| From the Villa ge of Brook ly n |
OUR TIME PRESS THE L OCAL PAPER WITH THE G LOBAL VIEW
| VOL. 22 NO. 40
October 4 – 10, 2018 |
Since 1996
15th Anniversary of African Burial Ground Ceremonies
Photo: Barry L. Mason
Fifteen years ago, millions around the world memorialized the reinterment of the remains of 419 formerly enslaved Africans of the colonial era. In 1991, skeletal remains were discovered and unearthed during excavations for a federal building in lower Manhattan. After eighteen months of struggle by the descendants of enslaved and free Africans, the General Services Administration ensued to have the 419 excavated remains biologically and culturally studied by scientists at Howard University, to be re-interred in their original resting place on October 4, 2003. On October 5, 2007, the outdoor memorial of the National Monument was dedicated and now stands as a testament to a tragic history and a victory for not only descendant communities, but for people and nations everywhere. This week the Rev. Dr. Herbert Daughtry, Dr. Sherrill D. Wilson, Peggy KingJorde and Rodney Leon will be among the leaders honoring the strength and resilience of the ancestors at the African Burial National Monument, today and tomorrow. See Pages 8, 9, 10
Graham Weatherspoon recalls the honor of being a pall bearer for the return of the remains of Africans to the Burial Ground in Lower Manhattan. See page 10
Columnist Rice takes on Trump in Thinker’s Notebook and sees the "The Handmaid" Page 5
Grassroots Creatives take Brooklyn Global. Bed-Stuy/Crown Heights Film Festival Launches. The Future of Fashion Debuts at Navy Yard Page 11
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VOL. 22 NO. 40
Brownsville Grieves a Teen’s Senseless Killing ■■
By Maitefa Angaza
F
amily, friends, and caring Brownville residents gathered at the Ascend Charter School in Brownsville on Monday, October 1st to express their shock and grief at the senseless taking of the life of Oluwadurotimi Joseph Oyebola, 16, called “Timi” by those close to him. Led by his relatives, the marchers headed to the basketball court at the Chester Playground, chanting, “Stop shooting, start living! Timi lives forever!” On the afternoon of September 21st bullets were fired into the basketball court, one striking Timi in the forehead from about 100 feet away. As the blood rushed from his body,
his friends surrounded him, screaming for help. Neighbor Dominic Frankie Pabon lives adjacent to the playground. The 23-year-old Marine Corps veteran heard the shots and rushed downstairs, where he applied pressure on Timi’s wounds as blood streamed from his nose and mouth. He said the teen tried to speak, but quickly succumbed. “I had my hand on his head,” Pabon said at the vigil. “I said, ‘Timi, don’t leave, don’t give up!’ And he tried to respond with every breath he had left... I did everything I could to make sure Timi lived.” Friends said about 10 boys had just
finished a game and were talking near the three-point line while Timi shot baskets. They heard the gunshots just as he was taking the shot. Police recently identified 14-year old Aaron Nathaniel as the alleged gunman based on footage from security cameras and statements from
Timi's parent's want answers.
The tragic killing of an innocent honors student left Brownville reeling
Photo: Lem Peterkin
witnesses. Initially reported to be a case of mistaken identity, police now say it appears there was no motive. Nathaniel had just arrived outside the park when he shot rounds in the direction of the basketball court. Timi moved
Photo: Lem Peterkin
from Lagos, Nigeria to New York City in 2013. He lived with his family in Queens and attended Ascend Charter in Brooklyn where he was a junior with an exemplary academic record who played point guard on the basketball team. The honors student already had scholarship offers to consider upon graduation. Emmanuel Fatukasi, who attended church with Timi, said. “Church started at 7 p.m. He finished school at 1:30. He just wanted to do something within the gap.”
DBG MEDIA Publishers of Our Time Press, Inc. 358 Classon Avenue Brooklyn, NY 11238 (718) 599-6828 Web site: www.ourtimepress.com e-mail: editors@ourtimepress.com Publisher DBG MEDIA Editor-in-Chief David Mark Greaves Copy Editor Maitefa Angaza Columnists Eddie Castro Victoria Horsford Michael Johnson Abigail McGrath Marlon Rice
Oluwadurotimi "Timi"Joseph Oyebola, 16,
Reporters Akosua Albritton Margot McKenzie Contributors Lisa Durden Fern Gillespie Web Editor www.ourtimepress.com Liani Greaves Office Manager Joanna Williams Consultant Bernice Elizabeth Green Co-Founder © 2015, DBG MEDIA Publishers of Our Time Press, Inc., printed in New York City. All rights reserved. No part of the publication may be reproduced without prior permission of the publishers. Publishers are not responsible for any ad claims. MBE Certified in NYC, NYS and the Port Authority of NY & NJ Member: New York State Press Association
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Timi’s father, David Oyebola, was shocked that the suspected shooter was even younger than his son. “I’d like to meet that person and ask him why he did what he did,” he said. He plans to start a basketball-based violence-prevention program in honor of his son. “I know I cannot get my son back,” he said at the rally, “but we can prevent this from happening to another 16-year-old playing in the park.” Oyebola’s funeral is scheduled for Saturday, October 6th. Police records show there have been 13 murders so far this year in the precinct that covers Brownsville, up from seven in the same period in 2017. There has also been an uptick in shootings: 47 people have been wounded by gunfire this year within the precinct, up from 36 at this time last year. Approximately 5-feet 6-inches tall and about 115 pounds, Aaron Nathaniel was last seen wearing ripped jeans and a bandana. Submit tips to police by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), visiting www.nypdcrimestoppers.com, or texting 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. Spanish-speaking callers are asked to dial 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).
VOL. 22 NO. 40
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OUR TIME PRESS October 4 – 10, 2018
Letitia “Tish” James Calls on Republican Keith Wofford to Release Five Years of Tax Returns
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EW YORK -- With less than five weeks until New Yorkers head to the polls, Democratic Attorney General nominee Letitia “Tish” James called on her opponent, Republican Keith Wofford, to publicly release his state and federal tax returns for the last five years. During the primary, Tish released five years of her state and federal tax returns and publicly posted them to her website -- providing reporters and the public alike with a clear view of her personal finances. This transparency is key due to Donald Trump’s refusal to release his taxes during the 2016 election and concerns about potential conflicts of interest that could be hidden by a candidate who fails to release their tax returns. “Transparency is critical. New Yorkers should know where a candidate’s income comes from -- especially if they are running to be the state’s top lawyer. Accountability is key. That’s why my returns are open for review, and why I’m calling on Keith Wofford to release his taxes,” said Democratic Attorney General nominee Letitia “Tish” James.
Wofford Calls for State Investigation Over City’s Taking of Properties
E
ditor’s Note: The following is the fifth of a KCP investigative series by reporters Kelly Mena and Stephen Witt on how New York City is taking paidoff properties from longtime small property owners, including Black and Brown seniors, and giving them to connected non-profit and for-profit developers as gentrification continues to sweep across Brooklyn. Keith Wofford, the Republican candidate for state Attorney General and opponent to Democratic candidate Letitia James for the seat, yesterday called for a state investigation of the city’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) and its Third-Party Transfer (TPT) program. Wofford’s call comes in light of Kings County Politics continuing investigative series surrounding how two elderly AfricanAmericans in Brooklyn had their properties seized by the city, even though they had millions of dollars in equity in their properties which they have owned for decades. The properties seized were valued at $2.2 million and $1 million, respectively. HPD utilizes the program in a multiagency approach in shortcutting the normal foreclosure process for properties with housing code violations or tax arrearages. The TPT program was expanded in 2015 through a law passed by the City Council and signed by Mayor Bill de Blasio, and in which a growing number of attorneys say is unconstitutional. “TPT is intended to guard against slumlords allowing properties to fall into disrepair, to protect the health and welfare of residents,” said Wofford, who went to Harvard
■■
By Stephen Witt, Kings County Politics
Undergrad & Law School. “But it is a massive red flag if this program is ever being used to take a property that is occupied by an owner or their family members — owners do not have an incentive to endanger their own health and safety. “These actions by HPD, basically stealing properties from Black owners with millions of dollars of savings in their properties, raise the prospect that the program is being abused. It also raises major constitutional questions for the entire TPT program, because the program enables the government to take a homeowner’s property without compensation,” he added. In addition, Wofford called on HPD to immediately come clean on how they got a court order snatching two owners’ homes while paying nothing. HPD needs to make a clear statement now of how a property owner with millions of dollars of equity wound up on a seizure list. If it cannot stop this from happening, the city should not have the power to shortcut foreclosures in the first place. In addition to an immediate statement by HPD, Wofford called for the following protective actions: — A halt to any disposition of any properties seized under TPT until it is determined that no other similar homeowners had that property value snatched from them. — Preservation of all documents and e-mails by city agencies, including HPD relating to the TPT program pending the conduct of a full investigation of the program. — A full citywide investigation of the TPT program, including whether any outside entities, which are in line to receive properties,
have input on the HPD’s list of foreclosure targets. Wofford said that he would investigate the TPT program when he is elected Attorney General; but that the Attorney General should start an investigation right now and take actions immediately to stop any further improper foreclosures or sales if the de Blasio Administration does not agree to an immediate freeze. “A program that allows the de Blasio Administration to seize owners’ property without compensation, then to steer that same property to recipients that de Blasio’s HPD selects, is an invitation to abuse, if it is constitutional at all,” said Wofford. “New Yorkers need to know that this program is being conducted to protect tenants, but in a way respects small property owners’ legal rights — not simply to allow politicians to control real estate in developing areas.” Wofford said HPD used the “short-form” TPT process to seize the properties without a sale or other price check. HPD simply put the homeowners’ properties on a large list and foreclosed on all of them. These property owners were slated to receive nothing until media attention shed light on the improper seizure, which forced HPD to return one deed and the other is in litigation, he said. Wofford’s demand comes as James, whose job as Public Advocate is to speak out and demand justice for the city’s residents, has been tepid concerning the issue. She has refused to launch an investigation and instead her office has said they are “fact-finding” and not investigating.
