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President Obama: Health Care that Works for All ...see page 10

Suzanne Robinson: Working to Eliminate Health Disparities ...see page 19

The State of Black Men’s Health: STOP POLICE MISCONDUCT

“As Black people, we are in a mental and emotional crisis across the United States of America, as it relates to the Police. “ —Charles Barron

Patrick Manning: Visionary, Patriot and True Caribbean Man

P

atrick Augustus Mervyn Manning was born on Aug. 17, 1946, in San Fernando. He once said his family was so poor that he regularly wore shirts sewn from flour sacks.

He excelled as a student and earned a degree in geology at Jamaica’s campus of the University of the West Indies, then worked as a refinery operator and later a geologist in Trinidad for continued on page 6

Congressman Jeffries Expands Health Initiatives in Minority Communities ...see page 16

continued on page 4

FREE CONSULTATIONS: FORECLOSURE & BANKRUPTCY Call 855-768-8845

Radical Changes to Deal with Jamaica’s High Murder Rate ...see page 2

Brian Figeroux, Esq.

Become An Immigrant or Civil Rights Advocate... see pages 3 and 24

Is Being Single Hard? ...see page 15

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Caribbean Consulates

Anguilla 845 Third Avenue New York, N.Y. 10022 Tel: 212-745-0200

Antigua & Barbuda 305 East 47th Street, Suite 6A New York, N.Y. 10020 Tel: 212-541-4117

The Bahamas 231 East 46th Street New York, N.Y. 10017 Tel: 212-421-6420

Barbados 820 Second Avenue, 5th Floor New York, N.Y. 10017 Tel: 212-551-4325

Belize 675 Third Avenue, Suite 1911 New York, N.Y. 10017 Tel: 212-593-0999

Dominica 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400H New York, N.Y. 10017 Tel: 212-949-0853

Dominican Republic 1500 Broadway, Suite 410 New York, N.Y. 10036 Tel: 212-599-8478

Grenada 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400K New York, N.Y. 10017 Tel: 212-599-0301

Guyana 308 West 38th Street New York, N.Y. 10018 Tel: 212-947-5119

Haiti 815 Second Avenue,6th Floor New York, N.Y. 10017 Tel: 212-697-9767

Jamaica 767 Third Avenue, 2nd Floor New York, N.Y. 10017 Tel: 212-935-9000

Martinique 444 Madison Avenue, 16th Floor New York, N.Y. 10022 Tel: 212-838-6887

Montserrat 845 Third Avenue New York, N.Y. 10022 Tel: 212-745-0200

Panama 1212 Avenue of the Americas, 20th Floor New York, N.Y. 10036 Tel: 212-840-2450

St. Kitts & Nevis 414 East 75th Street, 5th Floor New York, N.Y. 10021 Tel: 212-535-5521

St. Lucia 800 Second Avenue, 9th Floor New York, N.Y. 10007 Tel: 212-697-9360 St. Maarten 675 Third Avenue, Suite 1807 New York, N.Y. 10017 Tel: 800-786-2278

St. Vincent & The Grenadines 801 Second Avenue, 21st Floor New York, N.Y. 10017 Tel: 212-687-4981 Trinidad & Tobago 125 Maiden Lane, 4th Floor New York, N.Y. 10038 Tel: 212-682-7272

For more Consulate information go to www.cawnyc.com/directory

IN THE NEWS

Radical Changes to Deal with Jamaica’s High Murder Rate

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ttorney General Marlene Malahoo Forte says she isn’t only talking tough when she declares an assault on crime, and murders in particular. She’s about to get the weapons she needs to battle the scourge – and it could impact on even law-abiding citizens.

“These are no ordinary times; we have to act,” she declared. “To successfully tackle the murder problem, some of the fundamental rights and freedoms which we have guaranteed to our people may have to be abrogated, abridged or infringed, because the evidence we are examining convince us that such action may be demonstrably justified in this free and democratic society.”

“When we pass laws, they are presumed to be constitutional unless and until they are set aside by a court of competent jurisdiction, but we are prepared to pass the laws and have them tested in the courts because we must do something about the murder problem.”

Those comments set the tone as the Attorney General went on to announce that the government will be making “radical changes” in a bid to curb the murder rate. The measures will include abolishing jury trials for murder and refusing bail to

accused murderers.

“Crime is Jamaica’s number one binding constraint to growth. Among the categories of crime, murder poses a particular threat.”

“While judicial discretion must be preserved and respected, Parliament, in the exercise of its powers to pass laws for peace, order and good government, will have to set the threshold for the consequences that will flow when people choose to murder and cause mayhem.”

Malahoo Forte disclosed that the government would be seeking to amend the Bail Act this year, and adjustments will also be made to several other pieces of legislation, including the Criminal Justice (Administration) Act, Jury Act, Evidence Act, Criminal Justice (Plea Negotiations and Agreement) Act, Firearms Act, and

Offences Against the Person Act. “We are going to make some radical changes. Right now, the sentiment is one of ‘no bail for murder, unless self-defense arises on the Crown’s case and the likelihood of an acquittal is high’. We are thinking of abolishing jury trials for murder and go ‘judge-alone’, adding that the practice of allowing accused to make unsworn statements from the dock will be done away with.” she revealed, “We must settle the Crown’s right to appeal. We will have to set up a special track to try murder, taking into account the realities surrounding the scheduling of cases in the courts.”

Minister of National Security Robert Montague delivered a warning that he was not in the least bit afraid of them: “Let me be very clear, this minister and the ministry he leads are not afraid of the forces of lawlessness and the criminal kingpins in this country. We will not shirk in this war against those who would challenge the authority of the State and bring untold terror to the people…There will be no comfort for the wicked, no rest for the weary, and no safe haven for the criminal.”l

Former St. Lucia PM Tells Why He Quit

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r. Kenny Anthony’s decision to step down as political leader of the St. Lucia Labour Party (SLP) was almost as surprising for supporters as the party’s loss in the June 6 general elections. But Anthony is now saying he stepped down from the political organization he led for about two decades in the name of honor.

“That’s what honorable people do, what people of integrity do,” he said in an exclusive interview with local television station, HTS News4orce.

“Having lost two general elections, very clearly, I would not have had the credibility to continue as political leader or for that matter, as Leader of the Opposition…Any political leader who has

led a party into elections and has lost the elections, has to take responsibility for defeat and the loss and resignation is one way of taking responsibility for the defeat and the loss.”

The SLP won just six seats to the United

Workers Party’s (UWP) eleven.

Anthony admitted that he was taken by surprise by the loss.

But he had been following the results as they came in and before the final vote had been counted, he realized his party would be forming the Opposition this time around.

As disappointed and surprised as he was, Anthony said he was also prepared.

“I had rehearsed the [resignation] statement that I issued for months — not that I expected the St. Lucia Labour Party to have lost the elections, but you always had to realistic about these things,” he told HTS. Anthony remains the Member of Parliament for Vieux Fort South.l

and hanging of bat houses in its parks in 2007, to curb the use of pesticides, and it has added a few more each year since.

“We have an increased sense of urgency in terms of wanting to make sure that we’re controlling the mosquito population to the very best of our ability,” said town supervisor Judi Bosworth, alluding to the threat of Zika and the West Nile virus.

“Just having bat houses isn’t going to be the answer, but at least it’s looking toward a solution that is environmentally friendly.”

As for the potential danger the bats gobble up, Aedes albopictus, known as the Asian tiger mosquito, is found on Long Island and is capable of transmitting Zika in a laboratory setting, according to Dr Susan Donelan, an infectious disease specialist at Stony Brook.

In the Caribbean, Zika is typically transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which can spread other tropical diseases like dengue fever and chikungunya.

So far, there have been no reported cases of local transmission of Zika on Long Island, Dr. Donelan said.l

Dr Kenny Anthony

Mosquito-eating Bats Enlisted in the Battle against Zika

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hile scientists scramble to come up with an effective vaccine against the Zika virus, one Long Island town has adopted a less conventional approach to fighting the disease: bats.

The nocturnal mammals, which are natural mosquito predators, can eat up to 1,000 of the disease-spreading bugs in a single hour, making them a chemical-free approach to pest control.

Encouraged by the prospect, officials in North Hempstead, New York, have approved the construction of boxes that simulate a bat’s natural habitat and function as such in several parks in an effort to attract more bats to the area.

The town started promoting the building

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CIVIL RIGHTS

The State of Black Men’s Health: Stop Police Misconduct

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BY VANDELL PARK

he recent police shootings of Philando Castile in Minnesota, and Alton Sterling in Louisiana, highlight what researchers have for years been dubbing a matter that should be deemed a public health concern. The violence by police officers continues to increase year by year. In 2015, some 1,134 individuals were killed by police officers across the United States, with some 15% of those deaths being Black men ages 15-34.

For almost two decades, recognized health organizations have viewed the shootings of Black men by police officers as a public health problem. In 1998, the American Public Health Association (APHA), in a policy statement, recognized police violence as a public health issue, and in 2002, the World Health Organization (WHO) says the excessive use of force by police is a form of violence which is considered a public health issue.

