Winner of Vol. 71, No. 10
the Pulitzer Prize
Thursday, April 16, 2020
$1.00
What’s inside?
Nurses say no masks, gloves only the beginning
School battle
By KIRSTYN BRENDLEN
Debate over whether to reopen schools this year rages on between mayor and governor. But who is right? Page A6
kbrendlen@riverdalepress.com
JULIUS CONSTANTINE MOTAL / File
Protesters paste up mock eviction notices for landlords dubbed the borough’s ‘worst evictors’ by tenants rights groups during a rally outside the Bronx Housing Civil Court on the Grand Concourse last year. Since the advent of the coronavirus pandemic, renters have worried how they might make rent and what the ramifications would be if they can’t.
Can’t pay rent? Dinowitz wants to help By KIRSTYN BRENDLEN
Joining the line Sen. Alessandra Biaggi takes a town hall online to find ways to get unemployment funds to those who need it. Page A3
kbrendlen@riverdalepress.com
April 1, 2020, was dramatically different from the April 1 of decades past. New York City is largely quiet, with businesses closed and people staying home in light of the coronavirus pandemic that grips the nation. Yet, some things remain the same, like paying rent. Except as millions apply for unemployment nationwide for the first time, there are many who won’t be able to cover the check. As part of his overall shutdown of “non-essential” businesses last month, Gov. Andrew Cuomo also instituted a moratorium on evic-
tions. While it doesn’t compel landlords to waive or reduce rents during the pandemic, it does stop them from removing tenants who might not be able to pay right now. The goal is to stop the streets being flooded with new homeless because of the current economic struggles, making it much harder to enforce social distancing and other “shelterin-place” practices designed JEFFrEy DINOwITz to curb the spread of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19. The original plan, however, was designed to prohibit evictions for just 90
days. That means beginning June 20, if someone doesn’t have their rent for that month — or any other months they’ve missed during the pandemic — they could find themselves without a place to live. While it seems new infections and hospitalizations are leveling off in New York, it’s become clear to some lawmakers like Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz that the 90-day moratorium just isn’t enough.
Looking for a little more time
Dinowitz partnered with state Sens. Brad Hoylman and Liz Krueger to introduce the Tenant Safe Harbor Act, intended to extend RENT, page A4
‘Fab Four’ of Fieldston are female finance forerunners By ROSE BRENNAN Intern
Adding TV to his CV Anthony Parker moved to the Bronx to find something important missing. He finds it on his BronxNet show. Page A7
Seeing coronavirus infection rates and hospitalizations level off over the past several days has been encouraging for New York in the midst of a pandemic, but that doesn’t mean hospitals and other health care facilities are out of the woods just yet. Hospitals across the city still are at and over capacity, according to Gov. Andrew Cuomo, taxing not only doctors and nurses needed to fight the pandemic, but making it difficult to keep in stock personal protective equipment for them. Personal protective equipment, or PPE, includes gloves, masks, gowns and face shields, all designed to protect those treating patients who could just as easily infect them. Judy Sheridan-Gonzalez, a registered nurse at Montefiore Medical Center who also is president of New York State Nurses Association union, said some of her colleagues in the industry have been forced to buy their own masks and gloves online in an effort to keep themselves safe from the coronavirus. “We’ve had to fight for evNURSES, page A4
A career path in finance is one with a notable gender gap. According to Forbes, only 15 percent of financial executives are women despite the fact they account for 46 percent of all employees in the field. Career advancement for women in finance isn’t impossible, but it’s difficult. But at Ethical Culture Fieldston School, four young women are looking to change that. Fieldston’s Females in Finance Club formed just this year, but its members already are making waves in finance and investing. And, as evidenced by its name, all four of the club’s members — and its advisor — are women. Rosemary Jiang, the club’s founder and team leader, was interested in finance long before she came to Fieldston. Both
‘I understand the biggest impact I can make is to start educating the young, because if anything, my school has taught me to be the change you want to see.’
— Rosemary Jiang
her father and her brother pursued careers in finance, so the Fieldston junior decided to follow in their footsteps. Once she began learning about the field, however, she quickly learned of its gender gap. “I knew that much like other fields, finance is male-dominated,” Jiang said. “For me, it is often
Courtesy of Olivia Pollack
Natalie Chen, left, rosemary Jiang, Vivian Lee and Olivia Pollack had a productive first year with the Females in Finance Club at Ethical Culture Fieldston School, earning national attention. discouraging (to see) the lack of women in the field, which is why I created Females in Finance.” A school club, however, needs
an advisor. Jiang looked no further than Fieldston’s math club, which was advised by Robyn Deakins. It didn’t hurt that Jiang al-
ready knew Deakins, since she’s a proud member of that club as well. “I know (Rosemary) specifically wanted a female advisor since part of the club’s mission is female empowerment,” Deakins said. “As a woman in mathematics, I hope I can act as a role model and inspiration.” The club finally took shape when three fellow students joined Jiang: junior Olivia Pollack and seniors Vivian Lee and Natalie Chen. Pollack’s background includes Model United Nations, and although she also was a member of Fieldston’s math club, she didn’t exactly have a defined interest in finance before joining the team. But now Pollack sees how her extra-curriculars inform each other. “I never truly understood the financial aspect of international politics,” Pollack said. “As such, FAB FOUR, page A4
Not even social distance can interrupt good art By JULIUS CONSTANTINE MOTAL jmotal@riverdalepress.com
A
fter the initial panic subsided, Cathy Sanacore knew exactly what she had to do. Since last fall, Sanacore has made weekly trips to a side room to Yo-Burger on Riverdale Avenue. Not because she’s hungry, but because every Tuesday afternoon, Sanacore would gather as many children as she could, helping them use paints to create their best approximations of Leonardo da Vinci. That came to an end, however, when restaurants were forced to eliminate their dine-in option as part of a citywide shutdown in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
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As schools and workplaces have shifted online, so too have other aspects of life — happy hours, dinner parties and art classes among them. Sanacore turned to the popular video conferencing program Zoom in a bid to recapture some of the magic and joy of her in-person painting classes. “For now, I love it,” Sanacore said, “but there’s nothing like being in the same room.” In a recent online class, Sanacore brought her signature pep, offering individual attention to the 10 or so children participating. She’d call out a name, and that child would hold up their creation to the camera, bringing a wealth of good cheer and encouragement from Sanacore. ONLINE ART, page A4
Courtesy of Tasha Marie Ellin
Milania Ellin uses markers to color in a garden scene during a weekly art class led by Cathy Sanacore on the video conferencing program zoom.