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OUR TIME PRESS October 4 – 10, 2018
WHAT’S GOING ON ■■
By Victoria Horsford
THE WEEK IN REVIEW AN OPINION: I hear the words to the song, “America The Beautiful,” which goes, “Oh beautiful for spacious skies for amber waves of grain, for purple mountain majesties, above the fruited plains. America, America, God shed his grace on thee, and crown thy good with brotherhood from sea to shining sea.” Our song and temperament are more like, “Cry the Beloved Country,” where our psyches are. We are a nation divided and each week the reality show that is the American Central Government, descends deeper into the swamp. Last week, Trump’s speech at the UN General Assembly and the Supreme Court hearings were no different except that
we had company in the house-- almost 200 heads of state were in NY at the UN General Assembly and could view America unraveling and watching our descent into an inferno of our own making while laughing at us. One possible outcome of a Brett Kavanaugh SCOTUS victory is a Democratic sweep of both congressional houses next month. Judge Kavanaugh, an alleged violent, blackout drunk, sex assaulter and conservative ideologue, does not belong on the SCOTUS bench. What does Senator Lindsey Graham mean when he says that Kavanaugh and Bill Cosby are not the same? Was that about a sex predator comparison? Could Kavanaugh end up in an orange suit? Then there is FLOTUS Melania Trump, who began her African tour on October 2 with stops in Ghana, Kenya, Malawi and Egypt. Those are interesting shithole countries that she will visit, according to her husband’s vitriol a few months ago.
NEW YORK
Brett Kavanaugh
The Errol Louis NY Daily News piece, “FIGHT THE DEMOCRATIC MACHINES: INSURGENTS ARE DEMOCRATIZING THE PARTY: NEW YORKERS SHOULD JOIN THEM,” is recommended reading for those who want to be agents of change or on that
bandwagon. Why were party bosses considering judgeships for former IDC Democratic Senators Jesse Hamilton and Jeff Klein, both of whom lost their seats in last month’s primary? HARLEM: St. Martin’s Episcopal Church, once the “jewel in the crown” of Central Harlem’s places of worship, is on life support. Its parishioners are doing battle with the NY Episcopalian Archdiocese, which closed the church, located at 230 Lenox Avenue, for two reasons: the building’s decline and decay and for unpaid loans. The archdiocese invited the few remaining SM congregants to worship at the Cathedral of St. John The Divine.
THE BOARD ROOM The CBS Corporation named Richard Parsons as interim Chairman of its Board of Directors…Parsons is a household name in Corporate America; former Time Warner CEO/CHAIRMAN, former Citigroup Chair and former interim Chair of the Los Angeles Clippers, a basketball franchise……… Vicki Fuller, former Chief Investment Officer, NYS Common Retirement Fund, the third-largest public pension fund in the US with a value of $207.4 billion in assets under management, recently joined the Williams Companies Board of Directors.
ARTS/CULTURE VIPs: The following list includes 10 who made THE ROOT’s Annual List of the 100 Most Influential African-Americans ages 25-45. They are Tarana Burke, METOO creator; Ryan Coogler, “Black Panther” director; Stacey Abrams, Democratic nominee for Georgia Governor; LeBron James, NBA star and philanthropist; London Breed, San Francisco Mayor; Virgil Abloh, Louis Vuitton Artistic Director; Serena Williams, Tennis star; Lena Waithe, actress/ producer; Kend r ick Lamar, Rapper, 4x Grammy winner, and the first HIP-HOP artist to win a Pulitzer Prize; and Issa Rae, “INSECURE” writer/producer. T H E A T E R : “SCANDAL” protagonist Kerry Washington returns to Broadway, toplining the cast of “AMERICAN SON,” a drama about an estranged interracial couple, their missing son and their interminable wait in a Florida police precinct. Kenny Leon directs the play which previews on October 6 with a November 4 opening. Black Hollywood establishment types like Shonda Rhimes, Jada Pinkett-Smith, Gabrielle Union-Wade, Steve Stoute and NFL veteran Nnamdi Asomugha , Ker r y’s hubby, are lining up as “AMER ICAN SON” producers, joining Jeffrey Richards, Rebecca Gold, Will Trice and Stephen Byrd. EXHIBIT: The NY Historical Society exhibit, “Black Citizenship in the Age of Jim Crow,” represents the 50-year struggle after the end of the Civil War, a time
VOL. 22 NO. 40
Richard Parsons which ushered in the separate but equal era of Jim Crow. On the 150th Anniversary of the Fourteenth Amendment to the US Constitution, the NYHS follows the Black American narrative from the end of the Civil War to the end of WWI. Exhibit runs from September 7 to March 3. [Visit NYHISTORY.ORG]
PEOPLE RIP: Grace Jones, 90, AUDELCO Awards rainmaker, passed on August 26. Known to many as St. Grace, she has been the indefatigable president/muse of the AUDELCO Awards since 2005. Founded in 1973, AUDELCO (Audience Development Committee) hosts an Annual Awards celebration of African- American excellence in NYC theater arts, which is considered the Black Tonys. She founded The Double Image Theater Production Company, hosted a cable TV show, “Grace: African-Americans on the Move,” and was a founding member of the Harlem Arts Alliance. Her memorial service will be held at Abyssinian Baptist Church, Harlem, on October 13 at 10 am. [Visit audelco.org]
THE OCTOBER CALENDAR The One Brooklyn Fund hosts its 2nd Annual Gala on Wednesday, October 3, 2018 and October 10, 7-11 pm at the Brooklyn Museum. The evening offers a diverse menu of jazz, dancing, networking and an awards ceremony honoring Brooklyn’s business leaders. The nonprofit One Brooklyn Fund originated in Brooklyn Boro President Eric Adams’ office, supports initiatives for programs which promote business, education, health and fitness, senior and youth, and tourism, which improves the lives of the borough’s residents. [Visit onebrooklynfund.org] The Bedford-Stuyvesant Museum of African Art will host its 4th Annual Madiba Humanitarian Awards at the Brooklyn Museum, located at 200 Eastern Parkway, on October 13 from 7-9 pm. The Distinguished 2018 Madiba honorees include Ruth Carter, “Black Panther” movie costume designer; Rob Garris, Throwaway Children’s Foundation; Kevinee Gilmore, #Foster Care; Minister Tony Muhammad, United in Peace Movement; and James Shaw, Jr., Waffle House hero who disarmed a gunman in Tennessee. They are individuals who replicate many of the exceptional principles exemplified by Nelson Mandela, the late South African President. Contact: 646-338-2748; E-mail: seeuraven2011@ gmail.com. The National Association of Negro Musicians presents the David Martin Music Guild Fundraiser, “SWINGING WITH DINAH, BESSIE AND FATS,” exemplars of jazz, blues and R&B, at the Mt. Morris Park Presbyterian Ascension Church, located at 15 Mt. Morris Park West, Harlem, on Saturday, October 20 at 1 pm and at 4:30 pm. Joy Brown plays DINAH; Barbara D. Mills plays BESSIE; and James Edward Alexander plays FATS. [Call 718-314-5224] OCTOBER CA L E N DA R : The One Brooklyn Fund’s Second Annual Gala on 10/10 at the Brooklyn Museum………. The Bedford-Stuyvesant Museum of African Art hosts 4th Annual Madiba Humanitarian Awards on 10/13.
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OUR TIME PRESS October 4 – 10, 2018
Thinkers Notebook
Cue the Handmaid ■■
I
By Marlon Rice
want you to read the following conversation. It is a back-and-forth between President Donald Trump and a reporter for ABC News, Ms.Cecilia Vega. This conversation took place on Monday during a press conference on the front lawn of the White House. Trump: “She’s shocked I picked her. She’s in a state of shock.” Vega: “I’m not, Thank you Mr. President.” Trump: “I know you’re not thinking. You never do.” Vega: “I’m sorry?!" Trump: “Go ahead.” Now, I want you to read a quote taken from the president on Tuesday night at a rally in Southaven, Mississippi. The context of the quote is Trump mocking the testimony of Christine Blasey Ford, the woman who testified in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee during the confirmation hearings for Judge Brett Kavanaugh. Ford accuses Kavanaugh of forcing himself on her back when they were in high school. Here is Trump mocking her trying to explain the circumstances of the incident. Trump: 'I don’t know. I don’t know. What neighborhood was
it in? I don’t know. Where’s the house? I don’t know. Upstairs, downstairs -- where was it? I don’t know -- but I had one beer. That’s the only thing I remember.' Ladies and gentlemen, we live in a country where the leader is a bigoted, pigheaded chauvinist who spills toxic masculinity like it's tap water without regard for whatever the stains of his miscues might ruin. But that isn’t the scary part. The scary part is that we live in a country where the leader can exhibit signs of psychosis, intellectual disability, delusional disorder and rage, and be an evident racist and sexist, and most of the politicians and businessmen around him show more agreement than discord. Even worse than that, we the people, the true strength and power of this democracy, give lip service to our displeasure with this entire administration and the politicians that choose to keep the thing afloat, but we haven’t yet realized that words mean nothing, and we haven’t gotten sick enough to do the one thing that could change the deadly course of this titanic of a country, and that is to act. Patrick Henry is a noted historical figure because of one speech he gave to the Second Virginia Convention in March
Donald Trump mocking ABC Reporter Cecilia Vega during a press conference on Monday. of 1775. You’ve never read or heard the entire speech, but you are surely familiar with the line, “Give me Liberty or Give me Death!” The line is credited with compelling the Convention to offer up Virginian troops to the Revolutionary War, thereby ensuring victory and independence from Great Britain. At that point in American history, there were men that would rather die than to be led in the direction that the colonies were being led under British rule. The biggest issue? Taxation without repreT:10” sentation. The colonies felt like being taxed by the British was wrong because the needs of the colonies weren’t being served by the Parliament way across the
ocean. This one issue became the impetus of an entire war for independence. Where is our representation? Where are the lawmakers and legislators that are willing to press this issue of inequality to its limits? We pay our taxes to a government that does not work towards the best interests of the people. Any time you have leaders that are belligerent and prejudiced towards women, towards Blacks, towards gays, towards immigrants, towards anyone who is part of the fabric of this democracy, those leaders are not working in the best interests of the people, and we must act immediately to ensure that those leaders, chosen by the people, are
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removed and replaced by better representation. But what if these leaders are actually representing the thoughts of the people? What if this really is America? The Handmaid's Tale is a show about a society where the women are property, forced into a weird kind of servitude by a regime that shows no regards for equality. When people discuss the current climate of our government, they tend to use The Handmaid's Tale as a template, an example of where we might be headed. Kavanaugh, Trump, these unraveling white men are beginning to scare me, for real. I worry that where we are headed is even further off than The Handmaid's Tale.
