New York Amsterdam News Issue April 27-May 3, 2023

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In Memoriam: Harry Belafonte (1927-2023) (See story on page 18) Vol. 114 No. 14 2023 17 | April 6, 27,2023 2023- -April May 12, 3, 2023

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

©2023 The Amsterdam News | $1.00 New York City

HARD LABOR THE FIGHT FOR INCLUSION IN SKILLED TRADES

Police prepare to lift Mineral Bramletta from a group of Congress of Racial Equality demonstrators in Brooklyn on July 10, 1963. The group was attempting to stop a cement truck from entering a hospital construction site. (AP Photo)

YOU GET WHAT YOU CAN TAKE: The Fight to Make the Skilled Trades Representative

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Mitchell Ayers, 2 1/2, carries a sign protesting employment practices at the Downstate Medical Center construction site in Brooklyn on August 8, 1963. His mother, Eunice Ayers, 27, also took part in the demonstrations. (AP Photo/Dave Pickoff)

“AT THE BANQUET TABLE OF NATURE, THERE ARE NO RESERVED SEATS. YOU GET WHAT YOU CAN TAKE, AND YOU KEEP WHAT YOU CAN HOLD. IF YOU CAN’T TAKE ANYTHING, YOU WON’T GET ANYTHING, AND IF YOU CAN’T HOLD ANYTHING, YOU WON’T KEEP ANYTHING. AND YOU CAN’T TAKE ANYTHING WITHOUT ORGANIZATION.” - A. PHILIP RANDOLPH

By DAMASO REYES AmNews Investigative Editor “It was a moving sight to see the cream of Brooklyn’s [B]lack leaders tossed around in the struggle to obtain better economic opportunity for minority members,” an Amsterdam News article told readers in the summer of 1963, when community and labor activists, as well as clergy, had had enough of discriminatory labor practices on local construction sites.

In Brooklyn, the structures that would become SUNY Downstate were rising from the ground, but Black and Latino construction workers were nowhere to be found. Demonstrations co-sponored by the Negro American Labor Council, Urban League, NACCP, Congress of Racial Equality, and Southern Christian Leadership Council began picketing and eventually blocking access to the worksite, leading to the arrest of more than 40 activists, in-

cluding many clergy members.

Another article from July 1963 said that ministers were warning that “the Negro Community is on the brink of violence” and that construction should be stopped “unless 25 [percent] of the jobs are assigned to Negroes and Puerto Ricans who form 35 [percent] of [the] New York City population.”

The protests continued throughout June and July with increasing numbers of protesters and hundreds of arrests, and even attracted a young leader named Malcolm X. They were demanding something simple: that the workforce building the hospital look like the community in which it was being built. Eventually the protest leaders came to an agreement with then-Governor Nelson Rockerfeller and construction resumed. But the protest at SUNY Downstate wasn’t the first of its kind nor would it be the last.

But why was it needed at all? Why, in one

of the most diverse cities in America, with in the South, according to historian Dr. Wilmany highly skilled laborers, were many liam Jones of the University of Minnesota.

“After the Civil War, African Americans conconstruction sites almost all lily-white? tinued to be pretty important in the skilled THE PAST IS NEVER REALLY THE PAST construction industry in the South until the The struggle to integrate the skilled and late 19th century, [when] there was a conconstruction trades and the unions that certed effort by white workers to drive Black represent them, and to ensure that they workers out of the skilled trades and unions reflect America’s population, is deeply in- often included racial bars on membership. tertwined with the story of America itself; And that persisted into the 1960s,” Jones said the story of the original sin of slavery and in an interview.

The end of Reconstruction coincided the legacy of institutional racism that followed and of the hard work by Americans with the ”Long Depression” of the 1870s, of color and their allies to force our nation as well as the rise of organized labor, both of which helped to put pressure on African to live up to its own ideals.

This series will explore the roots of dis- American skilled laborers. While some of crimination that led to the summer of ’63 the new labor unions became more incluprotests in Brooklyn and many others like it sive, according to Jones, the backlash was around the nation, and how activists, com- not long in coming.

By the late 1880s and 1890s, “a lot of munity, and union members worked over decades to force change. It will also explore unions, particularly the very skilled trade how high schools and apprenticeship pro- unions, turned inward and make the degrams are, in the 21st century, helping to cision that the the best way to maintain ensure that everyone who wants one has themselves [was] to focus narrowly on the an opportunity to access jobs that are often interests of white male workers,” said Jones.

“This is the period in which a lot of unions called the “ladder to the middle class.”

Before emancipation, enslaved Blacks were adopt[ed] in their constitution, race and Continued on page S3 often trained in skilled construction, especially

YOU GET WHAT YOU CAN TAKE:

Legendary labor leader A. Philip Randolph stands in front of the Lincoln Memorial at the March On Washington demonstration in Washington, D.C. (AP Photo)

construction workers while being over 23% of the population, according to the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey.

