays. It should not the ethnic makeup. Today, however, come as a surprise that they en- of highly qualified students, the denial of the school is 74% Asian-American tered Specialized High Schools admission to students capable of passing and there is a big furor!!! and became professionals. entrance examinations and the introduction The issue is how to get more Focusing on these three of cronyism, nepotism and favoritism into the Rathenia M. Jackson, Ocean Hill -Brownsville, 1968 Black students into Stuyvesant and elements, the home, the culture admission process. other Specialized High Schools without easy. While other kids were sweating bul- of the community and the elementary and My advice to anyone wishing to gain freezing out qualified students of other ethnic lets and throwing up with anxiety, I sailed middle schools can help to increase the admittance to a Specialized, “elite” High groups and without destroying the number through the test with ease. I needed no numbers of Black students in New York City School is very simple: Put down the basone public high school in the country, which special prep course for the test. My prep Specialized High Schools. Eliminating the ketball and pick up a book! Read more and is Stuyvesant. courses had been my mother’s tutelage, entrance examination for Specialized Schools dribble less!

There are three elements involved in a her intellectual attitude and the community without focusing on these previously stated Hon. Randolph Jackson is a retired positive solution: culture of achievement and upward mobility elements is misguided and will result in the Justice of the Supreme Court of the State of The homes of our children must be sup- surrounding me. withdrawal from the public school system New York portive of a middle-class, upwardly mobile attitude.

The culture of the community must encourage intellectual aspiration. There is a certain element of anti-intellectualism in the Black community, which must be addressed and eliminated. Our values must include Nursing achievement and success. All rich people Polysomnographic (Sleep) Technology Education Program Education Program Engineering are not crooks and all smart people are not nerds. Striving to be the best is not elitism.

Aiming for average is not egalitarian, but rather, encouraging of mediocrity.

Over programs of study offered The elementary and middle schools must do their part in educating and preparing students for future successes. But they cannot APPLY NOW do the job alone. It starts in the home. I was IN PERSON: Village Center | Room V-100 born and raised in the ghetto, Bed-Stuy, ONLINE: www.cuny.edu/apply Brooklyn, New York. However, I was IN the ghetto, but not OF the ghetto. My mother was a schoolteacher, a woman of the book.

For more info or to take a tour: She taught me to read a newspaper before I 718-368-4600 | www.kbcc.cuny.edu started kindergarten. There was a park one Physical Therapist Assistant Maritime Technology block away from our apartment building and Financial aid & payment plans EMS/Paramedic Culinary Arts inside that park was a library. Every Friday available for eligible students afternoon, I would check out four 200-page books and read them, cover to cover, over the weekend. I learned about the Bible in Sunday KINGSBOROUGH COMMUNITY COLLEGE School at the church.

2001 Oriental Boulevard, Brooklyn NY, 11235 I found the entrance examination for Stuyvesant High School to be ridiculously

When you’re ready to change your life.

When you’re ready to change the world.

Kingsborough is here for you.

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STEM

Opportunity for Free Summer Camp

FOR GRADES 2nd – 10th FREE Five-Week Academic-Focused STEM Camps APPLY BY FRIDAY, APRIL 26 Selection is done by lottery Summer program runs July 2-August 8, 2019 Hosted at 11 elementary, middle and high schools STEM sessions run Monday-Thursday, 8:30am to 2:30pm Transportation is provided in some cases

CHILDREN’S MUSEUM OF MANHATTAN Free every first Friday of the month, 5–8pm.

Exhibitions focus on health, diversity and just plain fun things like cartoons, while workshops and special events help fill the days.

VOL. 23 NO. 14

BROOKLYN CHILDREN’S MUSEUM

QUEENS COUNTY FARM MUSEUM

Free Thursdays, 2–6pm Crown Heights institution is home to around 30,000 artifacts.

Grounds free daily (check to see if a ticketed public event is occurring).

Take the kids to this working farm and check out goats, hens and pigs; the orchard (from which you can purchase apples on October weekends); and old farm buildings.

MUSEUM OF THE MOVING IMAGE Free for kids under 3 and free Fridays, 4–8pm Budding cinephiles can head to Astoria for the country’s biggest collection of moving-image artifacts. This interactive institution pays tribute to all aspects of movies, television shows and digital media from technology to social impact.

Photo by Greta Pemberton.

Children’s Garden at the Brooklyn Botanic: Register for Summer Classes: A limited number of needbased scholarships are available on a first-come, first-served basis. BROOKLYN BOTANIC GARDEN, 1000 Washington Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11225.

[718-623-7200, bbg.org]

NEW YORK HALL OF SCIENCE Free Fridays, 2–5pm, and Sundays, 10–11am.

Kids get hands-on with science and technology at this Queens institution that

features more than 450 exhibitions. There are a few worthwhile things to spend money on during your visit: a round of Rocket Park Mini-Golf, a turn in the 60,000-square-foot Science Playground and a screening inside the 3-D theater.

WATERFRONT MUSEUM AND SHOWBOAT BARGE Free Thursdays, 4–8pm, and Saturdays, 1–5pm.

Come tour this history wooden barge that is moored down in Brooklyn’s Red Hook, not far from the Fairway Market.

Check to see if a performance is taking place—perhaps a magic-, music- or history-related event that may cost money.

BROOKLYN BOTANIC GARDEN Free weekdays December 1–February 28; free Fridays, 10am–noon, March 1–free Tuesdays and Saturdays, 9am–noon

PRIME NUMBERS

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ver 2,200 New York City public high school students convened in Washington Heights Tuesday to participate in the 2019 NYC Computer Science Fair, the largest event of its kind in City history. It was CSF’s sixth edition, giving students hands-on activities Tarika Barrett of Girls Frank Denbow, founder, with local tech organizaWho Code is Vice INK'A, a platform for tions, including exhibitors, a President of Programs producing custom pitch contest, student project at HYPERLINK apparel for companies, showcases, interactive pre"https://girlswhocode. is Startup Advocate at sentations and networking com/"Girls Who Code, Microsoft. Her served opportunities. an organization as a panelist for this The NYC CSF’s primary committed to building week's Tech:NYC event goal is to connect with a HYPERLINK in New York City students who are part of the "https://girlswhocode.