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OUR TIME PRESS October 4 – 10, 2018
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Special for Our Time Press:
Recovery, Preparedness, Resilience: Amy Peterson Leads Mayor’s Initiatives on Nontraditional Jobs for Underserved Populations ■■
Amy Peterson is leading the city’s Sandy recovery effort as head of Build it Back.
A
nyone who lived through the night of October 29, 2012 will never forget the sights, the sounds and the terror that ensued when Superstorm Sandy made landfall. A Category 1 Hurricane with 80 miles-an-hour winds, Sandy shut down the city. Millions of gallons of water flooded the subways, crippling transportation and shutting down electricity south of 34th Street. Storm surge and a full moon devastated thousands of homes in coastal neighborhoods. Fifty-three deaths are attributed to the storm which caused an estimated $19 billion in damages. Citywide, more than 8,000 homes and a quarter-of-a-million vehicles were destroyed. One week after the storm, FEMA officials projected maintaining a presence in this area for at least a decade. While it would be easy to dismiss that as an exaggeration, six years later, New Yorkers are still impacted. But Amy Peterson, Director of the Mayor’s Office of Housing Recovery
By Laurie Nadel
Operations and the Mayor’s Office of Wo r k f o r c e Development sees Sandy’s legacy as positive. “New Yorkers are better prepared and more resilient,” she says, noting that homes in high-risk flood zones are being elevated to meet new zoning requirements with funding from Build it Back NYC. As Director of the Office of Housing Recovery, Peterson was tasked with overhauling Build Brooklyn tunnel repair post Sandy. Photo: Federal Dept. Transportation it Back in 2014. “Build it Back was created to address and underserved minorities find new ca- maintenance jobs. Newly appointed something that never happened in New reers. More than 1,600 New Yorkers have as the Director of the Mayor’s Office of York City before. Communities had never been placed in union construction jobs Workforce Development, she intends for been hit that hard,” she says. On the eve of through Build it Back and Sandy Recovery this trend to continue. the sixth anniversary of the storm, Peterson Workforce1 programs. Some 20 percent “After Sandy, we began helping people reports that the program has been success- of workers in construction who were hired in Far Rockaway get into the construction ful. “Of some 8,300 properties and 12,500 through Build it Back were directly af- unions. We have been doing outreach homeowners who had severe losses, I can fected by Superstorm Sandy. New Yorkers with community organizations to target report that 95 percent of the construction affected by Sandy have also been trained NYCHA residents and people who need projects have been completed. We have and placed in union jobs as roofers and help finding jobs that pay $50,000 a year served 99 percent of those who needed electricians. and above.” Specifically, Peterson notes services,” she says, adding that Sheepshead A pioneer in the emerging field of that hard hats have reached out to veterans Bay Court and several other complicated women in construction, Peterson has and the Green Jobs Initiative has opened up projects are all that remain. dedicated much of her career to opening some 3,000 nontraditional jobs. Resiliency “Sandy was an unprecedented storm,” the way for women and minorities to find initiatives now offer openings in such fields says Peterson, whose biggest concern jobs in an industry that was traditionally as case management, building inspection, has been reaching people who needed dominated by white men. As President of understanding flood regulations, surveying benefits and services. “We faced a lot of Nontraditional Employment for Women and providing elevation certificates. challenges and came up with innovative (NEW) from 2007–2014, Peterson Rather than see Hurricane Sandy as solutions.” For Peterson, those solutions spearheaded initiatives to train and place a onetime event, Peterson wants New include helping Sandy survivors, women women in skilled construction, utility and Yorkers to understand how to prep for future storms. “Climate change is real. It’s something the city is addressing in different ways: improving buildings, adding solar-panel installations and building modular homes,” she says, adding that Build it Back has completed 100 modular homes. “When you elevate an 80-year-old structure in poor soil condition, there are a lot of challenges.” Building modular homes can accelerate the process. Petersen says, “This minimizes the impact of construction while improving quality of life in communities.” Laurie Nadel, Ph.D., is (xxxx) for Our Time Press. She is the author of “The Five Gifts: Discovering Hope, Healing and Strength When Disaster Strikes.” (Foreword by Dan Rather)
Community Council Book Signing a Hit
(From Left to Right): Alice M. Blair, National Association of University Women (NAUW) Brooklyn Branch; Doris Douglas, NAUW- Brooklyn Branch; Beverly Slater, Strong Power Business Consulting; Andrea J. Flateau, Community Council for Medgar Evers College, NAUW-Brooklyn Branch; Esmeralda Simmons, Esq., Center for Law and Social Justice, MEC; Adele M. Flateau, NAUW-Brooklyn Branch; Dr. Marcella Maxwell, Ed.D., Mistress of Ceremonies, former Commissioner of Human Rights; Dr. Janet Dewart Bell, Ph.D., Author; Katie L. Davis, President, Community Council for Medgar Evers College; Dr. Brenda M. Greene, Moderator, Director, Center for Black Literature, Medgar Evers College; Joann V. Griffin, President, National Association of University Women-Brooklyn Branch; Rev. Dr. Shelia Evans-Tranum, Chair, John Henrik Clarke House, former Associate Commissioner of Education; Lisa D. Hayes, Esq., NMAC-Delta; Tunisia Tate, Treas., Central Brooklyn MLK Commission.
Resources for New Yorkers: ReadyNYC--mobile app or https://www1.nyc.gov/site/em/ready/ ready-new-york.page Ready.gov (go-kits and emergency plans) FloodhelpNY.org--mobile app (flood insurance, regulations) NEW--nyc.org (Nontraditional jobs for women) www.Acee.org (Green jobs for NYC)-Green Jobs mobile app https://www1.nyc.gov/site/housingrecovery/index.page--Build it Back
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OUR TIME PRESS October 4 – 10, 2018
Foster Care Advocates Honored During Mandela Humanitarian Awards Event at Brooklyn Museum
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Rob Garris
ob Garris, founder of the Throwaway Children Foundation, and Kevinee Gilmore, founder of #FosterCare, will be honored with a Madiba Humanitarian Award: Celebrating the Legacy of Nelson Mandela, for dedicating their lives to advocating for children in the foster care system. “Rob Garris and Kevinee Gilmore have been on the front lines fighting for supportive housing, reuniting families and exposing the abuse and neglect of children who age out of the foster care system at 18 years old,” said Vira Lynn Jones, Executive Director of the Bedford-Stuyvesant Museum of African Art (BSMAA), who
Madiba Humanitarian Award Has Approval of Nelson Mandela Foundation
S
Sello Hatang
ello Hatang, the Chief Executive of the South-based Nelson Mandela Foundation, has approved BSMAA’s annual event as the Madiba Humanitarian Award: Celebrating the Legacy of Nelson Mandela. The theme is “Education: A Forceful Weapon Empowering the World’s Children.” Both Kevinee Gilmore and Rob Garris, who grew up in the foster care system, will be honored. They are tireless advocates bringing attention to the problems foster children experience once they age out of the system after turning 18 years old. These children are often thrown into the streets without any support systems. Performances from African dance companies and local performing artists will highlight the evening. The Fourth Annual Awards Event will be held on Saturday, October 13 at the Brooklyn Museum from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Tickets are available at Eventbrite, located on the website: bedstuymuseum.org. For more information, call (646) 38-2748.
is sponsoring the event. “The children are often thrown into the streets without support systems, survival training or career opportunities. Many of the children experience homelessness or become another statistic in the criminal justice pipeline.” Gilmore was shuttled from 13 separate foster care homes and attended five high schools before she turned 18 and aged out of the foster care system. When Gilmore enrolled at Cleveland State University, living in the dorms helped her to escape homelessness. She founded #Foster Care as a media campaign that includes celebrities, elected officials and former foster youth. The campaign’s goal is to bring awareness and empower foster youth. Garris personally understands the struggles that most children in the foster care system experience. He was a foster child but later adopted. Garris trained as a boxer at an early age to protect himself from children who bullied him for not having “real parents.” He is the only professional athlete who returned to boxing after 27 years and transitioned from an amateur to a professional
boxer primarily to raise funds for his charity. The mission of Garris’ Throwaway Children Foundation is to form a coalition across the country to monitor the foster care system and bring about reforms that will protect and support children in foster care. According to FBI reports, one of the most vulnerable populations is a child in foster care. Close to 60% of the children rescued from sex trafficking were from foster care or group homes. Each year, more than 26,000 youth transition from foster care without the typical growing-up experiences that teach self-sufficiency skills or family and community support networks. The Fourth Annual Madiba Humanitarian Awards: Celebrating the Legacy of Nelson Mandela will be held on Saturday, October 13, 2018 at the Brooklyn Museum from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Ruth E. Carter, the costume designer for the blockbuster film, “Black Panther Movie,” and James Shaw, Jr., who disarmed a gunman at a Tennessee Waffle House, will also be honored. Tickets can be purchased at bedstuymuseum.org on Event Brite or call (646) 338-2748.