In the immediate aftermath of the passage of the Civil Rights Act, little changed on the ground. Yes, explicit racial roadblocks to entry to unions and employment on worksites was eliminated, but the social nature of employment in the skilled trades meant that barriers still existed.

Post-World War II investment in America’s cities also meant the growing requirement of union labor, according to Dr. Trevor Griffey, a lecturer at the University of California, Irvine. But these construction

and skilled trades unions were still largely excluding members of color.

This made the skilled trades “a flashpoint for protests in the sixties. And it had been long, long simmering because especially as African Americans gained increased access to the military, they gained the trades that they would not be able to get through racially restrictive apprenticeship programs.

Then they would go apply to be dispatched and they couldn’t get jobs either through the hiring halls; they couldn’t get union memberThis series was made possible by a grant ship,” Griffey noted. from the Solutions Journalism Network. Brian Out of this continued intransigence, the Palmer contributed research and reporting to Nixon Administration created the “Phila- this article.

THE STRUGGLE FOR ENFORCEMENT

There is a false belief among some Americans that we live in a “post-racial” era that began soon after the passage of the Civil Rights Act and culminated with the inauguration of President Barack Obama. But for those struggling to gain access to the skilled trades and construction jobs, nothing could be further from the truth.

In 2022, just 6.7% of American construction workers were African American, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, while making up 13.6% of the population. In New York City, the numbers tell a similar story, with Black residents making up just 13.6% of

A protest march by demonstrators at the Rochdale Village housing construction site in the Queens borough of New York City, July of 1963. Demonstrators carried on a city-wide series of protests against alleged discrimination in construction worker hiring.

(AP Photo/John Rooney)

April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023 •

gender exclusionary language, [and] they restricted their membership to white men.

“If you can prevent people from getting access to these skills, you can…corner the market on the number of people who are carpenters, or who are skilled masons. [Then] you can drive up wages and improve working conditions for those few workers by excluding the majority,” he added.

The cruelty of Jim Crow and lack of economic opportunity for Black Americans in the former slave states helped prompt the Great Migration, which brought millions of African Americans northward. Skilled workers, or those seeking to join those professions, often found the same kinds of roadblocks in places like New York and Chicago, and during the early decades of the 20th century, the organized push for representation and access to the skilled trades began in earnest.

The Great Depression and World War II provided fertile ground for the passage of federal labor legislation and Black labor leaders like A. Philip Randolph began to push for the implementation of these laws without regard to race.

In the summer of 1941, Randolph, along with leaders from the NAACP, Urban League, and many others, threatened a “March on Washington” to protest the discrimination that federal contractors had been allowed to get away with in seeming impunity. In response to these demands, which threatened military production as the nation was preparing to potentially enter World War II, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed an executive order that prohibited discrimination in the defense industry.

The wartime order was weakly enforced and expired soon after the end of the conflict, but it began a drive that, in some ways, laid the groundwork of the Civil Rights Movement that followed, with leaders demanding that a permanent non-discrimination law be passed.

“There was this constant push to pass an equal employment law, and that was finally realized with the inclusion of Title Seven, in the Civil Rights Act of 1964. That actually applied not just to federal contractors, but to any employer and any union, it made it illegal for them to discriminate on the basis of race,” said Jones.

delphia Plan,” which began to force companies seeking federal contracts to take what was called “affirmative action” to ensure that these companies employed at least some Black Americans.

But laws and executive orders only went so far. When it came to ensuring that these new regulations were implemented, activists and community members, and even the media, were critical.

“What was really important was the ability to keep the mobilization going, so in places like New York, or Chicago or Detroit, [and] in some cases, in southern cities like Atlanta or Birmingham, where Black workers were sort of well-organized and ready to mobilize, they could force the issue and draw attention to it,” Jones said. “The Black press played a really important role in writing about and publicizing these issues,” he added.

It was this history of decades of mobilizations that set the stage for protests at SUNY Downstate in 1963 in Brooklyn and others that would continue through to the present day. Activists then and now deeply understand that enforcement is everything and ironically, it is those who do not make up the majority who bear the burden of ensuring America lives up to not only its lofty ideals but also its actual laws.

“The beneficiaries of a system cannot be expected to destroy it,” Randolph said decades ago. His wisdom would guide activists in the second half of the 20th century and beyond as they continued the fight to make sure that those working at construction sites looked more like the communities where those structures were being built.

The next part of this series will explore how activists began to force equal access to skilled and construction jobs.

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

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MAKING SURE THAT THE FIRST IS NOT THE LAST: DIRECT ACTION BEGINS TO DIVERSIFY CONSTRUCTION SITES

By DAMASO REYES AmNews Investigative Editor In the oppressive summer heat of August 1963, the New York Amsterdam News ran a short story on page 7 of its August 10th edition: “Plumber To Be First In Union.”