A number of renowned university professors across the United States have published studies that call to make police shootings of particularly Black men, a public health issue. Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health Professor, David Hemenway, speaking on the health effects of police shootings remarked: “Labeling it a public health problem and using the pub-

lic health approach means focusing on prevention rather than blame…It means stepping back and thinking about all the things that can be done, by all aspects of society if we really decide this is a public health problem we need to address.”

Professor Nancy Krieger, also of Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, says viewing police shootings as a public health problem provides a wider perspective of the situation: “Public health brings another lens.…It allows for reframing an issue to include a public health perspective that focuses on prevention…Any mortality outcome is ultimately a public health issue….We in public health are also concerned about mortality rates that are unfair, preventable, and unnecessary, as well as differences in death among different social groups."

New York Assemblyman and Black activist, Charles Barron, says the time has come for the issue of police shootings to be addressed before it becomes a public health epidemic. Assemblyman Barron says while he does not in any way condone the slaying of police officers, if police shootings continue to go unchecked and police officers are not being held accountable for their crimes, he is predicting a more catastrophic situation than the one that took place in Dallas where Michael Johnson killed five innocent police offi-

cers: “While I do not condone what the shooter in Dallas did, everybody is expressing their condolences to the police officers, but what about his family? His mother and father were on TV apologizing for his action, yet no one sympathized with them. He is a product of this racist society.

He said he did it because he is sick and tired of these police killings. We need to look at that; how many more Michaels are there in this nation? When will the next Ferguson, Baltimore, Minnesota or Baton Rouge Louisiana happen? As long as there is injustice anywhere, there is injustice everywhere.”

The Assemblyman quickly added: “As Black people, we are in a mental and emotional crisis across the United States of America, as it relates to the police. The stress placed on a Black mother or Black parents to send their young man child, or even herself or her husband going out there, the fear of having an encounter with the police, places so much mental strain on us Black people that we are almost helpless. The fear of these racists’ killer cops, whether they are Black, White, Latino or any other race; this blue wall racism is killing our people. The mental stress for us to tell our children, make sure you comply, make sure you stand this way, don’t talk back-- that emasculates Black men. I would tell my son to stand up straight like a man, and let the police know that stop-

ping me without a cause is illegal; you have a gun; I can’t stop you from doing this but you are violating my human rights to move about peacefully in my community.

By telling us to comply like a punk is emasculating us Black men, because we have this system that won’t stop these racists’ killer cops from brutalizing us, treating us with discourtesy, and it is turning us to the point where our mental stability is being challenged.”

According to Assemblyman Barron, the role of the police is essential, but there needs to be an urgent revamping of police operations and the justice system if people, in particular Black communities, are to exercise trust in the justice system that condones police brutality by not justly condemning rouge cops and placing them in prison when they commit crimes against humanity: “This is a crisis that we are in.

The police departments across the country are out of control… we as a people have to see this as a national crisis, a national attack on us as a people, and this is sanctioned and condoned by the system. It is one thing to have police kill us, but, it is another thing to have the system of socalled justice refusing to punish them, even when we get indictments and convictions by a Black District Attorney like Ken Thompson in Brooklyn, who still recommends no jail time; that’s a traitor’s act to our people.” l

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MOVING FORWARD

Constant Protest Results in Soft Sentence in Civil Disobedience Case

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BY VANDELL PARK

he act of civil disobedience, even though it’s been done for a good cause, has a price. Sometimes that price could be death, lifelong injuries, a soiled reputation, or in most cases, incarceration or being apprehended by law enforcement. On October 23, 2015, two white men, Clarke Kissinger and Miles Solay, joined the Stop Mass Incarceration organization in a civil disobedience protest outside of the Rikers Island Prison to protest what they claim to be injustice for the inmates of that facility.

The two men are charged with Class A Misdemeanors for obstructing government administration. Their crime was to lay on the ground in civil disobedience at the entrance of the prison, in a bid to shut down Rikers Island in support of justice for the some 95 % of Black, Hispanics and other non-white races that are detained at that facility for months and even years without being charged with a crime, or cannot post bail, but who are reported to be beaten and treated with extreme brutality while locked up there.

The two men were among some 100 other protesters when they were apprehended along with 14 others by law enforcement. While the others were sent home, Clarke and Miles were charged and faced up to one year in jail for their act of civil disobedience.

Clark and Miles with supporters outside Queens Court. Photo by VanPark.

As a result of prolonged protests to drop the charges against the two men, on July 12, 2016, prosecutors who brought the charges against Miles and Clarke in a last minute deal with the defense attorneys, dropped the serious Class A Misdemeanor charge and had the two men placed on ten days’ community service, along with the payment of a $120 fine, after they pleaded guilty to

standing up for injustice at Rikers Island.

Solay and Kissinger expressed their gratitude to the thousands who protested on their behalf to have the charges dropped. Solay, who spoke with the media following the ruling said: “We have been sentenced to ten days of ‘community service,’ which means working unpaid for the NYC Sanitation Department cleaning the streets. While

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the ‘community service’ penalty is bullshit, this was a victory in that we aren't going to jail, getting probation and will be able to continue with our work and contributions to the fight to make revolution and change the world. Thank you to everyone who spoke out, signed, called, showed up, and more. As I told the judge and the entire courtroom during my allocution, I hope many more people do exactly as we did, putting their bodies on the line to demand that Rikers Island be shut down.”

The two men contend that the Rikers Island facility is inhumane and should be shut down immediately. The facility houses some 10,000 individuals detained by law enforcement, 85 % of whom have not had a trial or been convicted of a crime. Solay says: “Rikers Island is a deaders prison; it is an embodiment of white supremacy and mass incarceration that is at the heart of the American empire. The protests for the prison to be shut down are righteous and just and there should be more protests until the authorities shut down the facility, because its closure will be justice for the … people who’ve been, and are still thrown in, solitary confinement unnecessarily, brutalized, beaten, died, committed suicide and even raped in there. We will continue the fight to have Rikers Island shut down.” l

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6

CARIBBEAN STAR

Patrick Manning: Visionary, Patriot and True Caribbean Man continued from page 1

Texaco.

In 1991, Mr. Manning led the People’s National Movement to a victory over Prime Minister Arthur N. R. Robinson’s National Alliance for Reconstruction.

In December 2001, Mr. Manning was selected as Prime Minister by Mr. Robinson, then the ceremonial President of Trinidad and Tobago.

Manning was among the second generation of Caribbean leaders who succeeded the giant grouping of Eric Williams of Trinidad & Tobago, Norman Manley of Jamaica and Errol Barrow of Barbados, with the combination of Cheddi Jagan and Forbes Burnham of Guyana, who had essentially fashioned the transition period to independence of the Englishspeaking Caribbean territories controlled

by Britain.

Mr. Manning is survived by his wife, Hazel, and their two sons Attending the opening ceremony of the CARICOM Heads of Government Meeting in Guyana on July 7, leaders eulogized the late former Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Patrick Manning, hailing him as a true champion of CARICOM. In his remarks at the National Cultural Centre, CARICOM Secretary-General, Ambassador Irwin LaRocque, who led the speeches, said that as a member of the Conference of Heads of Government for

13 years, the former Trinidadian Prime Minister was “unwavering” in his commitment to CARICOM. “The initiatives he promoted to advance integration ensure that his legacy as a regionalist is secure. His calm and deliberate manner was a distinctive feature during the Meetings of Conference,” the Secretary-General said.

Manning, passed away at the age of 69, a day after being diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, a rare blood and bone marrow cancer.

“I extend to the Manning family and to the government and people of Trinidad and Tobago our sincere condolences on the death of this outstanding CARICOM Leader,” Secretary-General LaRocque added.

Prime Minister of Dominica and CARICOM Chairman Roosevelt Skerrit, also spoke highly of the late Manning.

“He was no doubt a very committed Caribbean leader,” he said, and added that in recognition of his contributions to

regional life, Dominica will observed two days of mourning.

Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago Dr. Keith Rowley thanked the Community for its outpouring of support to his country on the passing of its former Prime Minister. His death, he said, represented a tremendous loss for Trinidad and Tobago and the entire Caribbean.

“Mr. Manning was a visionary, patriot, and a true Caribbean man, who was committed to the regional integration movement,” Mr Rowley said, lauding his contribution to the establishment of initiatives including the Petroleum Fund which allowed Member States to benefit from Trinidad and Tobago’s oil revenue.

Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Dr. Ralph Gonsalves, who had visited Manning when he was hospitalized, described the late leader as a “titan of the integration movement”.

He eulogized the fallen leader with the paraphrased words of Thucydides (c. 460 B.C. – c. 395 B.C.): “For the whole earth is the tomb of famous men; not only are they commemorated by columns and inscriptions in their own country, but in foreign lands there dwells also an unwritten memorial of them, graven not on stone but in the hearts of men. Make them your examples, and, esteeming courage to be freedom and freedom to be happiness, do not weigh too nicely the perils of war.”