New York City Department may be a long way from its com/2015report/# of Education’s Computer diversity objective. pipeline"pipeline Science for All (CS4All) Hosted by Tech:NYC, of future women initiative – which aims to technologists. She was Computer Science for New bring high-quality CS edua panelist at the the York City (CSNYC) and cation to every student in the 2019 NYC Computer Technology Education and New York City public school Literacy in Schools (TEALS Science Fair. system by 2025. Launched - a Microsoft Philanthropies in 2015, the initiative aspires to train near- program), the event included remarks voicing ly 5,000 local teachers and will focus on support for STEM education by Mayor Bill female, Black and Latinx students. Judging de Blasio and Schools Chancellor Richard from this week’s participants, the program Carranza.

Robotics student at Tech:NYC Also joining this year’s fair were 100+ area companies and academic institutions, including Accenture, Brooklyn College, Etsy, Facebook, LaGuardia Community College, Queens College, Shutterstock, and Warby Parker. Attending students represented over 70 city schools from all five boroughs.

Tuesday’s signature event was the Student Showcase, which allowed ten teams from eight local schools to demo various tech projects, including websites, apps, games, robotics, machines and software. The ten teams were comprised of 25 students from Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx, and were

selected from an application pool of 47 teams total. Schools represented were: Automotive High School, Benjamin N. Cardozo High School, Brooklyn Technical High School, East Williamsburg Scholars Academy, Forest Hills High School, Information Technology High School, Millennium Art Academy and Robert H. Goddard High School 308.

The VIP panel of judges for the showcase project competition, included Microsoft TEALS Startup Advocate Frank Denbow and Girls Who Code VP of Programs Tarika Barrett, among others. ➔➔ Continued on page 19

BOOK REVIEW

On “Hidden Figures” by Margot Lee Shetterly

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By Hadassah Bitton

idden Figures. As this title suggests: there is so much of our history that has yet to be told in

full color.

Margot Lee Shetterly, a Hampton Virginia Native, is the author who brought us the story of four African American women that persevered through segregation, even at the highest levels of science—and were the true pioneers that changed the course of where America stood, propelling our nation to the forefront of science and innovation.

Katherine, Dorothy, Mary and Christine were all really good at math. Their capacity was far better than the computers could accomplish at the time, which only further sparks our awe at what they achieved—landing on the moon. Without these women, our

Margot Lee Shetterly history as we know it could have been very different. As a children’s book, Shetterly set out on a mission of her own to embolden young readers—who may feel that they are not up to the task of such prestige.

Shetterly has done a lot more than

highlight the story of four relentless women and their journey through the Jim Crow era. Converging from her own experiences, Shetterly has illustrated their resilient nature and profound contributions to space exploration at NASA—one which paved the way for other African American and Women scientists. Her own father was a research scientist at NASA’s Langley research center, and therefore, her exposure to the glass ceiling constantly being challenged was perhaps what had inspired Shetterly to unleash the true and illustrious untold stories of inspiring people.

To further amplify her initiatives, she founded the Human Computer Project—a foundation that strives to shine a light on accomplished women in science.

Shetterly’s mission to diversify science and provide more transparency to the diverse contributions in STEM is what makes

Hidden Figures even more intriguing. With the children’s book, in addition to the fullread and movie based on this story, Shetterly has ensured that our generation, especially young African American children, are enlightened and encouraged that limitations are only what we make of them. Race on!

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Renaissance Woman in our time

Woman of Courage Luncheon

I of II

Nadhege Ptah

actress, writer, director, producer, dancer, filmmaker, mother, wife, entrepreneur- founder, MAAT Films

We selected Nadhege Ptah for a two-part exploration of a woman whose art nourishes her soul – and thus ours, as well.

Her activist art is created eyes open, on purpose and with purpose.

Ptah’s latest award-winning short film, Paris Blues in Harlem, is a powerful and beautiful look at gentrification up-close.

(Maitefa Angaza) Here we present Ptah …

In Her Own Words As told to: Kreyolicious.com I danced in my mother’s womb, and leaped my way out at seven months and became the ticket for my parents to stay in America. I continued my dance from the womb to the stage as a trained dancer in modern and ballet and performed with various modern dance ensembles. I choreographed a dance in high school for a play the Caribbean club was presenting.

That piece catapulted me to present for the United Nation’s International Day and I also received many invitations for colleges and organizations.

However, I never claimed myself as a dancer overtly because it only remained a hobby. There were pressures in my Haitian upbringing to become a doctor, lawyer, or nurse, as a real goal to achieve success. The arts were frowned upon, so I studied psychology while actively dancing for modern dance companies. I went on to pursue a master’s degree in forensic psychology.

I reached a cross road during graduate school, which derailed my next steps to obtain a Ph.D., and studied drama. It was then that I began to find my voice and passion through various mediums of performing

Photo: Harlem World

and developing other artistic skill sets as a writer, producer, and director. Overall, I am a creative storyteller using several artistic disciplines that display honest human stories with the intent to inspire and ignite change.

I was always drawn by movies, Broadway, musicals, drama, music videos, performances in general. I loved to sing, dance, act and put on shows as a child. I got teased in college for watching music videos all day. I was particularly drawn into the music videos that mirrored a film, like Michael Jackson’s Thriller. I loved the videos that melt the artist’s song into a mini-movie. I would say the visual of capturing a story, magnifying it on a huge screen, and reaching a big audience sparked my interest to transition into being a filmmaker, which encompasses all of my artistic passions.

I run the production company {MAAT FILMS} in the same fashion I raised my children – by nurturing it in order to grow. It is a business you are running.

There needs to be a plan and vision in place.

I continue to shape and mold it based on the vision. I make necessary changes when it’s not working. I protect the vision, and reach out to the necessary village that aligns and believes in the vision to assist with their skills sets that I may lack. I control what

Nadhege Ptah with Samuel J. Hargress, Jr. owner, Paris Blues, the site of her “Paris Blues in Harlem” film short. Ptah’s film is winning recognition at film festivals and awards in New York City and beyond.

District Leader Olanike Alabi, far right, hosted the 11th Annual Woman of Courage Award luncheon last week. Honored guests included, left to right, Attorney General Letitia James, Congressmember Yvette Clarke and Judge Dweynie Paul. can be controlled, but let go and trust, so the vision can breathe and begin to develop

AS told to: Huffington Post 1/24/17 Black Filmmakers Shine: Interview with Harlem Filmmaker Nadhege Ptah I have various artistic disciplines that began my journey as an artist from dance, acting, and writing that were and continue to be expressed on stage and film. So, creativity is my first love. Depending on the season one artistic medium takes precedent over the others.

