Metro Briefs

Governor Hochul announces plans for I LOVE NY Black travel initiative

vative direct services model, comprising a set of economic mobility and arts education programs [that] today provide critical resources to more than 60,000 Central Brooklyn residents. New space would be used to scale programs such as the Restoration Software Engineering Fellowship in partnership with the Marcy Lab School, and to foster similar programs with other companies invested in advancing skills training and job placement for local residents in high-growth sectors.”

Apparently Brooklynite and Mayor Eric Adams is a fan of the plan, too.“Restoration Innovation Campus is a project unlike any other, providing a scalable model for public and private partners to disrupt the racial wealth gap,” he said.

“This visionary proposal will address a generational crisis and meet the needs of Brooklyn residents today by creating new pathways to economic mobility in the communities that need them most…I look forward to helping usher in this historic next chapter for the organization and the community.”

Marlon Rice, director of event services, Asset Management Division, is a longtime Bed Stuy resident who grew up three blocks from Restoration Plaza. “I think the plans for Restoration’s new campus are inspiring and frankly much needed,” she said. “The Plaza has always been and is to this day a beloved gathering place for the community. Now, with the plan that Restoration has proposed, the community will get the 21st-century plaza that Central Brooklyn has long deserved, including modern space that enhances the critical cultural and financial programs Restoration currently provides, and additional space to expand a new model for generating economic opportunity and wealth creation here in the community. The widening racial wealth gap is a generational crisis and the Restoration Innovation Campus provides an exciting new model to disrupt it right here in Brooklyn.”

Once a milk bottling plant, Bedford Stuyvesant’s unofficial town hall or village square opened in 1972, in then one of the country’s largest African American communities. Currently, the community and cultural hub with the supermarket, restaurant, art gallery, and educational facilities draws more than 1.5 million visits per year.

“For 55 years, Restoration has helped lift thousands of local residents out of poverty and created countless opportunities right here in our community,” Pinnock told the Amsterdam News. “Now, the nation’s staggering racial wealth gap requires a bold, new ap-

‘Fix the MTA’ movement proposes free buses, shorter wait times

By TANDY LAU Amsterdam News Staff, Report for America Corps Member

All aboard the struggle bus. A “Fix the MTA” legislative package promises a smoother ride across town by funding increased transit service, making buses free over time and freezing fares at $2.75 on both buses and the subway for a short term. The spending bill spe- cifically seeks to reduce intervals between subways to six minutes or less and increase bus service by 20%. But the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) is not so sure the agency needs fixing.

“Most transit customers are benefitting from better than 6-minute headways on subways already and on-time performance just hit a 10-year high,” said an MTA spokesperson. “The mission

On February 24, Governor Kathy Hochul announced plans for an I LOVE NY Black travel initiative that has been set in place with the hopes of growing New York State tourism while motivating Black travelers to visit the area.

The Governor announced the initiative at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, which was a part of the state’s commemoration of this year’s Black History Month. This new program will encourage growth of the state’s tourism programs like I LOVE NY LGBTQ, and Accessible NY, by highlighting destinations of interest to and supportive of specific traveling communities.

“The new I LOVE NY Black travel initiative will be a celebration of New York’s unparalleled Black history, culture, food, and arts,” Hochul said. “From sites and museums that bring Black history to life to world-class arts and cultural institutions like the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, New York has so much to offer. I look forward to working with our partners to welcome even more visitors to experience Black culture in our state.”

Lieutenant Governor Antonio Delgado chimed in on the conversation. “I am proud our state will proactively highlight the incredible diversity we have to offer and encourage travelers from around the world to experience and appreciate New York’s Black culture,” he said Bullied teen overcomes challenges and creates very own fashion company Egypt “Ify” Ufele is not new to overcoming obstacles in her path. The 14-year-old fashion designer has created “Chubbiline,” her own company from scratch four years ago as a way to help her deal with being bullied and the nasty comments that her peers constantly made to and about her. She learned to use her sewing machine as a way to cope with the bullying.

“I was constantly degraded, but if you look good, you feel good. It boosts your self-esteem,” Ufele said.

As she created magic with her sewing machine, she started to get recognized for her work that soon went viral.

Four years later, she’s making her mark on the runway and in the classroom. She creates 60 gowns a year, selling them for an average of $1,000 each. Some of the girls who used to tease and bully Egypt for her appearance now work for her at fashion shows.

“I don’t like holding grudges. It takes too much energy,” Ufele said. Not only is Ufele making her mark throughout the fashion world, she’s also visiting schools to discuss bullying. She even speaks to students in Nigeria, explaining that Nigeria is where many of her fashion influences come from.

Ufele’s mom, Dr. Reba Perry, has said that traveling while remaining a full-time student is quite exhausting, but is definitely worth seeing her daughter make a change.

“One little girl said, ‘Why are you coming here for me? I’m nobody,’” Perry recalled. “And Egypt said, ‘You are somebody. You are me.’ And she hugged her. And that was the beginning of Egypt’s journey in understanding why her mission is so important.”

It’s a mission that Ufele continues to carry out both in person and now on paper. Last summer, the teen self-published a book called “Egypt Ufele: Life by My Own Design.” to provide faster, cleaner, safer service is dramatically improving customer satisfaction and will benefit from Governor Hochul’s budget that provides relief from looming deficits.”

The young activist strongly believes that if she can overcome some of the darkest days of her life, anyone can do the same.

Recently, MTA CEO and Chairman Janno Leber welcomed suggestions to increase the transit service when asked about the “Fix the MTA” proposals during a WBAI

HBCU SpringComing welcomes grads back home with 9th annual festival in NYC

The nation’s largest gathering of graduates of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in the northeast and southeast will be held during a three-day weekend event that is jam-packed with festivities. The HBCU SpringComing is also presented by Indeed.

The annual HBCU SpringComing is returning bigger and better for its ninth installment of festivals, in both Birmingham, Alabama, from March 17–19 and in New York City from April 14–16.

Lauren Grove and George A. Peters II created the event to celebrate