[Funeral Oration of Pericles] Accolades continued for Manning.

Former Jamaica’s Prime Minister and Leader of the Opposition, Portia

Simpson Miller, has expressed condolences to the family of former Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago Patrick Manning, the leadership and members of that country’s governing People’s National Movement (PNM), and the people of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago on the passing of former Prime Minister Manning.

“Patrick Manning was a formidable Caribbean politician who led his country and people with distinction as Prime Minister between 1991 and 1995 and again from 2001 to 2010. He earned the accolade of being the longest-serving Member of the Trinidad and Tobago House of Representatives, having been Parliamentary representative for the San Fernando East constituency from 1971 to 2015,” Simpson Miller said in a statement.

She added that Manning proved himself while in office as well as during his time as Opposition Leader, having been an accomplished Caribbean man dedicated to the best ideals and practical realization of Caribbean regional economic integration and the social and cultural unity of the Caribbean people.

“Mr. Manning was a friend of Jamaica who did a lot to advance the interest of both countries within the framework of bilateral relations as well as within the councils of the Caribbean community.

Trinidad has lost a true champion of the people and the Caribbean has lost a devoted advocate of the benefits of regionalism,” Simpson Miller said.l

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7

MONEY MATTERS

New Federal Tax Law May Affect Some Refunds Filed in Early 2017; Details Coming This Summer

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he Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has announced initial plans for processing tax returns involving the Earned Income Tax Credit and Additional Child Tax Credit during the opening weeks of the 2017 filing season.

The IRS is sharing the information now to help the tax community prepare for the 2017 season, and plans are being made for a wider communication effort this summer and fall to alert taxpayers about the changes that will affect some early filers.

This action is driven by the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015 (PATH Act) that was enacted Dec. 18, 2015, and made several changes to the tax law to benefit taxpayers and their families. Section 201 of this new law mandates that no credit or refund for an overpayment for a taxable year shall be made to a taxpayer before Feb. 15 if the taxpayer claimed the Earned Income Tax Credit or Additional Child Tax Credit on the return.

This change begins Jan. 1, 2017, and may affect some returns filed early in 2017. Additional information is listed as follows:

also submit returns as they normally do.

nThe IRS will begin accepting and processing tax returns once the filing season begins, as we do every year. That will not change.

nThe IRS still expects to issue most refunds in less than 21 days, though the IRS will hold refunds for EITC and ACTC-related tax returns filed early in 2017 until Feb. 15 and then begin issuing them. nTo comply with the law, the IRS will hold the refunds on EITC and ACTCrelated returns until Feb. 15.

This allows additional time to help prevent revenue lost due to identity theft and refund fraud related to fabricated wages and withholdings. nThe IRS will hold the entire refund.

Under the new law, the IRS cannot release the part of the refund that is not associated with the EITC and ACTC. Taxpayers should file as they normally do, and tax return preparers should

This is one more step the IRS is taking to ensure taxpayers receive the refund they are owed. The IRS plans to work closely with stakeholders and IRS partners to help the public understand this process before they file their tax returns and ensure a smooth transition for this important law change.

More information about this law will be posted to IRS.gov and shared with partners and taxpayers throughout the second half of 2016.l

Source: IRS

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8

AMERICAN DREAM

Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA)

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BY JOSHUA L. BANCROFT

ousing is a critical component of health, particularly for those with HIV/AIDS. HUD’s Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) program recognizes the stabilizing role of housing as a platform to receive healthcare and services to help manage HIV and AIDS. Through this program and other resources, faith and community organizations can assist those living with HIV/AIDS to obtain housing, social services, and other resources to help them maintain quality of life with HIV/AIDS.

Background: Combatting the Impact of HIV/AIDS Studies have repeatedly demonstrated a link between access to safe, stable housing and access to medical care for HIV/AIDS. Currently, more than 1.2 million Americans are living with HIV, and there are approximately 50,000 new infections per year.

Housing is a critical component of care for those living with the disease. The U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness notes that “stable, supportive housing is a cornerstone of HIV/AIDS treatment,” and people expe-

riencing homelessness are 16 times more likely to contract HIV. Similarly, “Opening Doors”, the Federal Strategy to Prevent and End Homelessness, recognizes that housing is a key structural intervention for individuals living with HIV/AIDS to improve health outcomes and reduce risk behaviors. This is especially important because it is estimated that 50% of individuals diagnosed with HIV will experience housing instability in their lifetime.

How Can Faith and Community Organizations Be Involved?

There are many ways faith and community organizations can be involved helping persons with HIV/AIDS find and

How can Faith and Community be invlolved?

Grants are available to help persons with HIV/AIDS find and maintain housing.

maintain housing. Grant opportunities are announced through the HOPWA website at www.hudexchange.info/programs/hopwa and at Grants.gov. You can also connect with HOPWA grantees in your area by searching the HOPWA grantee locator.

Because HOPWA funds cannot be used for small appliances, hygiene products, and other items to help new residents feel settled, faith and community organizations can play a significant role in helping to provide these items. Just as important, faith and community organizations can offer emotional and social support to new residents: invite them into your faith community or community meetings to help them transition into

new routines.

By searching for and connecting with HOPWA grantees in your community, you can help publicize resources and participate in national HIV awareness days to educate your community about HIV. Help spread the word and encourage people to find out their HIV status and connect to lifesaving resources— you can’t know your HIV status unless you get tested. Each month has different themes for HIV awareness days so you can set up an HIV awareness day that connects with your congregation members or clients.

Finally, HUD Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships (CFBNP) serves as a resource center for faith and community organizations seeking to learn more about HUD programs.

HUD CFBNP stands ready to help faithbased and community organizations, individuals, and others find more information about HUD’s programs and answers to questions. For assistance, contact us at partnerships@hud.gov or 202-708-2404.l Joshua L. Bancroft is a Program Specialist at HUD’s Center for FaithBased & Neighborhood Partnerships.

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9

AMERICAN DREAM

Short Sale Tax Implications

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issue you a 1099-C (“Cancellation of Debt”) form instead.

BY AMY LOFTSGORDON CONTRIBUTING EDITOR, NOLO.COM

f you are a homeowner facing foreclosure, a short sale might sound like the perfect solution to avoid foreclosure. However, if you complete a short sale, you could be subject to an income tax hit. Read on to learn more about when short sales result in tax liability and when you are exempt from paying such taxes.

What Is a Short Sale?

A short sale is when a homeowner sells his or her home for less than the total debt balance remaining on the mortgage and the lender agrees to accept the proceeds from the sale in exchange for releasing the lien on the property. Short sales are one way for borrowers to avoid foreclosure.

After a short sale, the lender may decide to come after you for a deficiency judgment. Or it might forgive the deficiency — in which case you might owe taxes.

When the Lender Pursues a Deficiency In a short sale, the sale price is “short” of the amount you owe to the mortgage lender. The difference between the total debt owed and the sale price is the “deficiency”.

Example. Say you are approved by

your lender to sell your property for $200,000, but you owe them $250,000.

The deficiency is $50,000.

In many cases, the lender can seek a personal judgment against you after the short sale to recover the deficiency amount. Generally, once a deficiency judgment has been obtained, the lender may collect this amount (in our example, $50,000) from the borrower by doing such things as garnishing the borrower’s wages or levying the borrower’s bank account.

If the Lender "Forgives" the Deficiency: Tax Implications On the other hand, the lender may choose to forego pursuing a deficiency judgment, forgive the deficiency amount, and

“Cancellation of Debt” as Taxable Income If a short sale results in a deficiency, but the lender decides not to come after you for payment and forgives the debt, this means you are no longer under an obligation to repay the lender. The lender is then usually required to report the amount of the cancelled debt to you and the IRS on a Form 1099-C. If this occurs, you may have to include the forgiven amount as income for tax purposes.

Example. As in the example above, let’s say you complete a short sale by selling your property for $200,000, but you owe the lender $250,000. The deficiency is $50,000. If the lender decides not to try to obtain a deficiency judgment and issues a 1099-C instead, then you have received a cancellation of debt in the amount of $50,000. This is generally considered taxable income to you.

Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007 You might be able to escape tax liabilty for a short sale deficiency if you can meet the requirements under the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007. This Act allows taxpayers to exclude certain types of forgiven debt from their taxable income, as long as the

forgiven debt was used to:

Buy, build, or substantially improve a principal residence, or To refinance debt incurred for those purposes.

This exclusion only applies to debt that was forgiven in 2007 through 2014. And you can only exclude $1 million of forgiven debt, or $2 million if you are married and filing a joint tax return.

Other Ways to Excape Tax Liability for a Deficiency There are some other situations when cancelled debt is not taxable, including:

Debt discharged in bankrptcy. Debts discharged through bankruptcy are not considered taxable income.

Insolvency. If you are “insolvent” (meaning your total debts are more than the fair market value of your total assets) at the time that the debt is cancelled, the forgiven debt may not be taxable.l Note: Foreclosure laws and procedures are complex and subject to change by legislatures and to interpretation by courts. Please retain the services of an attorney.