Just a few hundred words long, the story highlighted “Edward Curry, the 25-year-old Negro plumber on the verge of entering the all-white Plumbers Union, Local 1 admittedly knows little of the reasons for the long well-publicized demonstrations at the Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn.”

For weeks, hundreds of clergy and activists had been arrested while blockading the site that our newspaper in other stories called “near lily white,” demanding that at least 25% of workers be “Negro or Puerto Rican.”

“It doesn’t mean too much to me,” Curry is quoted as saying of the demonstrations, but the timing of the announcement of his barrier breaking hiring was likely a direct result of the demonstrations that had, and would continue on and off for years, to convulse not just New YorkCity, but cities around the country.

In the middle of the 20th century exec-

Three policemen secure themselves as they reach two civil rights protestors, Andy Young, 32, second from right, and Frank Anderson, 22, who chained themselves halfway up the boom of a construction crane at Rochdale Village construction site in Queens on Sept. 5, 1963. (AP Photo/Anthony Camerano)

utive orders and laws were put into place, through the hard work of activists and organizers for civil rights, to ensure that the American workplace, including construction sites and union halls, became integrated. But the laws and regulations were meaningless without enforcement and it fell to many of those same activists, and to even more radical organizers, to ensure that the construction sites of America’s

A chain binds together the upraised arms of 14 picketers sitting in entrance to a hospital construction site in Brooklyn on July 25, 1963. A squad of New York City policemen moved in to remove the chain with wire clippers and arrest the demonstrators. (AP Photo/Anthony Camerano)

cities, both North and South, East and West, were desegregated.

A DREAM DEFERRED

“All the way through the 1960s, not all trades in the construction trades were racially discriminatory, but the highest skill, highest wage ones were very racially discriminatory,” Dr. Trevor Griffey, a lecturer at the University of California, Irvine said in an interview with the Amsterdam News.

While organized labor had grown in power during the first half of the 20th century, many of the unions that represented the skilled and highest paid trades like plumbers, electricians, pipe fitters and steel workers still marginalized Black Americans.

“A number of those unions were very militant, but also very racially exclusive.

And then they fought against the inclusion of racial discrimination prohibitions in labor law,” Dr. Griffey added. With the passage of the Civil Rights Act, racial discrimination in hiring and employment was banned but construction sites continued to be bastions of de facto segregation.

“When an employer needs people, they often tell the people who are working there, ‘we need to hire some more people, go tell your friends, and tell your family’.

And so if you have an all white workforce, that’s going to mean that the people who hear about those job openings are all going to be white,” said historian Dr. William Jones of the University of Minnesota, explaining why it was so difficult to diversify worksites despite the passage of Federal nondiscrimination laws.

While he believes that the building trades have made enormous improvements, Jeff Grabelsky, the Co-Director of the National Labor Leadership Institute at Cornell, told the AmNews in an interview that “there was a time in New York City when some major unions, in a city that

was becoming majority minority... where there were local unions without a single Black member.”

During this era, construction unions largely mirrored private industry which also excluded workers of color from the most lucrative trades.

“Direct action protests started targeting these construction sites in the sixties.

It started in Philadelphia, quickly moved to New York, and then was nationwide.

People occupied the arch in St. Louis as it was being constructed,” Dr. Griffey noted.

The threat of action during World War II led to the creation of an executive order which prohibited discrimination in the defense industry. Direct action also led to both the inclusion of Title Seven, in the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and President Nixon implementing the “Philadelphia Plan” which began to force companies seeking federal contracts to ensure that they employed Black Americans.

But these hard fights for laws and regulations had their limits Mr. Grabelsky noted.

“Through legal action and community organizing, building trades unions were forced to bring in Black community members. And in some cases, six months later, they were all gone because nothing else changed in the union and they entered this hostile environment that made it exceedingly difficult for them to succeed.”

THEY SAY GET BACK, WE SAY FIGHT BACK

There was an intense backlash to what would become known as “affirmative action” that pushed back on what little progress was being made at the time.

“There are counter protests against affirmative action in ‘69, that look a little like hate marches,” said Dr. Griffey. In 1970, “a group of construction workers in New York, descend on a peace rally and beat the shit out of the protestors, then march Continued on page S5

MAKING SURE THAT THE FIRST IS NOT THE LAST: You need to hire more Black workers’.”

Bailey said in an interview.

During their negotiations she said they encountered “the usual things of like, ‘Oh, well, we can’t just say Black [workers] and we don’t know any Black workers’. Which to be perfectly honest, I believe them when they say, ‘I don’t know any Black workers.’ I believe them because the culture of exclusion that they’ve built set up their network such that it doesn’t include Black people.”

Bailey is also critical of labor unions and the apprenticeship system in Los Angeles.

