______________ VALLEY STREAM _____________
HERALD
CoMMuNIty uPDAte Infections as of March 29
7,596
Infections as of March 22 7,350
$1.00
Mental health in District 30
Schools look into racist comment
local book club discusses race
Page 10
Page 5
Page 8
Vol. 32 No. 14
APRIl 1 - 7, 2021
High times ahead for V.S. Locals react to likelihood of legalizing marijuana someone who toked too much?” she said. Megan Garcia said she hoped State lawmakers were slated the bill would lead to better on Tuesday, after the Herald enforcement of public smoking went to press, to pass an expan- and driving-while-high laws. sive bill that would legalize rec- “What people want to do in prireational marijuana vate doesn’t bother use in New York — me because it an effort years in the doesn’t affect me,” making — while setshe said. “But nothting regulations for ing is enforced now a new industry and . . . People walk its taxation. around parks and Spanning 128 public places smokpages, the Marihuaing now. People at na Regulation and work sit in the parkTaxation Act ing lot at work and addresses everysmoke and bring thing from enforcethat smell in with ment and criminal them.” justice refor m to KeVIN WASzAK “Legalize all how taxes would be Valley Stream dr ugs,” Timothy levied against mariVa s q u e z s a i d . juana producers and “Those that do them retailers and how those dollars are gonna do them anyway.” could be spent. “Looking at it in the frame of Reaction to news of the bill’s social justice, I feel that it’s a imminent passage was met good start in helping heal the largely positively in Valley communities most affected by Stream, with some concerns the war on drugs,” Kevin over how the additional tax dol- Waszak said. lars generated from the industry Among the major provisions would be spent. in the bill would be the creation Valley Streamer Ellen Ingber of a new agency to regulation said it was about time. “Would marijuana sale. The Office of you rather spend time with someone who drank too much or Continued on page 11
By PeteR BelfIoRe pbelfiore@liherald.com
l
Peter Belfiore/Herald
Next, we find that bunny With baskets in hand, sisters Juliana, 2, and Sarah, 9, made their way to meet the Easter bunny at Hendrickson Park last Saturday at the village’s Easter basket giveaway. Story, more photos, Page 3.
The inoculation effort continues Alden Terrace pop-up vaccination site serves 300 By PeteR BelfIoRe pbelfiore@liherald.com
More than 300 people from Valley Stream and Elmont received Covid-19 inoculations at a state-run pop-up vaccination site at Alden Terrace Elementary School last Saturday. Organized in collaboration with Masjid Hamza and the Elmont School District, the site was chiefly intended to serve the local Muslim community. Addi-
tionally, roughly 25 teachers and staff members at Alden Terrace received their shots. Saturday’s vaccination drive came as the number of vaccinations statewide has steadily increased in recent weeks. As of Monday, more than 286,000 people in Nassau County had been fully vaccinated out of a total population of more than 1.3 million, according to state figures. Infection rates, however, remain relatively high, with the state
recording a rate of 4.7 percent on Sunday. From March 7 to 25, Valley Stream recorded 585 new infections, according to the county. Mosque officials said that the push to vaccinate as many congregants as possible was particularly important with Ramadan starting soon. Following the lunar calendar, the Muslim holy month will begin April 12 and Continued on page 4
ooking at it in the frame of social justice, I feel that it’s a good start.