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10

OBAMA ADMINISTRATION

Health Care that Works for Americans

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n March 23, 2010, President Obama signed the Affordable Care Act into law, putting in place comprehensive reforms that improve access to affordable health coverage for everyone and protect consumers from abusive insurance company practices.

If you are one of the millions of Americans who gets health insurance through work or through a program like Medicare, you are benefiting from new rights and consumer protections. The law is making sure consumers and their doctors — not insurance companies — are in charge.

If you are uninsured or are struggling to find affordable health insurance, the health care law brings you new options to get covered. A new Health Insurance Marketplace in every state offers consumers a choice of private health plans.

If you don’t have health insurance, you can qualify for financial help to lower the cost of premiums in the Marketplace, and many Americans can get a plan for less than $100 per month.

After five years of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), more than 16 million Americans have gained health coverage, and the nation’s uninsured rate is now the lowest ever recorded.; 137 million Americans with private health coverage are now guaranteed preventive services coverage with no cost sharing, including

your coverage when you get sick due to a mistake you made on your application.

55 million women and 28 million children.

Since 2010, 5.7 million young adults have gained coverage due to the ACA’s provision, allowing young adults to remain on a parent’s plan to age 26 and its broader expansion of coverage.

Consumer Rights and Protections In the past, insurance companies could take advantage of you. They could deny coverage to children who had asthma or were born with a heart defect, put a lifetime cap on the amount of care they would pay for, or cancel your coverage when you got sick just by finding an accidental mistake in your paperwork.

The Affordable Care Act creates a new Patient’s Bill of Rights that protects you from these and other abusive practices.

End to Pre-Existing Condition Discrimination: Insurance companies can no longer deny coverage or charge more because of a pre-existing condition.

End to Limits on Care: In the past, some people with cancer or other chronic illnesses ran out of insurance coverage because their health care expenses reached a dollar limit imposed by their insurance company. Under the health care law, insurers can no longer impose lifetime dollar limits on essential health benefits and annual limits are being phased out by 2014. More than 105 million Americans no longer have lifetime limits thanks to the new law.

End to Coverage Cancellations: Insurance companies can no longer drop

More Affordable Coverage The law helps you by bringing down health care costs and making sure your health care dollars are spent wisely.

Insurance companies will now be accountable to their customers for how they are spending premium dollars, and how much they are raising rates. Plus, the new law will help lower costs through new tax credits and new marketplaces where insurers will have to compete for your business.

Better Access to Care The health care law builds on what works in our health care system. And it fixes what’s broken by providing you with more health insurance choices and better access to care.

Strengthening Medicare Nearly 50 million older Americans and Americans with disabilities rely on Medicare each year, and the new health care law makes Medicare stronger by adding new benefits, fighting fraud, and improving care for patients. The projected life of the Medicare Trust Fund has been extended by 13 years to 2030 as a result of reducing waste, fraud, and abuse, and slowing cost growth in Medicare.l

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11

IMMIGRATION

On the Four-Year Anniversary of DACA: It’s Clearly Working

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BY JANI LOYO

n June 15, the benefits of the four-year anniversary of President Obama’s Deferred Action Childhood Arrivals (DACA) initiative was celebrated. Since DACA was first announced in 2012, it has positively changed the lives of hundreds of thousands of young individuals in the United States. According to the most recent data, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) approved 728,285 applications, with the highest number of recipients residing in California, Texas, and Illinois.

Under DACA, eligible individuals who pass a background check and meet specific age, education, and United States residency requirements, are granted a temporary reprieve from deportation and are eligible to receive a renewable twoyear work permit.

Through a series of reports, Roberto Gonzales and his team of researchers at the National UnDACAmented Research Project (NURP) have found that while DACA does not offer a pathway to legalization, and the opportunities for DACA recipients vary from state to state, DACA has lifted barriers for over 700,000

young immigrants. The initiative has allowed them to transition to adulthood more smoothly, increased employment and educational opportunities, and allowed them to more fully contribute to American society.

Due to DACA, beneficiaries have expanded access to post-secondary education and have expressed renewed motivation in attending college and working in their dream fields. Recent results of the NURP survey showed that, depending on the state, DACA beneficiaries have access to in-state tuition rates and financial aid for higher education and have better access to trade schools and

DACA has allowed young immigrants to transition to adulthood more smoothly, increased employment and educational opportunities, and allowed them to more fully contribute to American society.

specialized vocations. As a result, the program has motivated many young DACA beneficiaries to pursue higher education and professional degrees.

Further, since the majority of DACA beneficiaries live in low-income households, DACA has helped some of its beneficiaries afford higher education by allowing them to find employment and increase their earnings. Moreover, many DACA recipients who were able to afford tuition at a four-year institution enrolled in job-training programs. In sum, the newfound economic and educational opportunities of DACA beneficiaries stimulate the U.S. economy; they are

able to contribute financially to their households and are able to serve the American society with their talent.

The benefits of DACA have been well documented. The Obama administration’s plan to expand DACA to even more worthy recipients, and implement the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA) program, would have even more positive impacts on individuals and American communities. As we anxiously await the Supreme Court’s decision, it is important to reflect on the success of DACA and continue to push for expanded and permanent, solutions.l

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12

IMMIGRATION

What the New Citizenship Fee Structure Means for Aspiring Americans

U

BY JOSHUA BREISBLATT

.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) is primarily a fee-funded agency within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Every two years they are required to review the fees they collect and adjust as needed. Earlier this month USCIS announced they have completed their “fee study” and have proposed raising fees across-the-board by an average of 21 percent.

The fee hike that will have the largest impact on aspiring citizens is the increase in the already-high naturalization fee which is set to go up 6.6 percent.

Currently the application fee is $680, including $85 for biometrics which will increase to $725. However, the agency will also implement a newly proposed partial fee waiver that would reduce the naturalization fee to $405 ($320 plus a biometric fee of $85) for families living between 150-200 percent of the federal poverty level. For families of four, the new partial fee waiver would apply to those earning between $36,450 and 48,600. Individuals who earn up to 150 percent of the federal poverty level, will continue to be eligible for a full fee waiver.

Of the 13.1 million legal permanent residents (LPRs) in the United States, 8.8

million are currently eligible for citizenship. Many, however, are not making the leap from legal permanent resident status to citizen. The number of those naturalizing has been less than 800,000 for the past five consecutive years (however, there has been a recent spike in naturalizations which is likely due to the upcoming presidential election). For those eligible to apply, the application cost of naturalization is one of the main barriers to citizenship.

According to Professors Manuel Pastor and Jared Sanchez from the University of Southern California’s Center for the

IN TROUBLE WITH THE LAW? Don’t take a plea, unless you consult me!

Study of Immigrant Integration (CSII) roughly 1 million people, or 12 percent of the eligible to naturalized population, could take advantage of the new fee waiver, cutting the cost of naturalization in half.

The fee waiver is good news, according to Gustavo Torres of Casa de Maryland who said, “Millions of new Americans will have a shot at participating in our democracy. The old fee structure disproportionately blocked the poor from becoming American citizens, freezing them out of our democracy.”

Citizenship is a good thing for immi-

grants and for the United States.

Citizenship means a commitment to the U.S., to the constitution, and to learning U.S. civics and history. Citizenship also comes with many social and economic benefits for individuals, families, children, communities, and our nation as a whole. Addressing the systemic barrier of the cost of naturalization, therefore, is important to prevent citizenship from becoming a privilege available only to those who can most afford it. l Photo Courtesy of City of Bellevue Washington

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Learn about: nForeclosure Defense in Supreme Court nShort Sales nDeed in Lieu of Foreclosure nYour Own Property Development nKeep Your Equity to Start a Business

Date: Saturday, August 27 @ 12noon Register at www.chambercoalition.org Call 718:722-9217

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14 NEWS

SMALL BUSINESS

Three Reminders for Business Owners Who Hate Selling

Y

BY BRIDGET WESTON POLLACK

ou started a small business knowing you’d make most of your revenue by selling your products or services. But you say to friends, “I hate selling. I’m not a good salesperson.”

So, what are you doing in small business?

Actually, your apprehension about selling is common, even for people running shops or restaurants where every dollar counts toward the bottom line. You can succeed in business even if you don’t like being “salesy.” Here’s what you have to remember in order to do be a great salesperson:

Your Business Exists to Help Solve Problems What problem does your business solve?

At a cell phone repair shop, you might specialize in fixing screens on smashed smartphones. That’s an easy one: you’re there to make repairs and restore peace of mind.

Sometimes, figuring out what problem you solve is a little trickier. If you run a restaurant, sure, you solve the problem of someone being hungry on Saturday

night. But you also provide a social gathering space or perhaps a low-key watering hole.

Think about your business: What problem do you help solve? Are you keeping that problem in mind each time you meet a customer or client? If you think about your business from a customer’s point of view, it doesn’t feel like selling anymore, does it? It feels like you’re a problem solver. And small business owners are pretty good at solving problems.