“This culture of exclusion didn’t come up overnight and so I’m naming all these policies that broadly create a culture of exclusion,” she said. Apprenticeship programs are “wonderful for workers because it created a control of the market on labor, such that if you wanted to hire, to bring folks in to do that work, then you had to go through the union and you could set standards. Safety standards and wage standards for workers. Which is beautiful.”

But she went on to say that “the values of the folks who created and maintained that program were anti-Black. And so when they chose to create this wonderful pathway for workers, it was not inclusive of Black workers. And so what we’re seeing

today is the fruits of that legacy.

“That honestly, I think if you take it straight up on paper, the apprenticeship program actually is not problematic. I think it’s actually quite brilliant....

However, applied with the values of the people who had the power to build that, it was anti-Black and it was built in a way that for some was deliberately exclusive.

And so we arrive at this moment now where we have this incredible program that only benefits some workers and we’re trying to figure out how to open it up, how to expand it so that it includes workers of color.”

Grabelsky of the National Labor Leadersup Institute at Cornell said, "There is a history of exclusion." He added, “I don’t think race and racism explains everything in our society, but I personally think nothing of any significance can be fully explained without looking at it through that lens.”

Our third installment will examine how organizers in Harlem helped launch a movement to hold builders and unions accountable This series was made possible by a grant from the Solutions Journalism Network.

Brian Palmer contributed research and reporting to this article.

A group of African American picketers outside construction site for the Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn on August 2, 1963. Picketing at the site continued in the effort to halt what they called discriminatory hiring practices at the construction site. (AP Photo)

April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023 •

to City Hall and protest affirmative action in the construction trades, [on the] same day,” he added.

Some organized labor officials also found ways to oppose the integration of their unions; and in one case, was rewarded with a cabinet position.

“These are long time Democrats. Many had never voted for a Republican in their lives. They’re campaigning for Republicans on a law and order platform. And when they help with the landslide election of Nixon, [Peter Brennan], the head of New York City building trades is rewarded by being made head of the Department of Labor where he guts what remains of affirmative action in the construction industry,” said Dr. Griffey.

But right wing construction workers and their leaders weren’t the only ones taking to the streets in the 1960’s and ‘70’s. As large, publicly funded construction projects went up in New York and other cities, activists and organizers of color began to demand their fair share.

“There’s these big public construction sites in Black communities, where Black workers aren’t being employed. And so these protests are around the construc-

tion sites to get people employed in those jobs and to open up those jobs,” said Dr. Jones.

“The argument was, ‘Our tax dollars are paying for this construction. We should be able to get these jobs as well.’ And in that case, it was largely the construction, the skilled trades unions that shut Black workers out of these jobs,” he added.

Across the country in Los Angeles, Black workers have also been fighting for their share of the pie.

Janel Bailey, Co-executive Director of Organizing & Programs at the Los Angeles Black Worker Center, spoke to the AmNews about efforts her organization has undertaken to ensure that Black workers are represented on job sites. As L.A.’s mass transit system expanded into Crenshaw, the organization in partnership with other labor organizations negotiated an employment agreement with the Los Angeles Metropolitan Transit Authority which they say increased the number of Black workers on the project from zero to 20% in 2015.

“Folks at our organization came together, with allies of course, to really step to Metro and asked them, ‘how you have all this money coming through our neighborhood, but [its] not going to the workers and the families that are actually here?

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

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WE SAY FIGHT BACK! Jim Haughton, Protector Of The Exploited Workman

How a Harlem Community Organization Helped Change the Face of NYC Construction Watkins, Gordon New York Amsterdam News (1962-); May 28, 1977; ProQuest Historical Newspapers: New York Amsterdam News pg. A9

By DAMASO REYES AmNews Investigative Editor In early August of 1973, a short article titled “Judge Rules Steamfitters Must Admit Minorities” ran on page six of the Amsterdam News.

It explained that the Steamfitters Local 638 “must admit Black and Spanish-surnamed applicants exclusively for ninety days effective August 6.” The brief story mentions that “Fight Back, Inc., headed by Jim Haughton, is a local community-based organization that has been effective in getting construction jobs for Blacks, Spanish-surnamed, and other minorities in New York City.”

Two years earlier, we published an article titled “Black steamfitters demand equal chance to work here,” which reported that the “members of Fight Back vow not to allow the Steamfitters Union to proceed on any job uptown unless the workers are integrated.

“We are tired of the discriminatory practice of the Steamfitters union and of all the trade unions which make it a practice to hire Black and Puerto Rican workers last and lay them off as soon as the work slows down,” Haughton was quoted as saying.

Those two articles, which ran 18 months apart, highlight the struggles that New Yorkers of color faced in integrating the skilled and construction trades and their unions.

But they also highlight just how effective Fight Back (also known as Harlem Fight Back) and its longtime leader James “Jim” Haughton, were, along with many others, in ensuring that workers of color received their fair share.