Tell us about your Harlem. How has Harlem inspired you as an artist?

My Harlem weeps for what once was, a painful adjustment to the change. Harlem has a bold and spicy flavor filled with electrical energy of entertaining people.

As an actor and writer it’s a great place to watch and study characteristics, it fuels the creative juices. Also, the legacy, history, and memories still linger with the elders in the community, like my former neighbor who passed and shared personal stories with his friendship with Malcolm Little before he became Malcolm X. One can’t learn that from the history books. The engagement in real time and hearing the stories inspires me to carry the baton.

What are your homelands? How does “home” - real and imagined - figure into your work?

Interesting question of homelands because I was born in America, but raised culturally by my parents’ homeland in Haiti. So, I experienced being in between two culturally different homelands. I was navigating the African-American experience with a Haitian upbringing. My inner world of imagination was home for me, it allowed me to feel safe, create my own and

be accepted without having to prove my allegiance in language, music, food, etc.

So, my imagination plays into my work and pulling from various “homes,” which is essentially the best homeland my work derives from.

When you are an emerging artist, graduate to an evolving artist. Once you come into view and get notice, then what? There are so many artists who emerged but never evolved. So, continue to develop, progress and advance in your craft and self.

What advice would you offer local mothers who are trying to complete projects of their own?

You can’t do it on your own. It takes a village to raise a child, so the concept applies for projects. Find like-minded people who are supportive, share the same goals, and just do it.

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OUR TIME PRESS April 4-10, 2019

Taking the leap into entrepreneurship is daunting.

Writer Elizabeth Rankin-Fulcher knows six women who did it with no regrets. Following is Part Two on successful Women in Business.

Women in Businesses ■■

By Elizabeth Rankin-Fulcher

Part II of II KYIESHA K E L L Y (pictured) & MALIK K E L LY, siblings and owners of Hip Hop Closet, began their journey 20 years ago using their own personal funds. Kyeisha is married with children; Malik is single.

The Kelly siblings are the sole employees using interns and part-time help, as needed.

At the beginning, the siblings operated from their home, all sales were strictly ecommerce with sales mostly outside the metropolitan area. By the way, all merchandise is “Made in New York”. Hip Hop Closet has now found a home in the Brooklyn Navy Yard with a showroom and event space. The community can shop and enjoy lectures, book discussions/signings and performances by rap and jazz artists in a relaxed and comfortable environment.

Hip Hop Closet relies on social media and their website to advertise their business.

Kyiesha’s advice to newbies “do something that really speaks to who you are and about what you are most passionate.

Don’t pattern your idea after anyone else, be unique; don’t be afraid to fail, to tweak, it’s all about trial and error. Believe in yourself.” https://hiphopcloset.com/

FIFI BELL-CLANTON & GWEN WOODS are the founders and co-owners of 5-year old Crabby Shack. Having worked in fashion and music, respectively, for 20 years, food became a hobby, hosting dinner parties in their homes. One day Fifi came up with the idea of opening up a crab restaurant in Brooklyn; Gwen loved the idea, and after talking about it for six months they decided to quit their jobs and go for it. Gwen served as broker finding an abandoned church in a potentially vibrant neighborhood. Both women are the primary investors with one other investor and because they realized they would need to do extensive renovation with a new heating system, plumbing and electrical upgrades, they started a kickstart campaign raising $28,000. The restaurant name came about because Fifi kept calling it crabby shack and so it is! They have been at the Franklin Avenue location for five years and recently opened a second Crabby Shack on Clinton Ave. Both women do the cooking along with one additional chef; there are ten employees and interns, as needed; staff are not offered benefits, but plans are to offer 401K. Crabby Shack uses ADP payroll service and consults with legal and financial professionals, as needed. thecrabbyshack. com AKIM VANN, a native Brooklynite, is the sole owner of The Bakery on Bergen.

This young entrepreneur has been working

since she was 3 years old on Sesame Street.

Her entrepreneurial spirit includes serving as a private tutor and a life coach which allowed her to save money and start The Bakery on Bergen. The three year old bakery commenced with two partners but the partnership did not work out.

Plans call for the space to also be used for events, children’s parties, baking classes and the like. Employees are interns, as needed. In the Fall of 2018, The Bakery on Bergen was selected for a make-over on the television show “Get A Room” which garnered major publicity.

The Bakery on Bergen sells its baked goods to The Crabby Shack and Angela Yee’s Juice Bar and is open to selling to other small restaurants. Online ordering is available through Grub Hub. Advice to prospective entrepreneurs – take advantage of business services offered at local universities, seek the advice of a mentor who can offer financial advice; if there is a need for partners/investors, be careful in choosing them and don’t be afraid to take calculated risks. the bakeryonbergennyc.com ATIM ANNETTE OTON, CALIBAR IMPORTS, an immigrant from Nigeria in the town of Calibar, followed in the footsteps of her parents who abandoned their careers as a journalist and an educator to become entrepreneurs. More than 14 years ago Calibar Imports opened its doors on Franklin Avenue, Brooklyn, NY; today there are two additional stores one in Harlem and the other in Brooklyn, all financed from personal monies. The Harlem location houses an art gallery and event space along with its usual retail sales. Inventory consists of ethnic clothing, jewelry, home décor and gifts. Calibar Imports has two part-time employees with no benefits.

Atim is motivated by the legacy of her parents and grandparents in addition to which, she loves being her own “boss”.

Her advice to future entrepreneurs is to think about the future of your business and have an exit plan.” She believes that the younger shoppers are more conscious about how they spend their money and “buy Black”. calabar-imports.com Elizabeth Rankin-Fulcher is co-founder and co-chair of Black Women’s Leadership Caucus, Inc. She sits on the board of ESPER, a black stamp collecting organization and coordinates special stamp dedications in collaboration with The African Burial Ground.

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VOL. 23 NO. 14

New York’s 2019-20 State Budget

Continued from page 2

we are pleased with the strides we have made thus far, we remain poised to continue the push for a more just criminal justice system.”

And Norman L. Reimer, executive director of the National Association for Criminal Defense Lawyers, called these changes “the most significant legislative reform of New York’s criminal justice system in generations.”