Kevinee Gilmore, founder of #FosterCare,
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OUR TIME PRESS October 4 – 10, 2018
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Ancestral Presence Over the years, Bernice Elizabeth Green's Ancestral Presence series, has ensured the story of the African Burial Ground is told. The following are selected articles. Photo: Barry L. Mason
THE COFFIN STORY: RECLAIMING BONES, SYMBOLS, LAND
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he Akan people of Ghana and Ivory Coast believe that a Supreme Being (God) put a part of His spiritual form into human beings as a human soul. That is why a person is not really dead when he or she dies. The soul never perishes but is reincarnated. If this belief is true, the remains of 427 slaves and freed Blacks unearthed during the construction of a federal office building in 1991 was no coincidence. The ancestors’ souls had temporarily returned to reveal an emotionally painful but significant past about colonial New York City. It surpassed the South as a port of entry for slaves. And during the 17th century, a vibrant African community of skilled laborers prospered in lower Manhattan and had a history that came before such well-known landmarks as the New York Stock Exchange. If the ancestors were finally put to rest with their recent reburial, the funeral procession was meant to celebrate them as royalty in death to make up for the hardships and neglected experience they lived in life. Why was the rich cultural tradition of kente cloth, Adinkra symbols and the famous coffin makers of Ghana -- one of the first African countries to gain independence from colonial Britain, chosen to honor the ancestors? “I chose Ghana because we did have that connection on the committee. We had a person who as a Ga (an ethnic tribe in Ghana) is famous as coffin makers,” said Ollie McClean, co-chairperson with Eloise Dix of the Descendants of the African Ancestral Burial Ground Committee. McClean said the committee was formed after the ancestors’ remains were sent 12 years ago to
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By Vira Lynn Jones
December 2010
Photo: Kwame Brathwaite
Ollie McClean speaking with Schomburg Center Director Howard Dodson at left. Howard University for research. “We needed a committee to reclaim the ancestors’ bones from the federal government after the research was completed. We wrote to everyone in the African Diaspora who had an interest in the burial ground from every background.” “Everything that worked for this reburial we submitted. Our concepts and ideas for the coffins was submitted to the GSA (General Services Administration). We wanted the coffins to be hard-carved,” McClean explained. “We also wanted the coffins to not only have Adinkra symbols
Photo: Barry L. Mason
but village scenes where people were depicted fishing and there were mothers and daughters together. They were happy.” Adinkra means “farewell or good-bye” and the symbols hold great spiritual significance in initiation rites, funeral rites and mourning periods. The display of Adinkra symbols shows respect for and communications with the deceased. Most Adinkra symbols, which are cut on pieces of calabash and stamped on cloth, originated from important cultural, spiritual and historical principles, proverbs and values. How did Adinkra symbolism originate? Legend has it that Adinkra, the King of Gyaman (the current Ivory Coast), was caught reproducing the sacred symbols displayed on the golden stool, the unifying force of the Ashanti nation of Ghana. Adinkra’s sacrilegious action caused a war and he was killed. The clothing that he wore depicting the sacred symbols was captured and taken as a symbol of victory. The African tradition led to the first symbols to be used on cloth. “We have such a glorious history. How do you not want to be a part of that,” McClean laughed. Two well-known Adinkra symbols carved on the covers of the coffins were Gye Nyame, which means “except God.” And the other Sankofa meaning is the importance of learning from the past. While the coffins were carved from hardwood indigenous to Ghana, McClean explained that the interiors of the coffins were lined with kente cloth. The colorful handwoven kente is the national cloth of Ghana and it was used to line the coffins of the ancestors. The cloth dates back to the 12th century. It was worn by royal figures of state and during ceremonial events. The term “kente” means “basket” because the cloth’s intricate design resembles the woven design of a woven basket.
In the early stages of the planning to use kente cloth, McClean said the Ancestral Committee members were represented with actual kente samples woven in a Ghanaian village. When she traveled to Howard University after the research had been completed and the bones were being prepared for the coffins, she was in for a shock. “I went to Washington to witness the packing of the ancestors’ bones. I was in shock,” she said, her voice raising in excitement. “I yelled, ‘What is this (cloth)?’ The woman said it was kente cloth. I said, ‘It certainly is not!’ It was $3.99 a yard material anyone could get at any Korean store across the nation.” According to McClean, about fifteen to twenty coffins contained handwoven kente. The other was a material that imitated the look of kente. African-Americans have expressed pride toward the Motherland and wear the cloth for inspiration and for a sense of pride on ties, umbrellas and other objects. Many Ghanaians, however, feel that a mockery is made when the cloth is worn in this way. “Kente is a symbol of royalty and that is how I viewed the ancestors. I do not know if it was even inappropriate to line the coffins with kente,” said McClean. “I just wanted the best for the ancestors and I think they will forgive us for not knowing.” McClean said that people had complained that the coffins were so small. What the public did not understand is the ancestors’ remains were not skeletal remains of a complete body. “I saw one ancestor placed in a book that was like little pieces the size of peas,” said McClean. “I was told that was all that remained of an ancestor after the bones were cleaned. The bones were hundreds of years old.” Even though there were 427 graves that were unearthed when construction started on the federal office building, only 419 were reburied. While the ancestors’ souls have been laid to rest, the involvement with the African Burial Ground is far from over. “There should be a museum built on the burial site,” said McClean. When asked about funding for the museum, McClean was quick to note that research will show that the deeds on record reveal that those African slaves still own that land. City Hall and many federal office buildings have been built on private property and those descendants of the African ancestors have not been compensated. “There is the feeling that those dead folks were slaves; they were owned. So, slaves themselves could not have owned anything,” said McClean. “I am saying that my ancestors were not slaves. They were enslaved. That land was given to them to bury our ancestors. So, this land should still be in the family. Some courthouses, the Supreme Court Building and City Hall itself are sitting on our land. At one time, it was all marshland.”
VOL. 22 NO. 40
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OUR TIME PRESS October 4 – 10, 2018
Ancestral Presence
REBURIAL FOR 400 AFRICANS TO BE COMMEMORATED IN SIX CITIES ■■
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© photos and article by Kwame Brathwaite
he Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture held a press conference to announce the “Rites of Ancestral Return: Commemorating the Colonial African Heritage,” a series of public events memorializing re-interment of the remains of more than 400 Africans who were exhumed in 1991 after their discovery was revealed while digging to build a new government building in lower Manhattan. The section of the graveyard, which has come to be known as The African Burial Ground, is considered by many Africans and African-Americans as “sacred ground” or “our ground zero.” “The African Burial Ground represents the important role and Photo: Kwame Brathwaite major contribution that enslaved Representative Charles Rangel speaks on the African men, women and chilrole Congress played in the project. dren made to the development of the colonies, economy and culture of America,” said Howard Dodson, their research team led by Michael Blakey, Chief of the Schomburg. “This is a historic Ph.D. and crucial link in America’s story not just Eloise Dix and Ollie McLean represented in the North and Dutch New Amsterdam, but the Committee of Descendants of the African in the South. With the ‘Rites of Ancestral Ancestral Burial Ground. Ms. McLean told Return,’ we celebrate the contributions of of the trials and tribulations during the our ancestors.” struggle to get due respect for those ancestors The area, just north of City Hall and west buried at our “ground zero.” Elder of Foley Square and the State Supreme Court Adunni Oshupa Tabasi, a member of the Building, is just a part of a vast burial ground former Federal Steering Committee of the where 20,000 Africans had been enslaved African Burial Ground, rebuked those who here in New York City. They were buried in called the ancestors “slaves,” adding that they a segregated area, which is now the seat of were captive Africans. She said, “We dishonthe city’s municipal government. Africans or them by referring to them as slaves.” She are buried throughout the area, including also displayed two New York Times articles under City Hall. describing the 60 million-dollar Holocaust When the discovery was made, activ- Museum and its additional wing in lower ists led by the late Abubadika “Sonny” Manhattan and demanded that we seek no Carson, demanded the halting of digging less for the more than 20,000 buried there at the site. The move was resisted at first and millions who suffered in the Middle by the US Government, but under mount- Passage and subsequent enslavement. ing pressure, was stopped. The Black Howard Dodson, newly appointed head community of New York and many other of the re-interment plans, announced “Rites US cities held ceremonies, memorials of Ancestral Return: Commemorating the and sacred rites at the site and formed a Colonial African Heritage” for September 30 committee to deal with the government’s thru October 4, a five-city memorial tour of plans for the site. Many heated meetings four of the bodies (one adult male, one adult were held and although the main demand female, one male child and one female child) to not build on the site at all was not won, prior to their return to New York for burial. many other community calls were adhered Ceremonies will be held in Washington, to. A decision was made to conduct a study D.C., Baltimore, MD, Wilmington, DE, of the remains to determine what happened Philadelphia, PA and Newark, NJ. At 11 AM to many of them, how they lived, their on Friday, October 5, a flotilla will transport lifestyle, etc. The community demanded the remains across the Hudson River to Wall that the study be made by a preeminent Street (where slaves were sold at the original Black university, Howard University, and stock market, the colonial slave market) in
Photo: Kwame Brathwaite
Rev. Herbert Daughtry; Michael Blakey, Ph.D., Councilman Charles Barron, Eloise Dix. and Ollie McLean.
Photo: Kwame Brathwaite
Howard Dodson, Chief of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.
lower Manhattan. Procession up the Canyon of Heroes will then follow north to Foley Square, the site of the largest monument to Africans in the US, “Triumph of the Human Spirit” by sculptor Lorenzo Pace and a ceremony at the African Burial Site (Duane and Elk Streets). Re-interment will take place at the burial ground on October 4. Baltimore’s Tonya Hardy, Executive Director of the Commission on AfricanAmerican History & Culture; Margaret J. Owens, Senior Consultant, Mayor’s Office of Economic Development in Wilmington; Tanya E. Hall, Executive Director of the Philadelphia Multicultural Affairs Congress of the Convention and Visitors Bureau; and the Rev. Dr. M. William Howard, Jr., Pastor of Bethany Baptist Church in Newark, NJ laid out their plans to honor the ancestors during their final farewell. On Saturday, September 27, the Schomburg will screen four videos: The African Burial Ground: An American
Discovery; Feel It in My Bones; Then I’ll Be Free to Travel Home and Slavery’s Buried Past. On Tuesday, September 30, there will be a Tribute Ceremony at Andrew Rankin Memorial Chapel at Howard University, Sixth St. and Howard Place, NW. Baltimore will hold a Tribute Ceremony at Willard W. Allen Masonic Temple on Wednesday, October 1, 1307 Eutaw Place beginning at noon. Later in Wilmington, DE at 6 PM, a Ceremony/Procession at The Rocks, followed by a 8:15 Tribute Ceremony at Mother African Union Church, 9th & Franklin Street. In Philadelphia on Thursday, Oct. 2 at 11 AM, there will be a Tribute Ceremony at Mother Bethel AME Church, 419 South 6th Street (Richard Allen Avenue); and in Newark, NJ, a tribute will take place at 6 PM at Bethany Baptist Church, 275 W. Market Street. The Howard study will produce three reports, a bio-skeletal, an archaeological and a historical volume of the findings. These findings are the basis for the re-interment and the other central components of the overall project. The schedule for completion of the Howard papers is as follows: Final History Report, December 2003; Final BioSkeletal Report (Anthropology), December 2003; Final Archaeology Report, July 2004; Integrated and Popular Reports, March 2005; GSA has asked the US Army Corps of Engineers to identify and locate all documents created over more than ten years of this project. Ultimately, these documents will be collected, inventoried and maintained in an archive that will permit researchers to access the information about the African Burial Ground. -KB / IPS-
Photo: Kwame Brathwaite
Photo: Kwame Brathwaite
Michael Blakey, Ph.D., shows reports on examinations of remains of many of those exhumed in 1991.