The Brooklyn-born Haughton served as an assistant to the legendary labor leader A. Philip Randolph at the Negro American Labor Council before forming the Harlem Unemployment Center, which would later become Fight Back.

“Jim’s philosophy was, if we can’t work here, nobody could,” Lavon Chambers, a former Fight Back organizer, union organizer and currently the executive director of Pathways to Apprenticeship, told the AmNews in a lengthy interview.

“Jim always had a vision. He didn’t really live long enough to actually see. But Jim had a vision of what would happen if the community and labor ever got together,” Chambers added. Their power would be unstoppable.

“The struggle for economic improvement,” Haughton wrote in a 1979 AmNews op-ed, “must come from below, from the workers.”

DECADES OF STRUGGLE

As an organizer and activist for more than 30 years, Haughton was at the forefront of the group of activists and organizations forcing both developers and local unions to hire workers of color, especially on job sites in

their communities. A 1977 AmNews profile said “Haughton and the construction workers he calls his brothers with a winning sincerity, have been on the picket lines that have sometimes deteriorated into bloody brawls at Harlem Hospital, Downstate Medical Center... and almost every other confrontation with the unions and contractors who control the industry.”

Many activists and organizations played a role in the integration of New York’s building and construction trades, but Haughton and Fight Back were, in many ways, the furnace that forged the growing equality that those in the skilled trades now enjoy.

“As Fightback’s [sic] reputation has grown,” the 1977 AMNews profile states, “organizations modeled after its aggressive approach have sprung up in Seattle, Detroit, and Washington.”

The Civil Rights Act and federal non discrimination laws and executive orders passed in the mid-20th century guaranteed, at least on paper, that people of color should be able to get work on construction sites, but the reality of de facto segregation continued, even in the “liberal” North.

“They’re building highways in communities of color or new housing projects or community centers [and] you’re bringing this racially exclusive white workforce into communities of color,” said Dr. Trevor Griffey of UCLA in an interview.

“And people can see from their doorsteps.

‘Oh, I can’t even get a job in my own neighborhood,’” he added.

What was clear to Haughton and other activists in the 1960s, and became gospel in the following decades, was that without community pressure and direct action, nothing was going to change for Black workers.

But what does direct action look like? The AmNews interviewed two former Fight Back activists who detailed both their experiences and the impact Haughton had on them and the entire industry.

BUILDING AN ARMY

Born and raised in Harlem, Chambers had recently come out of the Army and lost his job as a video editor when he first wandered into the offices of Harlem Fight Back on 125th Street in the early 1990s.

“When I came out of the Army, [I] didn’t really know what to do with my life. But I knew I didn’t want to go back to hanging with my ‘friends.’A lot of them were cool, but it didn’t really lead me to anything good. I inadvertently heard about an organization in my neighborhood called Harlem Fight Back,” Chambers said in an interview.

It is there where he met Jim Haughton, who took a liking to Chambers and gave him books

to read, including “The Miseducation of the Negro.” Chambers warmly recalled the first few weeks he spent in those offices listening to the organization’s leaders and members talk about politics “as opposed to standing on the corner, talking to people who are selling drugs, or, committing acts of violence.”

Chambers quickly learned, however, that Haughton and his colleagues were more than just talk.

“One day, they’re talking, ‘Hey, Lavon, you want to come with us on the Shape?’ I’m like, ‘What’s the Shape?’” he recalled. They told him, “‘There’s this job over here. And they won’t hire people from the community. And we’re going to go shut it down.’ What do you mean, you want to shut it down? ‘We’re just

going to shut it down [using] civil disobedience’. And I thought these people were foolish.

“They’re talking about, ‘You’re gonna go to the site, where all these white folks [are] there, and you’re gonna shut your site down.’

I thought it was foolishness. But I went.”

And that day would change his life just as it had for so many others. Chambers described getting in one of several vans that transported Fight Back members to a nearby construction site.

The van pulled up and “we all ran in the building. And there wasn’t any violence.

We just went in there,” Chambers recalled.

“It was coordinated, like a tactical military effort. We just hit every floor. We told Continued on page S7

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THE NEW BLACK VIEW

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INDEX Arts & Entertainment �������������������Page 15 » Jazz ����������������������������������������������Page 22 » Theater ����������������������������������������Page 20 » Trends �������������������������������������������Page 19 Caribbean Update �������������������������Page 14 Classified ����������������������������������������Page 28 Editorial/Opinion �����������������������Pages 12,13 Education ���������������������������������������Page 24 Go with the Flo ������������������������������Page 8 Health ������������������������������������������������Page 11 In the Classroom ��������������������������Page 23 Nightlife ��������������������������������������������Page 9 Religion & Spirituality ���������������������Page 26 Sports ����������������������������������������������Page 36 Union Matters ����������������������������������Page 10 MAIL SUBSCRIPTIONS INFORMATION U.S. Territories & Canada weekly subscriptions:

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EXTENDED EYELASHES AND LONG NAILS BANNED AS ‘INDECENT’ UNDER NEW COLLEGE CODE (GIN)—“Indecent dressing” is hereby banned for students and staff under a strict new code at Godfrey Okoye University, Enugu State, Nigeria, among other schools.