He also listed several areas of work still ahead, however, “from achieving a more robust exercise of executive clemency power, to parole and probation reform, expungement of marijuana offenses, disclosure of law enforcement misconduct records, and more.”

Education was given a much-needed boost in the new budget as well, (although the disbursing of the more than $2 billion still owed to NYC schools through the Campaign for Fiscal Equity was not addressed). Meanwhile, the 2019-20 budget does allocate an additional $1 billion in state education. It also includes: an additional $50 million in Community Schools Aid; a $618 million dollar increase for Foundation Aid to the state’s neediest schools, bringing the allocation to $18.4 billion; a $15 million increase in Pre-K funding, now totaling $822 million; a $10 million increase for afterschool programs; $7.8 million for Adult Literacy Education; $18.5 in bilingual education grants; $103.9 million for Schools for the Blind and Deaf,; the restoration of $5 million to Aid to Public Libraries (resulting in a total $96.6 million) and more.

Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and Education Committee Michael Benedetto’s report on the budget highlighted a popular budget item: “Three years ago, New York became the first state in the nation to fund the My Brother’s Keeper initiative. The initiative focuses on family and community engagement, professional development, the expansion and development of exemplary school practices and models, and addresses issues related to restorative justice and racial disparities in education. The SFY 2019-20 Budget includes $18 million in ongoing funding for My Brother’s Keeper programs, for a total of $74 million in funding since the program’s creation.”

Both congestion pricing and the banning of plastic bags have been met with mixed reviews. Among those who hate what the overuse of plastics is doing to the earth, are people who say they value the convenience of plastic bags when shopping. Others point out that the poor will be unfairly affected by the ban.

Some admit that fewer cars in Manhattan will benefit air quality and gridlock, but they say can’t—or won’t – pay yet another fee. Diehard drivers are not necessarily moved by the application of these fees for transit improvements, either. The budget does mandate a new traffic mobility review board, as well as increased oversight for the MTA and faster completion of its projects. So let’s hope that riding mass transit will be more attractive to those who don’t have to – and especially to those who do.

“Hopefully, the money raised from congestion pricing will be properly used to improve NYC public transportation,” said Assembly Member Wright. “My community relies upon the bus and subways. The MTA should heed the requests

of the community and make improvements that will improve service and access immediately. Many of the proposed subway signal improvements will take years to effectuate. The MTA must raise money, then borrow money, and finally execute the “planned changes. It is going to take more than three years. We cannot wait some changes are urgent.

(Of course, there are many New Yorkers who don’t fit in neat boxes, who are taking a wait-and-see stance.)

One potential gamechangers attendant to the new budget that hasn’t been widely mentioned is the three paid hours of break on Election Day, Coupled with early voting in New York starting this fall (signed into law by Governor Cuomo in January), the paid break could make a real difference.

Not as successful in getting the requisite number of votes were campaign financing reform, a preferred form of taxing the wealthy and the legalization of recreational marijuana use.

The one percent, who pay virtually no taxes, will remain unbothered because the real estate lobby came down hard and heavy to block the pied a terre tax proposed in the budget. Instead a greater number of not as wealthy people will contribute a bit more in the form of a new “mansion tax.’ So people like Ken Griffin who purchased a $238 million penthouse won’t see any real estate tax increases, but those who purchased a $2 million dollar property or transferred ownership of a $3 million property will pay more. (There is more to this story, entailing varying degrees of wealth.)

Assembly Member Wright feels that every little bit helps.

“The changes to the mansion tax increases it from 1% to 1.25% for home sales above $2M; 1.35% between $3M $5M; 2.25% between $3M-$5M; and 3% for home sales over $10M,” says Wright.

“This will raise money for our MTA and public transit system. We already know there is a scheduled MTA fare increase scheduled for next year; the changes to the mansion tax will help provide money to keep our subway and buses operating and in good repair.”

And although the marijuana law did not pass, Wright is optimistic for the near future.

“I share the belief that we can create and pass legislation to legalize cannabis

by June,” Wright said. “The negotiations have been moving along well this year; however, NYS is creating a new industry and as such, it is complicated.

Nonetheless, we are committed to passing legislation that addresses equity and provides economic opportunities to all New Yorkers.”

VOL. 23 NO. 14

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OUR TIME PRESS April 4-10, 2019

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VOL. 23 NO. 14

Do You Know an Unsung Hero?

June is Men’s Month in Our Time Press

O

ver the years, Our Time Press has had in our pages, stories and images of men working on behalf of the community.

Politicians, community leaders and the like. However, there are many others who have not been heralded and we know our readers know who they are.

Men who are raising families and giving back to the com-

munity and who have not been recognized for it. Let’s fix that.

We are asking for an image accompanied by no more than 200 words for print of a hero in your home, in your building, at your house of worship, institution or wherever you find them. Let us DBG Media, Publishers of Our know and we’ll let you tell every- ourtimepress.com If by mail, include typewritten Time Press, Inc. one about them.

Send picture and text of Unsung text and a self-addressed stamped 358 Classon Avenue Heroes to: unsungheroes@ envelope for return of pictures: Brooklyn, NY 11238

“Illegal” Requirements for School Breakfasts and Lunches ➔➔

Continued from page 6

grain-rich”—i.e., contain at least 51% whole grains—as recommended by the Dietary Guidelines.

In 2010, Congress enacted the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, which directed USDA to issue revised nutritional standards for school lunches and breakfasts. After public notice and extensive comment on the proposed rule – over 133,000 public comments were considered – USDA in 2012 issued new, updated nutritional standards for school meals. These updates included, for the first time, interim and final limits for sodium, as well as a requirement increasing the whole grains in school meals. In accordance with federal law, the standards set for sodium and whole grain were consistent with the Dietary Guidelines and the recommendations of the Food and Nutrition Board study.

■■

Most schools across the nation have now met the first sodium reduction target of the 2012 regulation. Further, the majority of schools are now meeting the regulation’s standard by serving bread, pancakes, pasta, and other foods to students that are entirely whole-grain rich.