You Are an Expert in Something How well do you know your entire range of products or services? If you specialize

in a rapidly changing industry or niche, you may feel less familiar with some of your newer products.

But no one said studying stopped once you got out of school. Like a server studies a new menu or a dancer rehearses new choreography, you may have to routinely study what your business has to offer.

If you work with a team, it can be helpful to discuss new features or review reasons why customers return certain products. This examination and intimate knowledge of what you offer makes it easier for you to find solutions to your customers’ or clients’ problems.

You Are a Friendly Face You don’t need to shower customers with platitudes to get them to purchase something. You just need to say “hello.”

You’ve probably been put off in the past by salespeople who have asked for your entire life story the moment you walked into their business.

But the truth is, some customers have no idea what problem they’re trying to solve, or if you can help them do it. They might just want to get an idea of what you have for sale or what services you can provide. Be gentle. A hard sell doesn’t create a relationship with a customer — it just chases them out the door.

Start with the basics: A warm greeting and an invitation to ask questions of you or your staff. If the customer lingers, ask about their needs. Let a relationship bloom from there. You may not sell the entire store to them on their first visit, but they’re sure to remember a pleasant initial interaction. l Source: sba.gov

Bridget Weston Pollack is the Vice President of Marketing and Communications at the SCORE Association.

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FAMILY MATTERS

Better to Be Happily Ever Single than in a Mediocre Relationship

S

your singlehood. You’ll also start to enjoy your independence and learn that there is more to life than just dating.

BY JENNINE ESTES

ometimes when a relationship ends, or you haven’t been in a relationship for a while, you might start to feel down or as if being single is the worst thing in the world. Or, you might stay in a relationship that is less than stellar because you’re afraid of being alone. In reality, it’s better to be single, strong, and happy than be in a mediocre relationship just so you have the validation of being a part of a couple.

There are several benefits to being single instead of staying in a bad relationship.

Healing Past Wounds Were you hurt emotionally in your last relationship? Or are you being hurt in a current relationship? Bing single will give you time to deal with the emotional damage and wounds that have been left by others. If you don’t deal with past hurt, you might end up repeating negative cycles and choosing the wrong partners.

Heal your hurt by talking to your friends and family, or visit a counselor if you want a professional, neutral opinion and a safe space where you can open up.

Being single can be a huge blessing if

15

you use it to deal with all of the baggage you’re carrying around.

Connecting with Friends Being single gives you time to build a strong connection with platonic friends.

When you focus only on romantic relationships, you can forget that there are other very important relationships in your life, too. Spend time between romantic relationships appreciating and reconnecting with your friends— whether they’re single or in relationships.

Fostering strong relationships with your girlfriends while you don’t have a

$399 Divorces

man is a good long term investment — they’ll make for a great support system in good times and bad.

Trying New Things Being single also means you can occupy your time by trying the activities you don’t always have time for when you’re juggling a relationship in your life.

Whether it’s joining a book club, going surfing, or training for a marathon, you can use the time you’re single to enjoy new endeavors. You’ll build self-esteem, have fun, and meet new people.

Staying busy is life affirming, and won’t leave you much time to wallow in

Building a Stronger You Perhaps most importantly, getting out of a bad relationship and staying single gives you time to focus on you for a while. You can make long-term goals for yourself, learn to spend time with yourself, and find out what you like and what you don’t like. By becoming the best version of yourself, you’re more likely to attract the right partner, and be confident enough to ask for what you need in your next relationship.

Single? Don’t sweat it.l

About Jennine Estes, MFT Jennine is a Marriage and Family Therapist in San Diego, CA, certified in Emotionally Focused Therapy for Couples. She writes relationship and self growth advice for her column Relationships in the Raw. Creator of #BeingLOVEDIs campaign. MFC#4765

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Office Hours: Monday to Friday: 9:00am to 5:00pm Saturday: 9:00am to 4:00pm

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16 NEWS

HEALTH

U.S. Congressman Hakeem Jeffries Expands Health Initiatives for Minority Communities

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BY TATYANA BETHAMY-WALKER

or more than two years, U.S. Congressman Hakeem Jeffries of the 8th Congressional district in Brooklyn and Queens, has been an advocate for health care reform in the minority community.

According to a 2016 New York City Health Equity report, African-American and Hispanic communities have the highest mortality rate for preventable diseases.

“We still need to go a long way toward increasing access to preventative care so that individuals and communities of color do not have to rely on the emergency room,” Jeffries said. “The Caribbean-American community suffers disproportionately high rates of heart disease, respiratory illness, diabetes, certain forms of cancers and HIV.” Jeffries continued, “Many of these ailments can be significantly decreased by increasing access to preventative engagement and improving diet and exercise.”

New York City neighborhoods that are native to ethnic minorities often have more socioeconomic stress and less access to healthy foods and affordable health care services.

Jeffries, who is a long-time supporter of Obama’s Affordable Care Act, a law which grants New Yorkers subsidized health insurance, said it has expanded

health opportunities for the minority residents.

“We have the lowest rate of access to health coverage and insurance, that’s a deadly combination,” Jeffries said. “[The Affordable Care Act] has significantly increased the ability for the CaribbeanAmerican and the African-American community to get health coverage so that a minor situation can be addressed immediately.”

When the Interfaith Medical Center in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn filed for bankruptcy in 2013, Jeffries pushed state officials to reopen the facility. The plan required Governor Cuomo to grant the center extra fiscal support. In 2014, the

hospital exited bankruptcy.

“For the last two years we worked closely with all of the stakeholders at the Interfaith Medical Center to participate in a turnaround of that institution,” Jeffries said. “[And] dramatically improve its capacity to deliver both primary care services to residents in Central Brooklyn as well as other specialties to meet the needs of the community.”

According to Jeffries, the community coalition reserved millions of dollars to aid the struggling facility.

Now, Jeffries is looking to add the upstate supermarket chain Wegmans to districts in Brooklyn.

“One of the problems that affect the Caribbean-American and AfricanAmerican community is that throughout Brooklyn there is a lack of access to healthy, high-quality and affordable foods,” Jefferies said.

Next year, the initiative will bring healthy produce into food deserts like the Walt Whitman, Farragut and the Ingersoll public housing projects which do not have a variety of local supermarkets, according to Jefferies.

“There are thousands of people in that community who have lacked access to a high quality yet affordable supermarket,” Jeffries said. “In other communities, we will continue to support farmers markets such as the one that exists in East New York.”

The congressman hopes the chain of grocery stores will be a step toward improving the health of minority residents.

Meanwhile, Jeffries said it is an “honor and privilege” to represent the 8th congressional district and work on sustainable health reform. He has no plans to run for New York City Mayor in 2017.

Since 2013, Jeffries has increased health resources and developed widespread initiatives for Brooklyn and Queens residents.l

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NEWS 17

HEALTH

Brooklyn Hospital Medical Center Increases Access to Cancer Health Screenings

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BY JANET HOWARD

ancer is often a deadly disease for residents who cannot access affordable healthcare services.

Blacks suffer the greatest burden for cancer among other racial ethnicities.

When compared to their white counterparts, black women are diagnosed with cancer at a 10 percent lower rate but are more likely to die from the disease, according to the American Cancer Society.

Meanwhile, Black men are lagging behind in regular prostate cancer screenings and are more at risk for developing the disease, according to the National Cancer Institute.

Gloria Ayide, the Director of the Cancer Services Program at the Brooklyn Hospital Center said the barriers to timely and quality health services increases the risk of cancer among minorities.

“Blacks are often diagnosed at a later stage when treatment options are limited at that point,” Ayide said. “The earlier you diagnose, it the higher your survival rate is. That’s why we stress to patients that regular screenings are key to increasing their survival rate.”

Ayide said the center serves a large immigrant population who come to the center for their first screening. Some

“Blacks are often diagnosed at a later stage when treatment options are limited at that

point. The earlier you diagnose it the higher your survival rate is. That’s why we

stress to patients that regular

screenings are key to increasing their survival rate.”

—Gloria Ayide

undocumented residents have not received a screening in at least five years.

For patients who regularly wait years in between their next appointments, they gamble with the opportunity for cancer cells to grow.

“When they are undocumented they don’t have access to health insurance and healthcare,” Ayide said. “That’s a big barrier in getting screened and as well as getting diagnosed to get treatment.”

The Cancer Services Program at Brooklyn Hospital provides free screenings for patients who are undocumented or underinsured.

The American Cancer Society recommends that female patients who are at an

Notary Public Training Course

average risk for breast cancer should receive regular mammography exams between the ages of 45 to 54.

Annual prostate screenings should begin at age 50 for men who are at an average risk, and 45 years old for men who are at a high risk, which are largely Black men and those who had an immediate family member with the disease.

While it is important to get screened, all too often patients are overdiagnosed when they come for cancer screenings too frequently.

In a study published in JAMA Internal Medicine Journal, there was a positive correlation between the extent of screening and the amount of breast cancer incidences.

Regular mammograms are beneficial, but frequent breast exams can expose patients to higher amounts of radiation, which might increase their risks of breast cancer.