The vice chancellor, Rev. Fr. Christian Anieke, announced the details to students returning from holiday breaks. Henceforth, all students are to be dressed in their faculty uniforms with appropriate ties and shoes. “No student is expected to wear slippers, shorts, ragged jeans, long fingernails, face caps, or artificial eyelashes,” he directed.

Only black and brown hair will be allowed on campus for either men or women. Staff and students were given one month to adjust to the new rules or else face disciplinary action.

The pronouncement follows similar restrictions at Rivers State Uni-

versity, which banned students from wearing miniskirts, ankle chains, and extended lashes.

Sagging trousers by either male or female students are prohibited at Rivers State, as is the wearing of earrings by male students and nose rings by female students. The school management also banned students from having tattoos and dressing in a way considered “indecent” on campus.

Anieke expressed regret that most students and staff were wearing Tshirts with unauthorized inscriptions, contrary to the dress code of the institution. For the future, he continued, men were to be in suits with university ties to match. Further, male students must comb their hair well or shave their heads.

Additionally, final-year students were warned against plagiarism, stressing that the university librarian had been directed to carry out plagiarism tests on all research works by the students and staff of the institution.

The vice chancellor revealed that the management of the university had introduced qualitative assessments of all the teaching and non-teaching staff of the university. “Principal officers of the institutions will henceforth visit the lecture halls to assess the lectures by the academic staff while the non-teaching staff will submit their roll calls at the beginning and closing of each day’s activities.

“Students who fail to attend lectures will not be allowed to sit for examinations,” Anieke warned.

News

The clergyman made it clear that none of the female matriculants would be allowed to wear any shoe that was more than 4 centimeters high, and students must wear “decent” dresses.

Finally, in a related development, the Anambra State Government placed a ban on the wearing of mini-length uniforms in schools across the state in September, according to SaharaReporters.

The state’s education commissioner, Professor Ngozi ChumaUdeh, made this known during an interactive meeting with education secretaries of public and mission schools held in Awka.

The commissioner did not hide her displeasure at what she saw as “the growing trend of putting on mini-length uniforms [skirts and gowns] in schools.” According to her, “it goes against the acceptable dress code for schools in the state.”

Feedback from female students on social media included the following comments: “Every adult should have the freedom of expression. Fashion expresses a person. It is not okay to take away that right,” wrote a user named Jessica.

“Then stay at home And [sic] express your right..No one care [sic],” replied another user named Jenny.

“There are many schools where students wear miniskirts and let’s also talk about sports uniforms!

Why not focus more on the enrichment of education which all universities in Nigeria lack?” wrote a user named Tabytha.

(GIN photo)

NEW U.S. AMBASSADOR SENDS WELLWISHES TO ZIMBABWEANS AS HUNGER AND POVERTY GRIP THE NATION (GIN)— “On behalf of the Government of the United States of America, I congratulate the Zimbabwean people as you celebrate the 43rd anniversary of your independence,” said Pamela M. Tremont, the new U.S. ambassador to Zimbabwe.

“The United States remains committed to standing with the people of Zimbabwe, as we have since your independence in 1980, to work together to promote democratic institutions, equitable economic growth, public health, and food security.

“Zimbabwe has the chance to set itself on a path to promote citizen engagement and to respect human rights. We will continue to support the people of Zimbabwe to live longer, more prosperous, and healthier lives.

“As you celebrate your independence, please know that our friendship with the Zimbabwean people endures.”

As Zimbabwe celebrated its Independence Day on Tuesday, President Emmerson Mnangagwa said See INTERNATIONAL on page 25

Zimbabwe celebrated for 43 years of independence (Omowale Clay photo)

The December 12th Movement “Friends of Zimbabwe” just celebrated Zimbabwe’s 43rd year of independence. Zimbabwean representatives brought greetings for the support of brothers and sisters in the U.S. for their “fight against colonialism and the current illegal sanctions.”

Attendees said that the community discussion and information provided gave an optimistic forecast for Zimbabwe’s future.

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

GOING HUNGRY: Food insecurity, SNAP, and the impacts to the elderly

By ARIAMA C. LONG Amsterdam News Staff, Report for America Corps Member Last year, the city estimated 1.2 million New Yorkers were food insecure with a rising concern for older Black and brown adults heavily impacted by inflation and the rising costs of food.

Emergency SNAP benefits were slated to end on March 1, leaving millions of older adults at risk of losing food benefits. During the pandemic, Congress passed a law to temporarily increase SNAP or an enrollment allotment, but now they will go back to being based on one’s income and household size, reported AARP.