Despite this substantial progress, in 2018, the Trump Administration’s USDA

issued a rule that dismantled key nutrition standards set by the 2012 Rule, eliminating the final maximum sodium target, delaying by five years the second intermediate maximum sodium target that had been set for the 2019-2020 school year, and cutting in half the whole grains requirement. In issuing the rule, the Trump USDA failed to explain how the changes to the sodium and whole grain nutrition standards for school meals were, as required by law, “consistent with the goals of the latest Dietary Guidelines for Americans” and “based on” the Food and Nutrition Board study’s recommendations. Further, the 2018 rule was neither issued as a proposed rule nor was the public provided an opportunity to comment on it.

Joining Attorney General James in today’s lawsuit, are the Attorneys General of California, the District of

Columbia, Illinois, Minnesota, New Mexico, and Vermont.

The lawsuit was filed in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York.

“Our country is feeding the health care crisis facing millions of Americans every single day,” said Brooklyn Borough Presi dent Eric Adams. “The National School Lunch Program establishes a minimum standard of nutrition requirements that, in fact, fall significantly short of what our young people need to avoid the pipeline to chronic disease that awaits so many, particularly if they live in food deserts. It is unconscionable that we have to fight to hold that standard, but it is with great gratitude that I thank Attorney General James for standing on this legal battlefield alongside our children and families. From Brooklyn to Bakersfield, we are nourishing the start of a nationwide movement to ensure every student has access to truly healthy school meals.”

PS5 STUDENTS CLAP BACK FOR THE HOMELESS Fifth Graders Join BP In Support of Mobile Shower

W

By Keith L. Forest

ith signs that read “Come Down to the Bus Because You Matter”, “Shower Power”, “When We’re Clean We Feel Redeemed” and others, students from The Ronald E. McNair Public School #5 joined forces with Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams in support of a new initiative to bring a mobile shower to the borough of Kings.

The BP, who heard of the project success in San Francisco, joined forces with Brooklyn Community Services (BCS) in contributing $308K to support building a shower bus for Brooklyn. When asked by student Zachary Abdul-Zahir what inspired him to champion the project, BP Adams shared how when he was growing up, his family was on he verge homelessness. “I remember the uncertainty of not knowing if you have a home,” Adams reflected. “I (also) remember people cared for us when we were going through hard times.”

According to PS5’s 5th-grade teacher Cindy VanPetten, as part of their New York State expeditionary learning, reading and writing curriculum on Human Rights, students are exposed to the Declaration of Human Rights. “This usually sparks the children to want to do something in the community,” VanPetten said. After researching the topic, encouraged by Jada Warren and Serenity Dixon the class contacted to Borough President to show support in having a shower bus for Brooklyn.

Students hope to join Brooklyn Community Service (BCS) and BP Eric L. Adams in welcoming the shower bus when it arrives. According to BCS COO Jodi Querbach, who attended the meeting and met with the children earlier, the bus is in production and anticipated to be delivered around June. “We also like to give them the books we collected as part of our student-run book store and read to them while they wait on line,” said Jada Warren. “I’m sure they would appreciate that,” chimed in BP Adams.

Glenn Young

VOL. 23 NO. 14

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LEGAL NOTICES NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF KINGS The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation, as Trustee for CWABS, Inc. Asset-Backed Certificates, Series 20035, Plaintiff AGAINST Keith Adrian; et al., Defendant(s) Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly dated November 20, 2017 I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street, Room 224, Brooklyn, NY 11201 on May 2, 2019 at 2:30PM, premises known as 105-23 Flatlands 3rd Street, Brooklyn, NY 11236. All that certain plot piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of NY, Block 8251 Lot 73. Approximate amount of judgment $487,170.91 plus interest and costs.

Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index# 511293/2015. Dana L. Jenkins, Esq., Referee Shapiro, DiCaro & Barak, LLC Attorney(s) for the Plaintiff 175 Mile Crossing Boulevard Rochester, New York 14624 (877) 430-4792 Dated: March 25, 2019 62262 NOTICE OF SALE Supreme Court County Of Kings PennyMac Corp., Plaintiff AGAINST Ceaser Anthony Jr., a/k/a Caeser Anthony, Ceaser Anthony and Annia Mae Anthony as Trustees of the Living Trust of Ceaser Anthony, Jr. and Annia Anthony, et al, Defendant Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly dated 2/19/2019 and entered on 2/27/2019, I, the undersigned Referee, will sell at public auction at the Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, NY on May 02, 2019 at 02:30 PM premises known as 531 Van Siclen Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11207. All that certain plot piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements erected, situate, lying and being in the County of Kings, City and State of New York, BLOCK: 4074, LOT: 8. Approximate amount of judgment is $533,909.72 plus interests and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index # 501103/2013. Vasilios Angelos, Referee FRENKEL LAMBERT WEISS WEISMAN & GORDON LLP 53 Gibson Street, Bay Shore, NY 11706.

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT KINGS COUNTY U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS TRUSTEE FOR CERTIFICATEHOLDERS OF BEAR STEARNS ASSET BACKED SECURITIES I LLC, ASSET BACKED CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2005-AC7, Plaintiff against VISHNU BANDHU, et al Defendants Attorney for Plaintiff(s) Fein, Such & Crane, LLP, 28 East Main Street, Suite 1800, Rochester, NY 14614 Attorney (s) for Plaintiff (s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered August 14, 2018, I will sell at public auction to the highest bidder at Room 224 of Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, New York, 11201 on May 2, 2019 at 2:30 PM. Premises known as 852 Belmont Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11208. Block: 4039 Lot: 21 F/K/A Block: 4039 Part of Old Lot: 21 and Block: 4039 Part of Old Lot: 20. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York. Approximate Amount of Judgment is $861,530.09 plus interest and costs.

Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index No 9502/2013. M. Randolph Jackson, Esq., Referee SPSNC486 NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF KINGS US Bank National Association, as Trustee for Credit Suisse First Boston Mortgage Securities Corp., CSMC Mortgage-Backed Pass-Through Certificates, Series 2006-6, Plaintiff AGAINST Jose Garcia

a/k/a Jose R. Garcia; et al., Defendant(s) Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly dated February 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 May 2, 2019 at 2:30PM, premises known as 1227 East 104th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11236.