Photo: Kwame Brathwaite
Rev. Bill Howard of Newark’s Bethany Baptist Church tells of his tribute on the last stop before returning to New York.
Elder Adunni Oshupa Tabasi displays newspaper articles on Holocaust Memorial and demands equal money be provided for the memorial of the African Burial Site.
10
OUR TIME PRESS October 4 – 10, 2018
Ancestral Presence
They Came Again, By Ship ■■
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Lowering caskets into the crypt.
ur historians have informed us that tens of millions of our ancestors received their burial honors at sea, creating the infamous bridge of bones at the bottom of the Atlantic. Scientists now speak of cellular memory, passed through DNA, of all animals, including humans. Sharks still travel the waters of their ancestors, who followed the vessels which fed them living and dead captured Africans for a period of 300+ years. A few million Africans survived the journey and became the slaves of the Americas. Some of the strongest found themselves in a place named New Amsterdam. To you, it is Manhattan island. Over the years I have attended meetings in City Hall and watched New York’s citizens engage in timed games of chess in City Hall Park. I moved in and out of the Surrogates Court and the old bank buildings on Reade and Duane Streets as well as 26 Federal Plaza and Foley Square. The present is literally built on the past, and that past could not have become so vivid for me until 1991, when I learned of New Amsterdam’s African Burial Ground, which predates the vast majority of immigrants venturing here to find new freedoms and riches. It is a cemetery long forgotten by those who have too often written everyone else’s history and erased truth. A history forgotten by a people who once held the oral tradition of great ancestors.
VOL. 22 NO. 40
By: Graham B. Weatherspoon
Photo: Lem Peterkin
Craftsmen with pen in hand have stealthily over the years managed to deny the accomplishment of those who predated them, only to laud their own accomplishments as world-changing and -enhancing. Tablets had been removed, names erased, streets names changed and any evidence of the past gone forever – or so they thought. But as William Cullen Bryant once said, “A truth crushed to the earth shall rise again.” A vigil and prayers for the dead were offered up in 1991 or 1992 by clerics of every possible religious order. They came from Asia, Africa, Europe, South America, Canada, within the borders of the U.S., and, of course, from the Native people of this continent. All to offer prayers over the thousands whose sacred rest had once again been disturbed. But unlike the past, the spirits themselves have cried out and been heard by one who would return sanctity to their rest. As a member of the NYC Transit Police Guardians Association executive board, I, along with others on the council, served as security detail for the prayer vigil. I had already borne the caskets of coworkers on my shoulders, but this was quite different. It rained that afternoon, unlike any day I’d ever witnessed. Hundreds stood for hours in the rain as prayers were offered with the respect so often denied our people to this very day. Following the prayers, the security detail
Masons escorting remains up "Canyon of Heroes" to their final resting place.
December 2003
Caskets being made ready. was allowed into the site first. We carefully descended the muddy slope, maybe 30 feet into the cavity of earth. A huge white canvas tent covered the unearthed graves. A rectangular platform allowed us to stand on three sides as we viewed. What happened next shall forever stay in my heart. I knelt down and extended my hand into the earth, grasping whatever I could. As I looked around, I saw all the brothers who were with me doing the same. There were no words spoken prior to our descent, no plan, nothing. Some of us wept as we stood and realized that our presence had some spiritual emphasis. In the subsequent hours, the attendees we cautiously lowered to the site were allowed to view the open graves. To this day I still have the earth I held in my hand. Twelve years later, on behalf of 100 Blacks in Law Enforcement Who Care, I responded to an e-mail from the Schomburg Library outlining the need for assistance regarding the return of ancestral remains to New York City. October 3, 2003 greeted the 20 of us with blessed sunshine as we met at the Urban League offices at 120 Wall Street. Our assignment, as per Ms. Yancey, was to secure the VIP area on the river and escort these people to Duane Street during the procession. Ms. Yancey requested that I and six others accompany her to the pier. Unbeknownst to us, we and additional members would serve as pallbearers as the ancestors came ashore, to escort them to the site of the old Wall Street slave market. I knew that our women were as needed as the men for the task. Women and men, boys and girls, were all buried, excavated
Photo: Barry L. Mason
and now returning. After all, they came by boat centuries ago and now return the same way. They came in obscurity long ago and return with pomp and ceremony, attended by kings and queens, diplomats and ambassadors, and the common man, awakening the sins of the fathers of this great nation. I cannot help but notice the New Jersey State Police boats and the troopers bearing our ancestors remains. The same agency which practiced racial profiling had not one Black man present to hand over the remains. They still do not consider the consequences of their actions. As I reflect, it was all too fitting that they were present. Where it not for their forefathers we would not have been here anyway. The four caskets, which carried only the full remains of a small boy and partial remains of an adult male, adult female and female child, were hand-carved in Africa’s Gold Coast along with the additional 400plus caskets to be borne on horse-drawn wagons later in the day. Lorie Jones and Juvita Irving bore the first casket; Cliff Hollingsworth and I, the third. As I walked, tears came to my eyes for those who suffered and still suffer at the expense of power and man’s inhumanity. Over the years I have met and worked for many notable people. Mariah, Don King, Iron Mike, Rev. Sharpton, Alton Maddox, Jessie Jackson, Ethel Waters, David Dinkins, Nelson Mandela, Magic Johnson, Rosa Parks, Sharpe James and so on, but none have touched me as this one whom I do not know by name or sight. It is only by our spirits. Until we all meet again, Your brother, Graham
VOL. 22 NO. 40
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OUR TIME PRESS October 4 – 10, 2018
The Bed-Stuy/Crown Heights Film Festival The Future of Fashion at the Navy Yard
Homegrown Creatives Bring Industry-wide Attention to the Community
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By Marlon Rice
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ast weekend was a busy one in Central Brooklyn. Two special events, each produced and curated by lifelong members of the community, delivered shock waves of interest and excitement to the film and fashion industries. Over the course of two days inside of the newly renovated Billie Holiday Theater, which is housed inside of Restoration, filmmaker Attika J. Torrence and the city’s first-ever Ambassador of Arts and Culture Joseph C. Grant, Jr. founded and produced the Bed-Stuy/Crown Heights Film Festival. Industry insiders, as well as actors and actresses from some of your favorite shows, converged upon our community’s landmark to present films and to discuss the industry. Speaking on the need for a festival such as this in Central Brooklyn, Attika says, “As artists and lifetime Bed-Stuy residents, we know the value of our neighborhood, community, art and culture. As film industry professionals and artists, we recognize the need for a community’s celebration of its arts, its culture and its artists. This is important because art or the lack thereof can be used to define a community and we need to be the curators of our art and of our community.” Both of the festival founders were also presenters at the film festival. Joseph Grant was the Director of the Opening Night movie titled “The Stuff.” Attika presented a short movie titled “The Announcement.” Actors such as Jamie Hector from The Wire, Rob Morgan from Mudbound and Chyna Layne from She’s Gotta Have It lent their expertise
Rob Garris
From L-R, Joseph C. Grant Jr Co-Founder of the Bed Stuy/Crown Heights Film Festival, Jamie Hector, Actor, and Attika J. Torrence Co-Founder of the Bed Stuy/Crown Heights Film Festival and wisdom to the set of panel discussions which touched on everything from the business of film to the plight of the working actor. This festival makes perfect sense in this community because as Attika states, “Our community has been a hub for creativity, arts and culture for decades and that has not changed.” While filmmakers were fellowshipping in Bed-Stuy, industry insiders in the fashion
Ripping the Runway at The Future of Fashion Event at the Brooklyn Navy Yard.
industry gathered together at Building 77 in the Brooklyn Navy Yard for The Future of Fashion, a daylong event designed to bridge the gap between iconic Brooklyn fashion labels, the fashion community in Brooklyn and emerging designers and fashionistas. Building 77, a building that used to house a Navy storage warehouse and the Naval High Command for the North Atlantic Fleet, is now the hub of the Navy
I served as Emcee for the Fashion Show. Here with Kyiesha Kelly, Co-Founder of Hip Hop Closet.
Yard’s redevelopment. The building has yet to fully open, but when it does it will house light manufacturing, food purveyors and retail space. As part of a reintroduction of the community to the Brooklyn Navy Yard, the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corp. gave the nod to longtime tenant and member of the Navy Yard’s Tenant Advisory Board Kyiesha Kelly to produce a fashion event for the community. Kyiesha is the co-founder of Hip-Hop Closet, an online retail clothing company that has maintained a fulfillment warehouse and office space inside of the Navy Yard since 1998. Kyiesha and her team pulled together an amazingly informative and entertaining event which included a panel discussion titled “Is Fashion REALLY Forward?” The panelists were a mix of high-level executives and small business owners, and the discussion focused on the future of marketing, how to retain your customer base and the best practices for upand-coming fashion entrepreneurs. After the panel discussion, the lobby of Building 77 hosted a full-blown New York Fashion Week-level fashion show. Hundreds of guests were on hand to watch iconic labels like Walker Wear and emerging future iconic labels like Haus of Swag reveal their cutting-edge catalogue of fashion. Hip-Hop Closet also put together a visually exciting walk, as did Future Saturdays, which is a group of children that meet in the Navy Yard on Saturdays. They created their own fashion looks and presented them on the runway. Other Navy Yard tenants, such as Crye, a company that produces fatigues, body armor and other combat apparel, and GCreate, a 3D printing company, both presented looks that heightened public interest. GCreate created 3D handbags and jewelry, no doubt previewing the future of fashion. The beauty of this event can be found in the event’s participants. Every staff person, vendor, makeup artist, stylist and model were from the Central Brooklyn community, proving the same exact adage that Attika Torrence was supporting across town, that being that arts and culture have been staples of this community for decades, and they continue to be. Culture in Brooklyn is alive and well, as it has always been. And the community is driving the movement, as it has always done.