This might lead patients toward an unnecessary path of anxiety, stress and costly treatments.

According to Ayide, cancer treatments can be very pricey.

“If someone is going for chemotherapy [treatment] it can run for hundreds of thousands of dollars,” Ayide said. “I have seen a patient who had six weeks of chemotherapy and the bill was almost a hundred grand.”

The Cancer Services Unit at Brooklyn Hospital provides the Medicaid Cancer Treatment Program for documented residents that are diagnosed with breast, cervical, colorectal or prostate cancers.

This grants patients full Medicaid coverage during their span of cancer treatment.

In a report published by the American Cancer Society, New Yorkers can significantly lower their risks of cancers by eating a healthy diet, getting regular cancer screenings, maintaining a healthy weight, physical activity, avoiding tobacco products and limiting their alcohol usage. l

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Cost includes materials and information on: lSupplemental Study Guide lNotary Fact Sheet lPractical Exam lSample Forms lNotary Public Application and Oath of Office lNY State License Law Booklet lNY State Exam Schedule lExpert Training and Assistance

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18 NEWS

HEALTH

Becoming Heart Smart

O

BY DR NAA-SOLO TETTEY

n July 23, 2015, Sarah James took her usual shopping trip to Downtown Brooklyn, but this trip would turn out to be different. As she exited the bus on her return home she felt a heaviness in the left side of her chest.

When she arrived home she sat down hoping the heaviness would stop.

However, the heaviness continued and then moved into her left arm. She laid down briefly, but there was still no improvement. At this point she knew it was time to call 911. The operator instructed her to take off any tight fitting garments and to chew an aspirin. The ambulance arrived within five minutes and took her to Kings County Hospital.

Upon admission the doctors believed that she had suffered a heart attack. However, a cardiac cauterization showed that her arteries were clear. Later, she was taken in for a CAT scan and a clot was found in her right lung. She was treated for seven days with blood thinners. She was then discharged and continued to receive treatment with blood thinners for six months.

Sarah credited the HeartSmarts Class and her instructor HeartSmarts Ambassador Carol Hylton, for her ability to act fast at this crucial time. She stated,

Graduating class of Ambassadors

“I found the HeartSmarts class to be a blessing. All of the symptoms I was experiencing were discussed in the class. I was able to follow everything that I learned such as calling 911, not driving myself to the hospital, and chewing an aspirin. Praise the Lord that I was able to take this class."

The HeartSmarts program is sponsored by the Ronald O. Perelman Heart Institute at the New York Presbyterian Hospital\Weill Cornell Medical Center. It was created by Dr. Naa-Solo Tettey and uses a faith-based curriculum to educate communities about heart disease. The program also teaches participants about blood pressure, cholesterol, stress, diabetes, nutrition, mental health, and phys-

ical activity.

In 2014, members of the New American Chamber of Commerce completed the training and became certified as HeartSmarts Ambassadors of Health.

Since completing the training, these ambassadors have been making a difference in their communities by providing this much-needed information. Claude Leach, who finished teaching a HeartSmarts class in April, said “This program provides life-saving information in a format that keeps people engaged. I would like to hopefully teach classes in the Caribbean.” Fellow ambassador Lorraine Bogle who is a health advocate in the Bronx said, “The combination of faith and health is what makes this program unique and effective.”

Heart disease is the number one killer of all Americans, but affects AfricanAmericans and Hispanics at much higher rates. However, up to 80% of cardiovascular disease is preventable. It is important to know the risk factors for heart disease and make healthy lifestyle choices.

To learn more about the HeartSmarts program contact Dr. Naa-Solo Tettey at 212-746-0484 or nat9034@nyp.org. l

Kitchen Corner

Homemade Frozen Yogurt Pops with Peaches

LOVE YOUR HEART: Get Heart Smart!

Participate in the HeartSmarts Program to learn how to empower others and yourself to live heart-healthy lifestyles.

The program seeks to educate pastors and community leaders to become educators in the community about cardiovascular health.

Hosea: 4:6 - My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge.

Classes start on Friday, September 9 @4pm.

Register now at www.chambercoalition.org/hs Call: 718-722-9217 for more information!

Two cups of chopped fresh or frozen fruit

can be subbed for the peaches, so you can constantly experiment with these refreshing popsicles from the Simple Cooking with Heart Program of the American Heart Association.

Ingredients 16 oz. packaged, plain, no-sugar-added, frozen, sliced, thawed peaches (no sauce added), divided 1 cup fat-free, plain yogurt 1 tbsp. honey Directions 1. In the bowl of a food processor, add 1 ½ cups thawed peaches from bag, yogurt, and honey. Process about 1 minute until mixture turns into a puree. (Alternatively, add ingredients into a bowl and puree with an immersion blender.)

2. Transfer puree to a bowl or large liquid measuring cup with a spout for easy pouring. Chop remaining peaches into bite-size pieces and add into the bowl, along with any lingering peach liquid from the bag.

3. Divide mixture among popsicle molds, filling each one almost to the top. Place in the freezer overnight.

4. To remove from molds, hold under warm water until popsicle can be easily pulled free.

Additional Tips Serving size 1 popsicle (about ½ cup)

Cooking Tip: This recipe yields around 3 cups; the amount of popsicles may vary depending on the size of your popsicle molds.

Keep it Healthy: Decrease the amount of fruit by ½ cup and add ½ cup granola into the mix to turn these into breakfast popsicles.

Tip: Don’t have a food processor or immersion blender? No problem. Just replace the bag of frozen fruit with 1 (15ounce) can sliced fruit in juice, stirring it with the 1 cup of yogurt and 1 tablespoon honey before pouring into the molds.

Tip: Don’t have popsicle molds or sticks?

Try pouring the mixer into an ice tray, covering with plastic wrap and poking toothpicks through the plastic into the center of each cube. Once they’re frozen, pull off the plastic wrap and eat a bitesize popsicle.l

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HEALTH

Community Organizers Partner Up for NYC Initiative Access to Health Program

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BY TATYANA BELLAMY-WALKER

mmigrant populations not only lack access to adequate services in the U.S., but an estimated 7.7 million do not have health insurance.

The Access Health NYC initiative, a program that provides quality healthcare at a free or low cost, hopes to bring community partners together to change this statistic.

Recently, The Bedford Stuyvesant Family Health Center launched its Access Health All Partners Workshop, which included a variety of community health and housing organizations.

Suzanne Robinson, the Program Manager at HIV Partnerships for Care at the Bedford-Stuyvesant Family Health Center, is working to eliminate the disparities in the health system.

“Bringing partners together who are providing services to the immigrant community [is important],” Robinson said.

The Access Health NYC project has given $1 million dollars to more than 15 health agencies in New York, according to Robinson.

Currently, residents who are undocumented in the U.S., have limited opportunities for health insurance.

This forces disenfranchised populations to live without access to affordable medical treatment. Also, this can increase their reliance on high cost emergency rooms for non-life-threatening health issues. In New York, there are at least a dozen options for free or subsidized coverage.

Under the Child Health Plus program, Children in New York State are eligible for free health coverage, Medicaid is available for free or at a low-cost for undocumented residents and the Essential Plan provides free or low cost health coverage to those who do not qualify for Medicaid.

“Due to Governor Cuomo’s initiative we are able to offer health insurance to almost everyone,” Robinson said. “We need to let our immigrant community

know that there are insurance options available. They are not aware that they can be a part of the system.”

The Access NYC program offered the Bedford-Stuyvesant Family Health Center $82,000 this year.

The jargon used by health insurance companies is complicated. This makes it increasingly difficult for underserved communities to receive health coverage.

According to Robinson, funds were allocated toward hiring public health educators and outreach officials.

“They are hired to help the community navigate these structures and take them through the steps of documentation that they will need,” Robinson said. “Without help, if you are coming from a low level of awareness navigating, the system can be intimidating.”

Claudia Calhoon, the Director of the Health Advocacy program at the New York Immigration Coalition, said that undocumented residents are more vulnerable to fiscal inequalities.

“There is not any funding at the federal or city level until now to go out and explain how the health care system works,” Calhoon said. “They are taking time with their partners to explain Access Health [NYC]. What it is, how it’s good for them and what they want to do next.”

In a video displayed at the workshop, community residents explained how their life is adversely impacted by a lack of healthcare awareness.

“Recently we had a woman who was four months pregnant, but not aware of the services that were open to her,” Robinson said. “She did not seek prenatal care. It was through the presentations at these agencies that she became aware.”

Robinson added, “Now she is attending our prenatal care regularly…her baby has the opportunity to be born healthy and have a healthy start.”

The Bedford-Stuyvesant Family Health Center has once again secured funding for next year’s Access to Health initiative.l

NEWS 19

Diabetes Steadily Rises for New York’s Black Community

D

iabetes is more prevalent in African-Americans than among any other racial group.

At least 13.2 percent of all AfricanAmericans aged 20 years or older have been diagnosed with diabetes, according to the American Diabetes Association.