All that certain plot piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of NY, Block: 8269 Lot: 28. Approximate amount of judgment $607,025.20 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index# 11103/2013. Randolph Jackson, Esq., Referee Shapiro, DiCaro & Barak, LLC Attorney(s) for the Plaintiff 175 Mile Crossing Boulevard Rochester, New York 14624 (877) 430-4792 Dated: March 13, 2019 SUPPLEMENTAL SUMMONS– SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, COUNTY OF KINGS – GREEN TREE SERVICING LLC, Plaintiff, against Dominic Famulari, Esq., as Guardian ad Litem for the respective heirs-at-law, nextof-kin, distributees, executors, administrators, trustees, devisees, legatees, assignees, lienors, creditors and successors in interest and generally all persons having or claiming under, by or through Mary Brown a/k/a Mary BrownMorris who may be deceased by purchase, inheritance, lien or otherwise, any right, title or interest in the real property described in the complaint herein, STEVEN BROWN MORRIS Individually and as Heir and Distributee of the Estate of Mary Brown a/k/a Mary Brown-Morris, DWAYNE BROWN Individually and as Heir and Distributee of the Estate of Mary Brown a/k/a Mary BrownMorris, FREDRICK BROWN as Heir and Distributee of the Estate of Mary Brown a/k/a Mary Brown-Morris, CRIMINAL COURT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK (KINGS), NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF TAXATION AND FINANCE, NEW YORK CITY PARKING VIOLATIONS BUREAU, NEW YORK CITY ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL BOARD, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (EASTERN DISTRICT), NEW YORK CITY TRANSIT ADJUDICATION BUREAU, KINGS SUPREME COURT, PALISADES COLLECTION LLC, MIDLAND FUNDING NCC-2 CORP., CAPITAL ONE BANK, NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE, AMERI CREDIT FINANCIAL SERVICES INC., RAB PERFORMANCE RECOVERIES LLC, METRO PORTFOLIOS, INC., MUNICIPAL CREDIT UNION, STATE OF NEW YORK, SLOMINS INC., DefendantsIndex No. 14394/2014. Plaintiff Designates Kings County as the Place of Trial. The Basis of Venue is that the subject action is situated in Kings County. 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(s) 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); the United States of America may appear or answer within 60 days of service hereof; 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. That this Supplemental Summons is being filed pursuant to an order of the court filed January 29, 2019. 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. HELP FOR HOMEOWNERS IN FORECLOSURE; New York State law requires that we send you this notice about the foreclosure process. Please read it carefully.

SUMMONS AND COMPLAINT You are in danger of losing your home. If you fail to respond to the Summons and Complaint in this Foreclosure Action, you may lose your home.

Please read the Summons and Complaint carefully. You should immediately contact an attorney of your local legal aid office to obtain advice on how to protect yourself. SOURCES OF INFORMATION AND ASSISTANCE The State encourages you to become informed about your options in foreclosure. In addition to seeking assistance from an attorney or legal aid office, there are government agencies and non-profit organizations that you may contact for information about possible options, including trying to work with your lender during this process. To locate an entity near you, you may call the toll-free helpline maintained by the New York State Department of Financial Services’ at 1-800-269-0990 or visit the Department’s website at 622 3rd Avenue, NYC 10017, 21st Floorhttp:// www.dfs.ny.gov. FORECLOSURE RESCUE SCAMS Be careful of people who approach you with offers to “save” your home. There are individuals who watch for notices of foreclosure actions in order to unfairly profit from a homeowner’s distress. You should be extremely careful about any such promises and any suggestions that you pay them a fee or sign over your deed. State law requires anyone offering such services for profit to enter into a contract which fully describes the services they will perform and fees they will charge, and which prohibits them from taking any money from you until they have completed all such promised services. We are attempting to collect a debt. Any information obtained will be used for that purpose. The foregoing summons is served upon you by publication pursuant to an order of the Honorable Noach Dear dated January 16, 2019. The object of this action is to foreclose a mortgage and covering the premises known as 317 Grafton Street, Brooklyn, NY 11212 located at Block 3581 and Lot 15 Dated: March 9, 2019 Berkman, Henoch, Peterson, Peddy and Fenchel, P.C., Attorney for Plaintiff, By: Hillary Prada, Esq., 100 Garden City Plaza, Garden City, NY 11530 (516) 222-6200.

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF KINGS Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. Successor by Merger to Wachovia Mortgage, F.S. B. F/K/A/ World Savings Bank, FSB, Plaintiff AGAINST Carmen Maria Valdez; et al., Defendant(s) Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly dated September 26, 2017 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 25, 2019 at 2:30PM, premises known as 3039 Brighton 4th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11235-6446. 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 8674 Lot 86. Approximate amount of judgment $735,255.07 plus interest and costs.

Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index# 11853/2011. Leonard C. Aloi, Esq., Referee Shapiro, DiCaro & Barak, LLC Attorney(s) for the Plaintiff 175 Mile Crossing Boulevard Rochester, New

VOL. 23 NO. 14 York 14624 (877) 430-4792 Dated: February 27, 2019 61814 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF ROCKLAND INDEX NO. 032710/2018 Plaintiff designates ROCKLAND as the place of trial situs of the real property NATIONSTAR MORTGAGE LLC D/B/A CHAMPION MORTGAGE COMPANY, Plaintiff, vs. JAYNE FOSTER, AS HEIR AND DISTRIBUTEE OF THE ESTATE OF PIERCE H. FOSTER A/K/A PIERCE HASTING FOSTER A/K/A PETER FOSTER; PIERCE HASTING FOSTER, JR. A/K/A PIERCE FOSTER, AS HEIR AND DISTRIBUTEE OF THE ESTATE OF PIERCE H. FOSTER A/K/A PIERCE HASTING FOSTER A/K/A PETER FOSTER; JENNIFER ALICE FOSTER BLUNIER A/KA JENNIFER BLUNIER, AS HEIR AND DISTRIBUTEE OF THE ESTATE OF PIERCE H. FOSTER A/K/A PIERCE HASTING FOSTER A/K/A PETER FOSTER; DAVID J. FOSTER A/K/A DAVID FOSTER, AS HEIR AND DISTRIBUTEE OF THE ESTATE OF PIERCE H. FOSTER A/K/A PIERCE HASTING FOSTER A/K/A PETER FOSTER; JONATHAN E. FOSTER A/K/A JOHNATHAN FOSTER, AS HEIR AND DISTRIBUTEE OF THE ESTATE OF PIERCE H. FOSTER A/K/A PIERCE HASTING FOSTER A/K/A PETER FOSTER; UNKNOWN HEIRS AND DISTRIBUTEES OF THE ESTATE OF PIERCE H. FOSTER A/K/A PIERCE HASTING FOSTER A/K/A PETER FOSTER 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; CHASE BANK USA, N.A.; NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF TAXATION AND FINANCE; UNITED STATES OF AMERICA – INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE; SECRETARY OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT; CITIBANK, N.A. F/K/A CITIBANK (SOUTH DAKOTA), NATIONAL ASSOCIATION; AMERICAN EXPRESS CENTURION BANK; ‘’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._ SUPPLEMENTAL SUMMONS Mortgaged Premises: 72 LIBERTY ROAD TAPPAN, NY 10983 District: Section: 77.9 Block: 1 Lot: 13 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 ➔➔ Continued on page 18