Controlling New York’s Rodent Population
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ate them, fear them or love them, New York City has rats. There are rats throughout the subway system. There are rat burrows in parks and around the New York harbors. Domesticated rats are kept as loving pets that giggle when they are tickled on their stomachs. According to the National Association of County and City Health Officials, New York City’s rodent population emerged in the 18th century when the Norway rats arrived via ships. New York City has engaged in formal rat control for over 100 years. The NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene’s (DHMH) Office of Pest Control is the
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By Akosua K. Albritton
responsible unit for managing the rodent population and informing the public about their role in keeping down the rodent population. The DHMH is sponsoring the NYC Rodent Academy free of charge. The academy offers safe and effective methods for rat prevention in homes and the community at-large. The NYC Rodent Academy has two tracks of Rat Management Training. There is the three-day course for pest control professionals and city employees and the one-day 2-3-hour course for building superintendents, homeowners, tenants, community gardeners and building staff. To encourage participation in the one-day course, the DHMH is raffling
off rodent-resistant tall garbage bins with locking lids. Upon completion of the three-day intensive course, attendees earn a Certificate of Academy completion. The two-hour trainings were scheduled during September and October 2018, one for Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and The Bronx. Queens, October 11, 2018, 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM at Saint James Episcopal Church Bronx, October 18, 2018, 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM at Boogie Down Grind Cafe The goal of the three-day Rat Management Training is “to give a highly focused and standardized approach to managing the rodent population. The takeaway is having a
better understanding of the biology, behavior and habitat of rodents and what contributes to infestation.” In fact, it was the three-day training that was conceived first and offered to increase building managers’ and pest control professionals’ expertise. Ratbehavior.org is one website that offers a look into the rodent world. Rats are nocturnal animals. So, their tendency is to sleep during the day. These animals grind their teeth together to wear them down because their incisors grow continuously. Without the gnawing activity, their teeth would cut into ➔➔ Continued on page 15
12
OUR TIME PRESS October 4 – 10, 2018
LEGAL NOTICES NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT KINGS COUNTY JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, Plaintiff against MAXIME FLEURIMONT, 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 17, 2017 I will sell at Public Auction to the highest bidder at the Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street, Room 224, Brooklyn, NY 11201 on November 8, 2018 at 2:30 PM. Premises known as 1260 East 84th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11236. Block 8062 Lot 67. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York. Approximate Amount of Judgment is $507,700.22 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index No 501689/2014. Jeffrey L. Saltiel, Esq., Referee CHC180 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 the Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street, Room 224, Brooklyn, NY 11201 on November 8, 2018 at 2:30 PM. Premises known as 852 Belmont Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11208. Block 4039 Lot Part of Old Lot: 21 AND 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 SUPREME COURT – COUNTY OF KINGS WELLS FARGO BANK, N.A. AS TRUSTEE F/B/O HOLDERS OF STRUCTURED ASSET MORTGAGE INVESTMENTS II, INC., STRUCTURED ASSET MORTGAGE INVESTMENTS II TRUST 2007-AR4, MORTGAGE PASSTHROUGH CERTIFICATES SERIES 2007-AR4, Plaintiff against ADRIAN JOI BROWN, et al., Defendants. Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered on October 3, 2017. I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction in Room 224 of the Kings County Courthouse, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, N.Y. on the 8th day of November, 2018 at 2:30 p.m. premises described as follows: All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York, bounded and described as follows: BEGINNING at a point on the westerly side of East 7th Street distant 467 feet southerly from the corner formed by the intersection of the southerly side of Avenue Z with the westerly side of East 7th Street; THENCE westerly parallel with Avenue Z and part of the distance through a party wall, 100 feet; THENCE southerly parallel with East 7th Street, 22 feet; THENCE easterly parallel with Avenue Z and part of the distance through a party wall, 100 feet to the westerly side of east 78th Street; THENCE northerly along the westerly side of east 7th Street, 22 feet to the point or place of BEGINNING.
Said premises known as 2658 East 7th Street, Brooklyn, N.Y. 11235. (Block: 7243, Lot: 30). Approximate amount of lien $ 630,308.72 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed judgment and terms of sale. Index No. 22483-13. Steven Z. Naiman, Esq., Referee. Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott, LLC Attorneys for Plaintiff 10 Bank Street - Suite 700 White Plains, New York 10606 (914) 949-2574 NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF KINGS Wells Fargo Bank, NA, Plaintiff AGAINST Mary HewittSimeon; et al., Defendant(s) Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly dated July 24, 2018 I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street, Room 224, Brooklyn, NY 11201 on November 1, 2018 at 2:30PM, premises known as 9918 Avenue M, 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 8283 Lot 42. Approximate amount of judgment $763,281.65 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index# 502388/2015. Steven Naiman, Esq., Referee Shapiro, DiCaro & Barak, LLC Attorney(s) for the Plaintiff 175 Mile Crossing Boulevard Rochester, New York 14624 (877) 759-1835 Dated: August 20, 2018 56923 NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT KINGS COUNTY WILMINGTON SAVINGS FUND SOCIETY, FSB, D/B/A CHRISTANA TRUST, NOT INDIVIDUALLY BUT AS FOR PRETIUM MORTGAGE ACQUISITION TRUST, Plaintiff against IOLANTA TYUTIN A/K/A IOLANTA TYUTINA, et al Defendants Attorney for Plaintiff(s) Knuckles, Komosinski & Manfro, LLP 565 Taxter Road, Suite 590, Elmsford, NY 10523 Attorney (s) for Plaintiff (s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale Entered August 10, 2017 I will sell at Public Auction to the highest bidder at the Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street, Room 224, Brooklyn, NY 11201 on November 8, 2018 at 2:30 PM. Premises known as 2041 Royce Street, Brooklyn, NY 11234-6220. Block 8416 Lot 19. ALL that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, City and State of New York. Approximate Amount of Judgment is $583,008.68 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index No 503382/2014. Cash will not be accepted at the sale. Gregory T. Cerchione, Esq., Referee 2296-002906 REFEREE’S NOTICE OF SALE IN FORECLOSURE SUPREME COURT – COUNTY OF KINGS THE BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON FKA THE BANK OF NEW YORK, AS TRUSTEE FOR THE CERTIFICATEHOLDERS OF CWMBS, INC. CHL MORTGAGE PASS-THROUGH TRUST 2006-OA5, MORTGAGE PASS THROUGH CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2006-OA5, Plaintiff – against – FERDOSHI TAHER, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered on July 30, 2018. I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction, in Room 261, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, Kings County, New York on the 25th Day of October, 2018 at 2:30 p.m. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York. Premises known as 435 Pine Street, Brooklyn, (City of New York) New York 11208. (Block: 4234 and Lot: 6) Approximate amount of lien $660,885.95 plus
interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed judgment and terms of sale. Index No. 505567/2014. Leonard Spector, Esq., Referee. Davidson Fink LLP Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 28 East Main Street, Suite 1700 Rochester, NY 14614-1990 Tel. 585/760-8218 For sale information, please visit Auction.com at www.Auction.com or call (800) 280-2832 Dated: July 31, 2018 REFEREE’S NOTICE OF SALE IN FORECLOSURE SUPREME COURT – COUNTY OF KINGS THE BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON FKA THE BANK OF NEW YORK, AS TRUSTEE FOR THE CERTIFICATEHOLDERS OF CWMBS, INC. CHL MORTGAGE PASS-THROUGH TRUST 2006-OA5, MORTGAGE PASS THROUGH CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2006-OA5, Plaintiff – against – FERDOSHI TAHER, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered on July 30, 2018. I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction, in Room 261, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, Kings County, New York on the 25th Day of October, 2018 at 2:30 p.m. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York. Premises known as 435 Pine Street, Brooklyn, (City of New York) New York 11208. (Block: 4234 and Lot: 6) Approximate amount of lien $660,885.95 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed judgment and terms of sale. Index No. 505567/2014. Leonard Spector, Esq., Referee. Davidson Fink LLP Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 28 East Main Street, Suite 1700 Rochester, NY 14614-1990 Tel. 585/760-8218 For sale information, please visit Auction.com at www. Auction.com or call (800) 280-2832 Dated: July 31, 2018 STATE OF NEW YORK SUPREME COURT: COUNTY OF KINGS GREEN TREE SERVICING LLC, Plaintiff, vs. DAVID ZOIMEN, et al., Defendants NOTICE OF SALE IN FORECLOSURE PLEASE TAKE NOTICE THAT In pursuance of a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the office of the County Clerk of Kings County on June 7, 2017, I, M. Randolph Jackson, Esq., the Referee named in said Judgment, will sell in one parcel at public auction on October 18, 2018 at the Kings County Supreme Court, Room 224, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, County of Kings, State of New York, at 2:30 P.M., the premises described as follows: 9 West 9th Street Brooklyn, NY 11231 SBL No.: Block 534 Lot 46 ALL THAT TRACT OF PARCEL OF LAND situate in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York The premises are sold subject to the provisions of the filed judgment, Index No. 7136/10 in the amount of $852,493.88 plus interest and costs. Megan S. Kale, Esq. Woods Oviatt Gilman LLP Plaintiff’s Attorney 700 Crossroads Building, 2 State St. Rochester, New York 14614 Tel.: 855-227-5072 SUPREME COURT – COUNTY OF KINGS WATERFALL VICTORIA MASTER FUND, LTD, Plaintiff against JOSEPH DANTICA; MENDY DANTICA, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered on July 26, 2018. I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction in Room 224 of the Kings County Courthouse, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, N.Y. on the 25th day of October, 2018 at 2:30 p.m. premises described as follows: All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York. Said premises known as 2012 Ralph Avenue, Brooklyn, N.Y. 11234. (Block: 7807, Lot: 52). Approximate