Some could see a reduction in benefits from $250 to $90 a month, said AARP. So far 18 states had opted to end the boosted SNAP benefits before March: Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee and Wyoming.

According to data from the New York City Food Policy Report 2022, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) program feeds over 1.6 million people on average each month. SNAP recipients aged 65 and older averaged out to be over 360,000 each month, said the report.

The city funds 276 senior centers and

22 home delivery meal programs.

Additionally, the Emergency Food Assistance Program (EFAP), which provides emergency food pantries and community kitchens, distributed 17,755,087 lbs of food last year, said the report. Since the beginning of 2023 the program has shifted and expanded into the Community Food Connection (CFC) to help continue to serve facilities.

In a joint city council hearing on Wed, April 19, led-by Councilmembers Crystal Hudson and Deputy Speaker Diana Ayala. They sought to address the lack of consistent access to affordable and nutritious food for seniors as well as examined how food assistance programs like See FOOD INSECURITY on page 27

Audit confirms over 99% of New Yorkers tracked by NYPD gang database are still Black or brown

By TANDY LAU Amsterdam News Staff, Report for America Corps Member The NYPD’s criminal group database—better known as the gang database—remains 99% Black and brown, according to the long-awaited Office of the Investigator General (OIG-NYPD) report on the controversial registry. The findings match a June 2018 testimony by then-Chief of Detectives Dermot Shea. Half a decade later, the numbers look eerily familiar.

Of the roughly 16,000 people registered during the investigation, 11,221 are Black. Another 4,729 are categorized as Hispanic. The remaining 1% of database entrants identify as either white or Asian.

That’s fewer than 200 people, combined.

“The gang database is a backdoor way for the NYPD to criminalize Black and brown communities with zero due process or transparency,” said Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso by text message. “99% of the names that have been submitted to this database are Black and Latino New Yorkers, and it is nearly impossible for individuals to determine if their name is on the list, why it was added, or how they can be removed.

“Ensnaring innocent people in the gang database undermines trust in law enforcement and public safety in our communities. The question as to whether we should get rid of the database is asked and answered: the list has got to go. Now.”

Reynoso introduced legislation banning the gang database in 2021 while serving on the City Council. His ​​ former colleagues proposed Intro 360 last year, which will abolish the registry if passed.

Beyond the racial disparities, the report corroborated other long-standing concerns, mainly with transparency.

“Among the findings of the investigation were a lack of formal, written policies governing the database, particularly with respect to the application of the criteria for adding and maintaining individuals in the database; delays in the review of entries; and limited transparency to the public,” said Acting Inspector General Jeanene Barrett in a statement.

Entrants usually learn of their inclusion

Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson hosted a Bronx Denim Day march last week to show solidarity with those affected by sexual assault and to amplify inequities experienced by marginalized communities.

“We stand with survivors of sexual assault, of gender-based violence, of domestic violence, of elder abuse, of intimate partner violence, and we show them the love that each of them deserve,” said Gibson on the steps of Bronx Borough Hall.

Gibson and various advocates were present for the first Denim Day march in New York City back in 2010. Clad in denim, they gathered to commemorate worldwide women-led protests

that were sparked when an Italian court granted the appeal of a rapist and overturned his sentence in 1999. The judge said the victim was wearing tight jeans, insinuating that she was complicit. Italian women began showing up to work wearing denim jeans and other attire to support survivors of sexual assault. Now the last Wednesday of every April is also known as Denim Day. “It hurts. I take this very personally as a woman and a woman of color,” said Gibson, speaking about a resident who was recently found stabbed fatally in her apartment.

Gibson said that each year, the gathering gets bigger, galvanizing more support and resources for survivors. She added that statistically, the Bronx has the highest rates of not only domestic violence incidents but homicides, which unfortunately affect women and women

MetroBriefs Metro Briefs Brooklyn Bookstore Crawl through April 29 Brooklyn is showing off its bookstores with its annual Brooklyn Bookstore Crawl. A total of 25 stores are on the list for the crawl. Two Blackowned bookstores on the crawl list are Adanne (234 Water Street (DUMBO), Open 12 p.m.-6 p.m. Thu-Sat; https://adanne.co/) and Cafe con Libros, A Feminist Bookstore (724 Prospect Place (Prospect Lefferts Gardens) Open 9 a.m.- 5 p.m. Sat-Sun, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Mon, WedFri (closed Tuesday), Phone: 929-327-9373; www.cafeconlibrosbk.com).

To participate in the Brooklyn Bookstore Crawl you will need to collect signatures or stamps while visiting the stores along the route.

The stores are listed at https://sites.google. com/view/bklyn-bookstore-crawl/participating-bookstores?authuser=0&pli=1. The Bookstore Crawl will hold an Afterparty on Saturday, April 29, 5 p.m.-7 p.m. at The Center for Fiction (15 Lafayette Ave.). For admission to the Afterparty, bring your Bookstore Crawl passport and arrive by 5:30 p.m. to get free raffle tickets for every bookstore visited. If you visit at least 5 bookstores during the Bookstore Crawl you will receive a coupon for 25% off a book purchase at a store during the month of May.