VOL. 23 NO. 14

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OUR TIME PRESS April 4-10, 2019

NEW BUSINESS FORMATIONS James Wise Property Management LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 2/19/19 Office: Kings County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to The LLC, c/o James Wise, 435 Berriman Street, Brooklyn, NY 11208.Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

Eldercare Allegiance LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 2/25/19 Office: Kings County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 495 Flatbush Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11225.Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

Open Shop LLC. Art. of Org. filed with the SSNY on {2/1/19}. Office: Kings

County County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, {475 Kent Ave, #702, Brooklyn, NY 11249}. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

ATRIUS 3062 LLC filed Arts. of Org. with the Sect’y of State of NY (SSNY) on 1/16/2019. Office: 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 LLC, 2955 Shell Rd. #1P, Brooklyn, NY 11224. Purpose: any lawful act.

STARPOINT DEVELOPMENT LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 12/12/18 with an existence date of 01/01/2019 Office: Kings County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 132 Greenpoint Avenue, Suite B1, Brooklyn, NY 11222. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

Tenant, Homeowner & Ready to Rent Resource Event There will be information on the following:

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH

FREE ANTI-EVICTION SERVICES ORGANIZING TENANTS IN YOUR BUILDING FREE LEGAL CLINIC APPLY FOR NYC HOUSING LOTTERIES USING HOUSING CONNECT GET READY TO SHOW YOU QUALIFY FREE FINANCIAL COUNSELING CHECK YOUR CREDIT HOW TO CALCULATE YOUR INCOME FOR HOUSING SAVE FOR MOVING EXPENSES HOMEOWNER HELP – DEED THEFT & FORECLOSURE PROTECTION FIRST TIME HOMEOWNER PROGRAM & QUALIFYING FOR GRANTS

April is Fair Housing Month

ATTEND OUR TENANT, HOMEOWNER & READY TO RENT RESOURCE EVENT Thursday, April 18, 2019 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM 689 New York Ave. Brooklyn, NY 11203 T Building Auditorium, 2nd Floor (T-Building entrance at the corner of New York Ave. and Clarkson Ave.) 2 5 Winthrop Street, B43, B44, B12 Light refreshments served.

To sign up for our mailing list, visit impacctbrooklyn.org.

Funded through the New York State Attorney General Homeownership Protection Program

IMPACCT BROOKLYN Strengthening communities through housing, economic opportunity and advocacy.

1000 Dean Street, Suite 420, Brooklyn, NY 11238 | impacctbrooklyn.org

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LEGAL NOTICES ➔➔ Continued from page 16 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 $847,500.00 and interest, recorded on July 7, 2010, at Liber 2010-00024329, of the Public Records of ROCKLAND County, New York, covering premises known as 72 LIBERTY ROAD TAPPAN, NY 10983. 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: Sahar Hamlani, ESQ. 900 Merchants Concourse, Suite 310 Westbury, NY 11590 516-280-7675 NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT, COUNTY OF KINGS, JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association, vs. Patricia Campbell, Chase Manhattan Bank USA, N.A. Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc. as nominee for Alliance Mortgage Banking Corp., New York City Environmental Control Board, New York City Parking Violations Bureau, New York City Transit Adjudication Bureau, People of the State of New York, Chase Bank FKA The Dime Savings Bank of NY FSB, Anthony Harris, Kemeisha Robinson, Sandra Tyndale, Trevor Grant, Donald Lee Davenport, Defendant(s).

Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated November 5, 2018 and duly entered thereafter, Steven B. Shapiro, Esq., the court appointed Referee will sell at public auction in Room 224 of the Kings County Supreme

Court, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201 on Thursday, April 25, 2019 at 2:30 p.m., the premises known as 1301 St. Johns Place, Brooklyn, NY 11213; all that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the County of Kings, City of New York, and State of New York Block 1377, Lot 149. Approximate amount of judgment is $1,037,948.72 plus interest and costs.

Premises will be sold subject to provisions of said Judgment Index No. 27873/2009. Steven B. Shapiro, Esq., Referee Lawrence & Walsh, P.C., 215 Hilton Avenue, Hempstead, NY 11550, Attorneys for Plaintiff NOTICE OF SALE Supreme Court County Of Kings Citigroup Mortgage Loan Trust Inc. Asset-Backed Pass-Through Certificates, Series 2007-AMC4, U.S. Bank National Association as Trustee, Plaintiff AGAINST Zakiya R. Millar, et al, Defendant Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly dated 8/1/18 and entered on 9/7/18, I, the undersigned Referee, will sell at public auction at the Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, NY on April 18, 2019 at 02:30 PM premises known as 757 Monroe 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 County of Kings, City and State of New York, BLOCK: 1638, LOT: 79. Approximate amount of judgment is $766,490.35 plus interests and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index # 511695/2015. Jageshwar Sharma, Referee FRENKEL LAMBERT WEISS WEISMAN & GORDON LLP 53 Gibson Street Bay Shore, NY 11706 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC AUCTION Supreme Court of New York, KINGS County.

FEDERAL NATIONAL MORTGAGE ASSOCIATION, Plaintiff, -against- SHAYLA COLEMAN; BOARD OF MANAGERS OF DEKALB AVENUE CONDOMINIUM, HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION; CITY OF NEW YORK ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL BOARD; CITY OF NEW YORK PARKING VIOLATIONS BUREAU; CITY OF NEW YORK TRANSIT ADJUDICATION BUREAU, Index No. 11825/2013. Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly dated, February 22, 2016 and entered with the Kinga County Clerk on March 1, 2016, Domenick Napoletano, Esq., the Appointed Referee, will sell the premises known as 800 Dekalb Avenue, Unit C8/4B, Brooklyn, New York 11221 at public auction in Room 224 of Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, New York 11201, on April 25, 2019 at 2:30 P.M. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of

land, known as Unit No. 4B in the building designated as the DeKalb Avenue Condominium, TOGETHER with an undivided 2.16% interest in Common Elements, Borough and County of Kings, City and State of New York known as Block: 1781; Lot: 1024 will be sold subject to the provisions of filed Judgment, Index No. 11825/2013. The approximate amount of judgment is $402,067.50 plus interest and costs. FRIEDMAN VARTOLO LLP 85 Broad Street, Suite 501, New York, New York 10004, Attorneys for Plaintiff.