VOL. 22 NO. 40 amount of lien $ 848,016.92 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed judgment and terms of sale. Index No. 510397-14. Mark A. Longo, Esq., Referee. Stern & Eisenberg, PC Attorney(s) for Plaintiff Woodbridge Corporate Plaza 485 B Route 1 South – Suite 330 Iselin, NJ 08830 (732) 582-6344 NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF KINGS, CITIMORTGAGE INC., Plaintiff, vs. DWIGHT NOEL; STEPHANIE DENIS NOEL, ET AL., Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure, Sale and Discharge of Mortgage and Nunc Pro Tunc Relief, duly filed on August 13, 2018, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the Kings County Supreme Court, Room 224, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, NY on October 25, 2018 at 2:30 p.m., premises known as 447 East 48th Street, New York, NY. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York, Block 4696 and Lot 50. Approximate amount of judgment is $817,188.22 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index # 21783/2011. Doron A. Leiby, Esq., Referee Knuckles, Komosinski & Manfro, LLP, 565 Taxter Road, Ste. 590, Elmsford, NY 10523, Attorneys for Plaintiff. Cash will not be accepted. STATE OF NEW YORK SUPREME COURT: COUNTY OF KINGS GREEN TREE SERVICING LLC, Plaintiff, vs. DAVID ZOIMEN, et al., Defendants NOTICE OF SALE IN FORECLOSURE PLEASE TAKE NOTICE THAT In pursuance of a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the office of the County Clerk of Kings County on June 7, 2017, I, M. Randolph Jackson, Esq., the Referee named in said Judgment, will sell in one parcel at public auction on October 18, 2018 at the Kings County Supreme Court, Room 224, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, County of Kings, State of New York, at 2:30 P.M., the premises described as follows: 9 West 9th Street Brooklyn, NY 11231 SBL No.: Block 534 Lot 46 ALL THAT TRACT OF PARCEL OF LAND situate in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York The premises are sold subject to the provisions of the filed judgment, Index No. 7136/10 in the amount of $852,493.88 plus interest and costs. Megan S. Kale, Esq. Woods Oviatt Gilman LLP Plaintiff’s Attorney 700 Crossroads Building, 2 State St. Rochester, New York 14614 Tel.: 855-227-5072 REFEREE’S NOTICE OF SALE IN FORECLOSURE SUPREME COURT – COUNTY OF KINGS CITIMORTGAGE, INC., Plaintiff – against – JILANI WARSI, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered on May 19, 2017. I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction, in Room 224 of Kings County Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201 on the 11th Day of October, 2018 at 2:30 p.m. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate lying and being in the Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York. Premises known as 396 E 93rd Street, Brooklyn, NY 11212. (Block: 4667 and Lot: 24) Approximate amount of lien $937,592.87 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed judgment and terms of sale. Index No. 502649/2014. Steven J. Baker, Esq., Referee. Davidson Fink LLP Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 28 East Main Street, Suite 1700 Rochester, NY 14614-1990 Tel. 585/760-8218 For sale information, please visit Auction.com at www.Auction.com or call (800) 280-2832 Dated: July 26, 2018
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OUR TIME PRESS October 4 – 10, 2018
Knicks preview 2018-19 ■■
T
he New York Knicks endured yet another dreadful campaign last year. Last years’ losing record marked the fifth straight losing season. This year with more newcomers coming into the fold, the Knicks are looking to make some nose in what should be a much more balanced Eastern Conference. LeBron James has taken his talents to L.A. and the Eastern Conference is now up for grabs with Cleveland being the top team in the east since James returned to Cleveland. The Knicks as a unit struggled to stay healthy which was a big factor into their losing last year. No injury seem to be as crucial to the team when star player Kristaps Porzingas
P
By Eddie Castro
went down with a torn ACL, ending his season. Porzingas is still recovering and rehabbing in his native country of Latvia. There is no timetable on when or if he will return yet when he will be cleared to resume back to basketball related activities. When he does come back, he will have a few young players as well as some seasoned vets who will look to improve their will total from a year ago. The Knicks had the 8th pick in this years’ NBA draft and went on to select Kentucky’s Kevin Knox. They then went on to draft Western Kentuckys’ Mitchell Robinson with their second pick. Since the team opened training camp, the potential of both players have been widely discussed. Both players are superior athletes and have tremendous wingspans. This past Monday night in the teams’ first pre-season game, the Our Time Press universe got to see the debuts of these two exciting players as they battled the Washington Wizards.
Knox did a solid job filling the stat sheet contributing with 13 points shooting 4 of 9 from the field. He also had 10 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. Robinson had 6 points going 3 of 4 from the field with 7 rebounds and 1 block shot. In his Knick head-coaching debut Coach David Fizdale with the starting five lineup of Enes Kanter (center), Lance Thomas (power forward), Kevin Knox (small forward), Tim Hardaway Jr. (shooting guard) and point guard Trey Burke. If and when Porzingas returns he will be inserted right back into the lineup. If Knox and Robinson can continue to show flashes of potential, it will only be more key additions that the organization can builds towards a promising future. Sports Notes: With both the Jets and Giants having a win-loss record of 1-3, is it time to push the panic button on New York football already? Email me at Castroeddie714@gmail.com.
CDSC 5th Annual Art for Art: Community & Connection Art Show/Fundraiser Friday, October 26, 7-11pm
lease Join Us for an Evening of Art, Community, Connections, Music and Refreshments as we raise funds to build a
Community Arts Center to increase access to art and opportunities for the arts in Brooklyn. The art show attracts artists from all over the city including
Sophia Dawson, Ramona Candy and Michael Alan (our featured artist for 2018). The show will also feature works by aspiring young artists under
18. Visit us at CDSCartforart.com or call 718-398-2050. This year’s art show is in Partnership with The Winchendon School in Brooklyn.
Tanzia
(Announcement of Transition) It is with profound sadness and an extreme sense of loss that the National Association of Kawaida Organizations (NAKO) family shares the news of the transition, the passing in peace and rising up in radiance of:
Ramona Candy
Jonathan Kinsey
November 29, 1974 | September 29, 2018 Attorney at Law | Graduate of Lincoln University and Howard University Law School, Class of 1999 | Son of Shadidi Beatrice Kinsey and Kinze Bernard “Pop” Kinsey | Husband of Atty. Natalie Brown Mason Kinsey | Father of Marcus Mason Kinsey Son and Servant of His People
Salaamu za Rambirambi Michael Alan
(Kawaida Condolence Greetings)
Having risen in radiance in the heavens, Jonathan will always be for us “a glorious spirit in heaven and a continuing powerful presence on earth. He shall be counted and honored among the ancestors. His name shall endure as a monument. And the good he has done on earth shall never perish or pass away.” The Sacred Husia
May all the good Jonathan left, last forever.
Hotep, Ase, Heri
Sophia Dawson
See page 14 for details
14
OUR TIME PRESS October 4 – 10, 2018
Jonathan Mason Kinsey Beloved son of Dr. Shadidi and Bernard Kinsey Joined the ancestors on Saturday 9/29/18. A celebration of his life will be as follows: Date: Saturday October 6, 2018 Place: Siloam Presbyterian Church 260 Jefferson Avenue Brooklyn. New York 11216 Time: Wake, 11:00am - 1:00pm Funeral: 1:00 pm Expressions of Condolences can be sent to Dr Shadidi Kinsey Peace Health Center 582 Halsey Street Brooklyn, New York 11233
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VOL. 22 NO. 40
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Real Estate Sebastian, Florida (East Coast) Beach Cove is an Age Restricted Community where friends are easily made. Sebastian is an “Old Florida” fishing village with a quaint atmosphere yet excellent medical facilities, shopping and restaurants. Direct flights from Newark to Vero Beach. New manufactured homes from $114,900. 772-581-0080; www.beach-cove.com
Land For Sale BANK ORDERED LAND SALE! Oct 13th & 14th! 21 acres – was 69,900, SALE $49,900 42 acres – was 89,900, SALE $64,900 35 acres – 5 acre POND – was 199,900, SALE $129,900 Gorgeous No. Catskills location less than 3 Ѕ hrs NY City! Views, State Land,
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NEW BUSINESS FORMATIONS Ivory Lace Music LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 07/12/2018. Office: Kings County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, Ivory Lace Music LLC 514 Bayridge Parkway #3F, Brooklyn, NY 11209. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. BOSWIJCK LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 08/14/2018. Office: Kings County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, c/o 66 Meserole Avenue PO Box # 220137 Brooklyn, NY 11222. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.
811 Crown Street, LLC Articles of Organization filed by the Department of State of NY on: 07/10/2017 Office location: County of Kings Purpose: Any and all lawful activities Secretary of State of New York (SSNY ) is designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail a copy of process to: c/o Leroy Baxter 62 Paerdegat 2nd Street Brooklyn, NY 11236 2029 86TH BROOKLYN LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 08/20/2018. Office: Kings County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, c/o 5303 8th Avenue Brooklyn, NY 11220. Purpose: Any lawful purpose
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VOL. 22 NO. 40
15
OUR TIME PRESS October 4 – 10, 2018
Community Calendar
Friday, October 5
th
THE MILE-LONG OPERA: A BIOGRAPHY OF 7 O’CLOCK.” Gansevoort & Washington to West 34th St., 7PM, FREE (bus leaves promptly at 5:45). ARTs East NY invites community members to ride a free chartered bus to Manhattan to enjoy a megachorus of 1,000 singers from 40 choirs perform on the High Line. They’ll be singing microstories inspired by life in the city in an immersive “opera” composed by Pulitzer Prizewinner David Lang. Audience members will walk (at their leisure) the length of the High Line, enjoying this special event. Advance registration required. RSVP at https:// tinyurl.com/ycyrfowc. Arrive by 5:30, as reservations will be released then.
JASON MORAN ON THE HISTORY OF NYC JAZZ CLUBS @ NYU Law School, D’Agostino Hall, 108 West 3rd St., 6-8PM, FREE. Enjoy a fascinating lecture on the archives of jazz
Mile Long Opera clubs and spots in New York by MacArthur Fellow and Artistic Director for Jazz at The Kennedy Center Jason Moran. A jazz pianist, composer and interdisciplinary artist, he performs and retells histories of Black music, oftentimes collaborating with iconic visual artists and musicians. RSVP at 212-998-4222.