Low-income neighborhoods in New York City do not have a variety of grocery stores with fresh produce. A lack of access to supermarkets, push families to shop at corner stores for weekly groceries. This may include buying candy, sugary drinks and canned foods.

Jonathan Keith Joseph, the Chief Medical Officer at the health care nonprofit program, Harlem United, explained that reducing diabetes is a systematic issue.

“It’s more of a socio-economic issue than an inheritance disposed to minority groups,” Joseph said. “Generally foods that are more prone to causing this are foods that are cheaper or they are easier to prepare. Fresh produce does not stay as long at home.”

Obesity, poor diets and reduced physical activity are some of the leading risk factors for those who might get diabetes.

African-Americans are disproportionally affected by the disease and are more likely to suffer from blindness, kidney disease and amputations.

According to Joseph, people from lower socio-economic groups allocate less time to cooking fresh high-quality produce because of their employment demands.

“It boils down to convenience,” Joseph said. “There’s this widespread belief that healthy foods cost more, but I think it doesn’t cost more in terms of money, but in terms of time, it costs a lot more.”

This summer, there are dozens of farmers markets in New York City looking to help New Yorkers create more well balanced diets. The East New York Farmers Market at 613 New Lots Ave., in Brooklyn, offers affordable and local vegetable and fruit options for residents.

Harlem United works on an individual level with many homeless city residents to prepare them for a healthier and more stable life.

“If people are able to get housing, that makes it much more likely that they will have a stable life,” Joseph said. “Then they can then address things like their nutritional status and eventually get work. All of those efforts address their socio-economic status.”

The American Diabetes Association (ASA) and the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommends that patients over the age of 45 get screened for diabetes. If a person is younger than 45 years old but is over-

Actress Hally Berry was diagnosed with diabetes 27 years ago at the young age of twenty-two.

She now manages her diabetes with the help of regular exercise and a healthy and balanced diet.

She has said: “I always had to diet.

I’m diabetic, so it’s a lifestyle for me anyway just to stay healthy and not end up in the hospital.”

weight, they may consider a screening.

Those who are genetically predisposed to the disease, can be diagnosed with Type two diabetes. Patients are often treated with oral medications to lower their insulin levels.

“Type 2 diabetes is much more complex than the health system generally paints it, “Joseph said. “Physical exercise helps, [but also] changing your diet. People have been conditioned to think that cereal, bread and rice should be staples in our diet.”

The American Diabetes Association recommends at least 45 to 60 grams of carbohydrates per meal.

Diabetes care is relatively expensive.

On average Americans spend at least $322 billion per year on diabetes treatments. The monthly costs for a person with diabetes can cost between $350 to $900 for those who do not have insurance, according to a report published by the American Diabetes Association.

“There are a lot of first things to do [when you are diagnosed with diabetes],” Joseph said. “One is to work with their provider and understand the medicines that they are taking.”

Since 2014, the CDC says that more than 20 million people across the U.S. have been diagnosed with diabetes. l

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20 NEWS

HEALTH

HIV/AIDS: Options for Disease Prevention In Minority Communities

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ncreased rates of HIV/AIDS infections in the Caribbean-American communities stem from years of systematic oppression.

Poverty-stricken areas in Brooklyn’s Bedford-Stuyvesant and Crown Heights communities have a total of 162 new HIV infections, which is the highest among the boroughs, according to data released by the New York City Health Department. These neighborhoods have a vast amount of residents who are not regularly tested for sexually transmitted diseases. The close-knit social networks in Caribbean-American communities often leads women and men to increased exposure of HIV/AIDS infections. The more members who have sexual contact with high-risk populations, the more opportunity the disease has to spread across the network.

African-American and Latino women are marginalized by HIV/AIDS infections. In 2011, at least 93 percent in New York City were infected with the disease, according to the New York City HIV/AIDS Annual Surveillance statistics. New York’s Brooklyn, Upper Manhattan, Bronx and Queens communities also deal with higher rates of substance abuse, unprotected sex, access to sex workers and socioeconomic stress.

Community members can protect themselves from HIV/AIDS through safer sex...

“Poverty is one of the major disparities among people of color,” said Nadine Ranger-Akinyemi, the deputy executive director of the HIV/AIDS coalition, Bridging Access to Care Inc. (BAC).

“The connection between economics and access to healthcare is the reason why we see more of that in the [multicultural] population because they are less likely to seek help.”

HIV/AIDS impacts approximately 77 percent of individuals over the age of 40

years old, according to the New York State Department of Health HIV/AIDs Surveillance Report.

A history of oppressive medical treatment adds to the mistrust of medical professionals. Baby-Boomer generations of African Americans became more cautious and less trusting of medical professionals after the Tuskegee Medical Syphilis Experiment, which studied the progression of untreated syphilis in black males.

Also, increased incarceration rates and under-employment continue to burden Caribbean-American neighborhoods with disenfranchised resources.

BAC, which was formerly known as the Brooklyn AIDS Task Force, is one of the oldest and largest HIV/AIDS organizations in Brooklyn that is using a holistic approach toward care. “We have been a part of this public health issue for almost 30 years,” Ranger-Akinyemi said. “We seek grants so we are able to provide services for free.” Medical treatments for HIV/AIDS infections can cost more than $500,000 over a lifetime.

While HIV/AIDs has become more treatable since the 1980s, patients can spend approximately $2,000 to $5,000 a month on viral suppressive drugs. “If they are not able to access preventive care, they

use the emergency room as the last resort,” Ranger-Akinyemi said. “The healthcare becomes much more expensive.”

Due to barriers in affordable treatment options, some residents with the HIV/AIDS virus are not receiving regular care. BAC offers opportunities for patients to receive discounted HIV/AID medicines. “Sometimes people do not recertify their insurance and they might not have coverage over a period of time,” Ranger-Akinyemi said. “We seek out different resources to make sure that we can fill the gap in care.”

Ranger-Akinyemi continued, “We offer a care management program that helps people stay in care. If they are not going to their medical providers, we will go out and find them and escort them to care.”

Community members can protect themselves from HIV/AIDS through safer sex, avoiding injectable drugs, regularly having HIV testing and limiting their networks of sexual partners. “The sicker our communities are, the worse off our economic status is,” she said.

“Sometimes we don’t tie both together. If we have healthier people, we can improve our economic status and our health outcomes.” l

GREEN CARD SLAVERY? Don’t put up with ABUSE anymore! We can get a Green Card for you and your children PLUS a divorce.

Call 718-222-3155 now for a FREE consultation!

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!

VISIT OUR WEBSITE WWW.CAWNYC.COM FOR MORE NEWS AND INFORMATION, FREE LEGAL CONSULTATIONS AND A CHANCE TO WIN A TV!

VISIT OUR WEBSITE WWW.CAWNYC.COM FOR MORE NEWS AND INFORMATION, FREE LEGAL CONSULTATIONS AND A CHANCE TO WIN A TV!

22 NEWS

HEALTH

CDC Reports Rise of Hepatitis C Cases

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BY TATYANA BELLAMY-WALKER

hen Roger Delancey, 58 of the Bronx, revealed his positive Hepatitis C status to his friends, he was surprised that they threw away the silverware and plates that he used during dinner.

“That made me feel bad,” said Delancey, who is now a senior peer at Boom Health, a harm reduction agency in the Bronx. “I didn’t talk to them for a while. They explained that they knew nothing about Hepatitis C and they were scared.”

It is all too often that patients like Delancey face discrimination from immediate friends and family, who do not understand how the disease is transmitted.

Terra North, who is a former nurse and an online organizer of a Facebook support group for Hepatitis C patients, said that a lack of education about the disease makes it harder for patients to fight the stigma.

“A lot of people cannot relate to what they go through and how they feel,” North said. “[The support group] makes them feel like, ‘I’m not alone in this.’”

In past years, North has written medical notes for patients in the food industry, who employers feared that customers might contract the disease through dishware and food supplies.

Hepatitis C is a viral liver infection that is spread through the blood which can lead to chronic liver disease. The infection disproportionately affects the African-American community.

Pamela Anderson has announced she’s been cured of hepatitis C after living with the virus for 16 years.

“There are risks factors for Hepatitis C that include injection or nasal drug use at any time and blood transfusions prior to 1992, before we had screening tests available for Hepatitis C,” said Dr. Ponni V. Perumalswami, a physician from Mount Sinai Hospital. “Presumably, there is some relationship to increased risk factors, but there may also be issues with how a person clears the virus.”

For at least 10 years, Delancey who is a former drug abuser and alcoholic, said that there were no signs of the disease.

Delancey noticed he had red eyes, but attributed it to his frequent drug and alcohol use. Week after week when physicians analyzed his reports, they pointed toward congestive heart failure and high blood pressure — not Hepatitis C. According to Dr. Perumalswami, symptoms are often nonexistent in at least two-thirds of patients.

“Unfortunately many patients are diagnosed too late,” Dr.Perumalswami said. “[Hepatitis C] is a largely asymptomatic disease for most patients and so they don’t know they are infected.”