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF KINGS 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,

VOL. 23 NO. 14 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 ➔➔ Continued on page 19

Boys and Girls High School Return to Academic Excellence Celebration ➔➔ Continued from page 8 courses, Blended Online courses, College courses, College Now, Success Mentoring Programs, College Tours and Career Trips, Regents Boot Camp and Regents Prep. Other programs that have had a tremendous impact on the “High’s” return to prominence are the Parent Advocacy Academy, Family Welcome Center, College and Career Advisement, Career and Technical (CTE) Programs in Electrical Installation, Architectural Drafting, Computer Programming, Theater Arts and the Good Shepherds’ Counseling and Coaching programs.

Additionally, parent and community partnerships continue to remind many of the relationships that Dr. Frank Mickens garnered during his time at the helm of the “High.” Relationships with community and elected officials provided opportunities in the theater, in business, corporate internships and community development projects. The

school is proud of its relationships with the Brooklyn Navy Yard, Manhattan Theater Club, Brooklyn Nets, Brooklyn’s Restoration

Corporation, Boys and Girls Club, Adelaide Sanford Institute, Brooklyn Policy Group, Community Engagement Team, Advisory

Board, and local colleges and universities, all of which have played a vital part in the school’s resurgence to prominence.

Finally, Boys and Girls High School (“The High”) is our Community School with a history that differs not from the struggles of Africans throughout history. Progress may sometimes falter, but when a people is determined and committed to struggle, it is not long before prominence reemerges.

Principal Walker and her team of educators and community leaders have done a remarkable job in reestablishing Boys and Girls High School to prominence and in engaging and challenging our youth in academic, career and extracurricular experiences that will benefit them through life’s journey.

Come out to celebrate our school’s “Return to Academic Excellence” and congratulate the educators, parents and community stakeholders committed to our children on Thursday, April 11th at Boys and Girls High School at 6pm.

VOL. 23 NO. 14

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PRIME NUMBERS ➔➔ Continued from page 10

PULL QUOTE: “With all of these new jobs and the digital economy, it’s really important for three reasons that we have computer science. One is citizenship. We don’t need everyone to be doctors or physicists, but when you participate in civic society and … you’re going to vote on some of these issues, it’s important they know all of the foundational knowledge you have to know behind (technology). [Also], whatever job you end up having in the future and even now, computational thinking is going to be a required part of that. And the last thing is technology companies want to move computer science forward and we need software engineers to do that.” Kevin Wang, founder of TEALS, and former schoolteacher.

ABOUT TECH:NYC - Tech:NYC is an engaged network of technology leaders working to foster a dynamic, diverse, and creative New York. The organization works with policymakers and business leaders to support a successful technology ecosystem, attract and retain talent, and celebrate New

LEGAL NOTICES ➔➔ Continued from page 18 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

York and the companies that call it home. Tech:NYC represents more than 700 New York tech companies.

ABOUT CSNYC - CSNYC aims to ensure that all of New York City’s 1.1 million public school students have access to a high-quality computer science education that puts them on a pathway to college and career success.

CSNYC supports CS4All, a 10-year, $81M public-private partnership to bring computer science to all NYC students with an emphasis on female, black and Latinx students.

ABOUT TEALS -Microsoft Philanthropies TEALS (Technology Education and Literacy in Schools) helps high schools throughout the US and British Columbia, Canada build and grow sustainable computer science programs. In its proven program, TEALS pairs trained computer science professionals from across the technology industry with classroom teachers to team-teach computer science. TEALS was founded in 2009 by former high school CS teacher and Microsoft engineer Kevin Wang, who now runs the program full time. 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

SATURDAY, APRIL 6 NATIONAL ACTION NETWORK 2019 Convention. Times Square Sheraton. Information: nationalactionnetwork.net.

9:00am - Black Girls CODE New York Chapter Presents: Teach, Play and Learn with AI! 10am-4pm. SUNY Queens EOC, 158-29 Archer Ave., Jamaica, NY. Girls ages 7-17 create virtual chat boxes; tackle tasks. Prior computing experience not necessary. Check in: 9:00am, Lunch provided, $35. [jalia@ blackgirlscode.org] 3pm: A Soulful Music Celebration at City College, 135th & Convent in Harlem, of African-American history and culture through song with narration by actress Barbara Montgomery.

DTH CELEBRATES 50 YEARS OF EXCELLENCE For 50 years, Dance Theatre of Harlem has inspired the world with a revolutionary vision of a multiethnic ballet company. Co-founded by the great Arthur Mitchell and Karel Shook, the company performs ground-breaking works with power and grace.

Following Arthur Mitchell’s sudden passing in September, the company dedicates the 50th Anniversary Season to him, his life and legacy.

The company’s New York season at City Center runs April 10 - 13. Join the celebration!

Robot Competition: Watch dozens of student teams compete with the robots they built during FIRST Robotics Competition at Armory Track. FREE

THURSDAY, APRIL 11 7:00PM - TRIBUTE TO HERBIE HANCOCK, in Celebration of its 20thAnniversary Season, Central Brooklyn Jazz Consortium (CBJC) presents All-Star Band’s. Consisting of an eight-part jazz band of local and international musicians, they will present selections of the brilliant compositions of Herbie Hancock.

The Kumble Theater, 1 DeKalb Ave., Downtown Brooklyn.

See Central Brooklyn Jazz Consortium Calendar of Events on Page 9.

See STEM events on Page 10.

This Summer 2019: THE LEGACIES OF IBON AND BILAL MUHAMMAD and the Bogolan Merchants’ Association they formed in the 1990’s putting Fulton Street on the global map will be celebrated in an Our Time Press special issue.

NEW BLOCK OF TICKETS ON SALE THROUGH 5/11!

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