RICHARD BEAVERS GALLERY POP-UP Hahne & Co., 625 Broad St., Newark, NJ, 5-9PM (Sat., 12-7PM, Sun., 12-5PM), FREE. Bedford-Stuyvesant’s local gem of a gallery crosses the river to share the wealth. The work of several gifted artists will be on display, including Faith Ringgold, Frank Morrison, Leroy Campbell, Genesis Tramaine and Phyllis Stephens. An artist’s talk with Tramaine takes place today at 5:30.
Saturday, October 6th A CELEBRATION OF YUSEF IMAN @ Sistas’ Place, 456 Nostrand Ave., 9 &10:30PM, $20 cover. Malika Iman will give a brief presentation on this, the birthday of her late and beloved father’s work with Amiri Baraka. The two were very close and conceptualized a lot of the Black Arts Movement work. Both were playwrights and poets beloved in the com-
Mr. Soul munity. Dwight West and his Liberation Quartet headline the shows. For info or to make a reservation, call 718-398-1766.
MR. SOUL FILM SCREENING at Miller Theatre, 2960 Broadway, Columbia University campus, 5:20-7:30PM, $15 (discounts for seniors, students & groups). Ellis Haizlip was hip, smart, innovative, political and gay. In his personal fight for social equality, on the heels of the Civil Rights Movement, the revolution was televised via his weekly PBS show, “Soul!” with James Baldwin, The Last Poets, Cicely Tyson, Stevie Wonder, Toni Morrison, Bill Withers, Nikki Giovanni and many others. Haizlip’s niece, Melissa Haizlip, directs this incredible film along with doc icon Sam Pollard. Tickets at Eventbrite.
Tuesday, October 9th CREATIVELY SPEAKING: JUST US, RESIST THE DIVIDE The New School University Center, 63 Fifth Ave., Rm. UL105. Join the Institute for Transformative Mentoring (ITM) & Creatively Speaking for a screening of independent short films and a discussion about social justice. Featuring Every Mother’s Son by Tami Gold, telling the story of three women who lost their sons to police brutality and now advocate for change. Additional films to be announced.
Film Festival and the Luminal Theater partner with the center on a film workshop for teens powered by cell phones. Youth discover the endless space and the (in-between), telling stories across platforms in the digital age. They’ll enjoy As An Act of Protest by Dennis Leroy Kangalee and Emory Douglas’ The Art of The Black Panthers. One film is a journey to find the meaning of life and eradicate racism and police brutality; the other flows from documentary and melodrama to satire and horror. Arts + crafts workshops and Historic Hunterfly Road House tours round out the day. Tickets at Eventbrite.
MARK YOUR CALENDARS
Tuesday, October 23rd FILM: IDA B. WELLS: A PASSION FOR JUSTICE @ Kimmel Center-NYU, 60 Washington Square South, Rm. 914, 6PM, FREE. Ida B. Wells-Barnett was a household name in Black America during much of her life and was considered the equal of her wellknown African-American contemporaries such as Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois. This film, by William Greaves, retells the dramatic life and turbulent times of the pioneering African-American jour-
Saturday, October 13th FILM: AS A RADICAL BLACK MEDIUM
Jason Moran
Yusef Iman at Spirit House
Weeksville Heritage Center, 158 Buffalo Ave., 10AM-5PM, FREE. Nova Frontier
Ida B. Wells nalist, activist, suffragist and anti-lynching crusader of the post-Reconstruction period. RSVP at 212-998-4222.
Controlling New York’s Rodents ➔➔ Continued from page 11 their flesh. Similar to dogs, when a female rat is in heat, the male rats line up based on social dominance to mate with the female. Also, as attested to by the number of rat, hamster and gerbil owners, they can be domesticated to be gentle and affectionate toward humans. New Yorkers could do a world of good in reducing the rat population if they would commit to not littering. How many times in a given day do New Yorkers nonchalantly toss food, candy wrappers and drinks onto the sidewalk streets and tree tubs? Consider the mental process involved in choosing tree tubs as waste disposals. Is it that some people believe they are natural, organic trash bins?
This battle with the rodent population is ages-old in New York City and other US cities. For example, it was common in the 1960s and 1970s for public school assemblies to feature the airing of a short film on how to starve rats within 72 hours. The key was vigilant housecleaning using tins to hold dry goods such as flour, salt and sugar, and patching holes and cracks in walls and floors with a combination of crushed glass and steel wool. Other sources state the fight to reduce and control the rodent population started in 1997. Mayor Rudolph Giuliani rolled out the Exterminator Task Force and designated Joseph Lhota “The Rat Czar.” The current mayor, Bill de Blasio, is experiencing much criticism in his management of the rodent population. It is
reported that rat sightings have increased by over 50% during his first term in office. Some researchers attribute the rat population increase to the mild winters and the extreme hot summers. For example, New York City experienced significantly higher seasonal temperatures from June through September in 2018. The current “Rodent Guru” is Caroline Bragdon, DHMH’s Director of Neighborhood Interventions for Pest Control who led a two-hour Rat Management Training session on September 20, 2018 at Webster Library in Manhattan. Bragdon informed attendees that “rats are highly fertile, producing large numbers of babies” and “their teeth can cut anything softer than steel.” The measures currently used to control the population include
birth control, dry ice, bait and rat-hunting dogs. Bragdon’s rodent control suggestions included power washing sidewalks, spraying down garbage cans and not feeding birds. This reporter has observed certain restaurant workers placing cardboard trays filled with cooked and seasoned rice onto the sidewalks for bird consumption. One controversy in controlling the rodent population is the community gardens. On one hand, they offer green space, encourage community and cultivate flower and vegetable patches. Some community gardens have chicken coops and work spaces to produce natural medicinal concoctions. The down side is that flowers, vegetables and composting attract rodents.
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OUR TIME PRESS October 4 – 10, 2018
The Bed-Stuy Alive! Collective presents the
VOL. 22 NO. 40
OCTOBER 13-25, 2018 Join us on & and visit www.bed-stuyalive.org for details on a full week of exciting events!
L I G H T I N G T H E PAT H F O R O U R C H I L D R E N : E D U C AT I O N I S O U R TO R C H PAVED BY OUR ANCESTORS AND ELDERS
Gala Kick-off Festival STREET, BROOKLYN, NY 10.13.18 | 10 AM - 5 PM FULTON (BETWEEN BROOKLYN & NEW YORK AVENUES) FULTON STREET COMES ALIVE @ NOON!
JOIN US TO CELEBRATE OUR COMMUNITY’S GREATEST! Opening Ceremony and the 10th Annual Tohma Y. Faulkner Community Awards
CHILDREN’S VILLAGE MARCY PLAZA 100 gift bags to the 1 100 children to participate at the Bed-Stuy Alive! Children’s Village st
10 AM – 12 PM RESTORATION LOBBY | 1368 FULTON STREET
TOHMA Y. FAULKNER AWARD HONOREES EDUCATION Lori Ayers EDUCATION Stanley Kinard
BED-STUY HERITAGE MARKETPLACE DISCOVER YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD: RESOURCE ROW
MONDAY 10.15.18
JAZZ NIGHT AT TOHMA’S PLACE 1585 Fulton Street | Cover $10
FRIDAY 10.19.18 JAZZ 966
966 Fulton Street | 8 PM
SATURDAY 10.20.18 BROWNSTONE TOUR
Boys & Girls High School | 11 AM – 4 PM
SISTAH’S PLACE Jazz on Saturday nights @ 8 PM | Tickets $20
ARTS AND CULTURE TRAILBLAZER Neal Clarke
HEALTH ZONE
ARTS AND CULTURE TRAILBLAZER Randy Weston
Information & Screenings
SPECIAL ACHIEVEMENT Ramon Wal King
“SAVOR BED-STUY” FOOD COURT
Tompkins Avenue Restaurants between Quincy & Hancock | 4 PM- 9 PM
COMMUNITY CHAMPION Job Marshariki
RESTORATION ROCKS! MUSIC FESTIVAL
THURSDAY 10.25.18
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TRAILBLAZER Clara Hayes
A Tribute to Aretha Franklin
COMMUNITY SERVICE Maurice Reid ENTREPRENEUR AWARD Sharyi Ayers SUPPORTED BY New York State Senator Velmanette Montgomery New York City Council Member Robert E. Cornegy, Jr.
If You Have A New York Public Library Card, You Can Now Borrow Ties And Handbags
T
Enjoy 2 Weeks of Exciting Events!
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By Samantha Raphelson
he New York Public Library’s Riverside branch is piloting a program called “Grow Up Work Fashion Library,” which lends out ties, briefcases and handbags to those with limited resources. COURTESY OF NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY The New York Public Library lends out much more than just books, and now that includes clothes. The library’s Riverside branch on the West Side of Manhattan is testing a pilot program that allows patrons to borrow neckties, briefcases and handbags – provided they have fines of less than $15 on their library cards. The idea is to help people with limited resources get access to suitable clothing and accessories for job interviews, graduations and other formal events, according to the library website. The “Grow Up Work Fashion Library” was created by Michelle Lee, a young adult librarian at the Riverside branch who works with students at a nearby high school to prepare for job interviews, says Kimberly Spring, network manager of the Riverside area of branches for the New York Public Library. “She hosted a series of job preparation workshops, and she noticed that a lot of her young participants did not
have access to professional supplies or gear such as neckties, purses, briefcases, so she wanted to do something about that,” Spring tells Here & Now’s Lisa Mullins. “She sees these teens on a daily basis, and she established a rapport with them, so they trust her.” Lee pitched the idea to the New York Public Library Innovation Project, which funds 25 programs submitted by staff members each year. Previous winning submissions include a job search program for the long-term unemployed, language exchange courses and a library staff job shadowing day, says the project website. Lee’s idea was submitted along with 300 others. She then used the grant money to buy the items for the fashion lending program, Spring says, adding that the library also encourages residents to donate used clothing items. People can check out items for up to three weeks, Spring says. The program is open to everyone with a library card, not just young adults, and almost 10 people have participated so far. Participants can also attend one of Lee’s job interview preparation workshops. “You know, you look good, you feel good,” Spring says. “You feel more confident, you know, when you’re going out.” http://www.wfae.org
RESTAURANT CRAWL
BROWNSTONE GALA
Weeksville Heritage Center