According to a report published by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), more than 75 percent of minorities infected with Hepatitis C are not aware of their status.

Baby boomers in the African-American population may have been exposed to the virus through contaminated blood supplies and are twice as likely to be diagnosed with the Hepatitis C infection.

Patients can go as long as 30 years without realizing they have contracted the disease. Those who experience symptoms for Hepatitis C often have fatigue, abdominal pain, fever, loss of appetite and yellow eyes or skin.

According to Dr. Perumalswami, only 15 percent of individuals spontaneously clear the virus. A staggering 85 percent of patients go on to have chronic Hepatitis C. The Mount Sinai Hospital in East Harlem and Boom Health, offers harm reduction programs to help former drug abusers avoid sharing needles, syringes and other equipment used to inject drugs.

And like other medications for chronic diseases, Hepatitis C treatment is costly.

Treatment can cost up to $100,000 for an effective oral regimen that is covered by insurance.

“Access to medicine across the board irrespective of race is a big issue,” Dr. Perumalswami said. “[The treatment] is highly effective and unfortunately, access

does remain an issue for patients. Having your health provider advocate for patients on the state and city level is important.”

For three to four months, Delancey was unsure if his medical provider would approve the high cost and effective medication, Harvoni. The medication is known to cure Hepatitis C in as little as eight weeks.

As Delancey waited in limbo for approval, he was scared that the cure would come too late.

“Knowing that I can die from it was scary,” Delancey said. “I was stressing a lot knowing that [ I possibly had a medication] that could save me, but I couldn’t actually get it.”

Over a four-month span, the insurance provider, Medicaid, spent approximately $112,000 on the medication. During the treatment, Delancey took at least 28 pills per month to control the virus.

When barriers to affordable treatments are removed, Hepatitis C is a highly manageable virus.

Hepatitis C is currently undetected in Delancey’s body and he has finished treatment. It has been at least seven years since Delancey rid his body of drugs and alcohol. Now, he can focus on living a healthier life.

“The treatments have given me more energy and I’m feeling better,” Delancey said. “It’s a miracle pill.”

According to the New York City Hepatitis C Task Force, there are more than 80 community-based organizations and health care facilities offering care for Hepatitis C patients across the city.l

Nanny Training Certificate Program

Enhance Your Child Care Skills!

Our mission: The Chamber’s mission is to empower nannies to start nanny businesses utilizing the skills developed from our Nanny Training Certificate Program and our Small Business Boot Camp. We establish through our Nanny Training Certificate Program, knowledgeable, nurturing and loving nannies, who are dedicating their careers to challenging children to achieve greatness.

Classes begin Thursday, August 4, 2016 @6pm

To schedule an apppointment to process your application or for orientation:

Telephone: 855-768-8845

Who should attend?

Great for new parents, practicing and entry level nannies!

Location: 26 Court Street, Suite 701, Downtown Brooklyn Register at www.nannytraining.nyc

Students who wish to start a placement agency or are self-employed must attend our Small Business Boot Camp

VISIT OUR WEBSITE WWW.CAWNYC.COM FOR MORE NEWS AND INFORMATION, FREE LEGAL CONSULTATIONS AND A CHANCE TO WIN A TV!

KNOW YOUR RIGHTS

Proving Fault in Personal Injury Accidents: General Rules

D

etermining legal responsibility for an accident (often called "liability") can be complicated, but often rests on whether someone was careless or "negligent." It's easy enough to say that the person or business that caused an accident must pay for your injuries. But before you get to that point, you must determine who was legally at fault.

Determining legal responsibility for an accident or injury (often called "liability") can be complicated, but often rests on whether someone was careless or "negligent." It's easy enough to say that the person or business that caused an accident must pay for your injuries. But before you get to that point, you must determine who was legally at fault.

Determining Legal Liability Most accidents happen because someone was careless. The basic rule is: If one person involved in an accident was less careful than another, the less careful one must pay for at least a portion of the damages suffered by the more careful one.

Legal liability for almost all accidents is determined by this rule of carelessness, and by one or more of the following simple propositions: If the injured person was where he or she was not supposed to be, or somewhere he

or she should have expected the kind of activity which caused the accident, the person who caused the accident might not be liable because that person had no "duty" to be careful toward the injured person.

If the injured person was also careless, his or her compensation may be reduced by the extent such carelessness was also responsible for the accident. This is known as comparative negligence.

If a negligent person causes an accident while working for someone else, the employer may also be legally responsible for the accident.

If an accident is caused on property that is dangerous because it is poorly built or maintained, the owner of the property is liable for being careless in maintaining the property, regardless of whether he or she

actually created the dangerous condition.

If an accident is caused by a defective product, the manufacturer and seller of the product are both liable even if the injured person doesn't know which one was careless in creating or allowing the defect, or exactly how the defect happened.

When More than One Person Is at Fault When there is more than one person responsible for an accident — for example, if several careless drivers cause a wreck — the law in most states provides that any one of the careless parties is responsible for compensating you fully for your injuries. The responsible parties must then decide between themselves whether one should reimburse the others.

This rule about collecting from any

NEWS 23

responsible person provides you with a couple of important advantages. If one liable person is insured and the other is not, you can make your claim against the insured person for the full amount. And even if both are insured, you will have to settle your claim with only one insurance company. Initially, consider everyone you think might be responsible and notify each of them that you may file a claim for damages. Then, depending on what you discover about how the accident happened, or on which insurance company takes responsibility, you will pursue a claim against only one.

How Your Own Carelessness Affects Your Claim Even if you were careless and partly caused an accident, in most states you can still get at least some compensation from anyone else who was also careless and partly responsible for the accident. The amount of the other person's liability for the accident is determined by comparing his or her carelessness with your own. The percentage of liability determines the percentage of the resulting damages he or she must pay. This rule is referred to as comparative negligence.l Source: nolo.com

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Philando Castile

BLACK LIVES MATTER! Freddie Gray

Alton Sterling

Delrawn Small

Civil Rights Advocacy Training & Radio Hosting 5-week Program To register for these classes, call 718-722-9217 or visit www.chambercoalition.org/blm Session 1 - Sept 8

FREE Presentation by the EEOC from 6:00pm-6:45pm

Session 2 - Sept 15

FREE Presentation by the CCHR from 6:00pm-6:45pm

Session 3 - Sept 22

FREE Presentation by the NYC Comptroller’s Office

from 6:00pm-6:45pm

Session 4 - Sept 29

FREE Presentation by the NYPD from 6:00pm-6:45pm

Session 5 - Oct 6

FREE Presentation by the CCRB from 6:00pm-6:45pm

Presented by the Law Firm of Figeroux & Associates from 6:45pm-7:30pm

Class 1: Introduction: A Brief history of Civil Rights Law and How it has Evolved Case Studies: Trayvon Martin, FL and Abner Louima, NY Discussion I * My Civil Rights was Violated, Who Can I Sue? * Filing a Notice of Claim against a City, Town, or Municipal Agency in NY. * Statute of Limitations * Settlement: Verdict search: Can I settle now?

Class 11: The 50-H Hearing Case Studies: Trayvon Martin, FL and Abner Louima, NY Discussion II

Class 111 Case Studies: Trayvon Martin, FL and Abner Louima, NY - Discussion III

* Suing the City of New York: Library Resources to Support a Notice of Claim and 50-H Hearing * Bill of Particulars * Settlement: Verdict search: Can I settle now?

* The Complaint I * Settlement: Verdict search: Can I settle now?

Class IV Case Studies: Trayvon Martin, FL and Abner Louima, NY Discussion IV

* The Complaint II * The PC Conference * Interrogatories * Winning Your Case at the Deposition * Settlement: Verdict search: Can I settle now?

Class V Your Civil Rights Trial - With and Without an Attorney * Affordable Housing vs. Low Income Housing * How do I qualify? * Closing Remarks

OUR PLAN: Make NYC spend one billion dollars in legal fees defending Police Misconduct

The sentiment at most rallies are “the police are f*****g us up, the establishment Black or White are unresponsive to the ground war against us, we are dying and it is time the revolution begins.” That’s why Black Lives Matter the organization, its leaders are inspiring rallies for CHANGE. We are tired of that and we’re not gonna take it anymore. What can we do?

At our Chamber with the support of Figeroux & Associates, we offer our Civil Rights Advocacy Training and Radio Hosting.

We want you to litigate the establishment to death (debt).

MAKE A DIFFERENCE: BECOME A CIVIL RIGHTS ADVOCACY RADIO HOST!

Sessions run from 7:30pm-8:30pm Session 1: Introduction, Radio Checklist & Show Concept Session 2: Creating Your Own Radio Show & Income Opportunities Session 3: Marketing, Social Media & Podcasting Session 4: Voice Training, Interview Techniques & Practical Exercises Session 5: Studio Etiquette, Mike Presence & Practical Exercises

Radio Hosting Program Training: $250

NACC Paralegal Certificate Program

www.freeparalegal.org

Radio hosts must complete Civil Rights Training & Radio Hosting Program to qualify for 3-months FREE hosting!

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