Memorial tribute for Thomas “Blood” McCreary A memorial tribute for Thomas “Blood” McCreary will take place Friday, April 28, from 6 -9 p.m. at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, 515 Malcolm X Blvd., in Harlem.

Join family, friends & comrades for an evening that will include video montages and guest speakers who will look back at the life of “Blood” McCreary, a Black Panther & Black Liberation Army warrior. This event is co-sponsored by the National Alumni Association of the Black Panther Party & the New Heritage Theatre Group.

See DATABASE on page 27

African American Mayors head U.S.’s four largest cities

BX BP Gibson hosts Denim Day

By ARIAMA C. LONG Amsterdam News Staff, Report for America Corps Member

April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023 • 3

of color the most.

“We remind everyone out there that victims don’t have to be victims forever. You are a part of the future,” said Gibson. “And we want to remind anyone out there who is in a dangerous relationship with a partner that love should never hurt. There are ways to get out.”

Gibson was joined by city agency representatives, school groups, local organizations, violence interrupters, and sexual assault survivors. “Not all sources of violence are gun violence.

We have to show support,” said one Save Our Streets (S.O.S.) violence interrupter during the march.

Participants marched together from Bronx Borough Hall to the Bronx Museum of the Arts and back. Afterward, the rally moved to a reception in the building, where speakers, food, and

The African American Mayors Association held its ninth annual conference April 19-21 in Washington, D.C. Under the conference theme “Our Mayors Our Cities: The Catalyst for Equitable and Inclusive Growth,” participants talked about the future of leadership, change, and growth in cities across America.

This year’s conference was historic because it, for the first time, brought together Black mayors who are now in control of the four largest cities in the United States — New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Houston. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, New York Mayor Eric Adams, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, and Chicago’s outgoing Mayor Lori Lightfoot (who is being replaced by Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson) were all in attendance for a “fireside chat” where they spoke about how they were able to guide their cities through the COVID-19 pandemic and have dealt with issues of crime and housing.

See DENIM on page 32

See METRO BRIEFS on page 27

4 • April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Mayor Adams continues asking federal officials for help with incoming migrants as Title 42’s expiration looms

NewJerseyNews Trenton “Community Conversation on Domestic Violence” Sisters for the Trenton Anti-Violence Coalition will conduct a “Community Conversation on Domestic Violence” at Trenton City Hall, 319 State St. in Trenton, NJ. The event, which takes place April 27 from 5 to 7 p.m., is designed to raise awareness about domestic violence in Trenton. It will look at how we can address the issues to prevent harm to women and families.

Light refreshments will be served. For more information, call 609-503-1996.

Applications open for Governor’s Fellows Program PHOTONAME: migrant conference.jpg CAPTION: Mayor Eric Adams, members of the Adams administration, and elected officials urge the Biden administration to immediately enhance paths to work authorization for asylum seekers currently in the U.S. City Hall. Wednesday, April 19, 2023. Credit: Ed Reed/ Mayoral Photography Office

Mayor Eric Adams, members of the Adams administration, and elected officials urge the Biden administration to immediately enhance paths to work authorization for asylum seekers currently in the U.S. City Hall. Wednesday, April 19, 2023. (Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office)

By TANDY LAU Amsterdam News Staff, Report for America Corps Member The ball is in President Joe Biden’s court to “get stuff done.” Last Wednesday, April 19, Mayor Eric Adams renewed pressure on federal authorities to assist with newly arrived asylum seekers by this upcoming May 11, the expiration of public health restriction Title 42, which Biden and his predecessor Donald Trump used to turn away asylum seekers under the pretense of preventing the spread of COVID-19.

“As a city, we have done everything in our power to provide support to the tens of thousands of asylum seekers who have arrived at our doorstep,” said Adams. “While New York City has shouldered the costs of this crisis largely alone, we have always said that this is a national crisis that requires a coordinated, comprehensive response from the federal government. To deny people the ability to work legally sets them up for failure.

“The actions we’re urging our federal partners to do, all of which can be done without support from the Republican leaders in Congress who refuse to do their jobs, will ensure that asylum seekers in New York City, and across the country, can do what they came here to do — work lawfully and build stable lives.”

The city is taking in roughly 200 migrants daily according to the Mayor’s Office.

Adams’ gameplan for the Biden administration includes re-designating or extending Temporary Protective Status for South American, Central American, and African nations listed, which he

says will allow for more work authorization for eligible individuals. He also recommends opening up humanitarian parole, which allows migrants “who may be inadmissible or otherwise ineligible for admission” to temporarily remain in the country, along with ramping up the number of those reviewing immigration cases.

Such plans makeup a portion of Adams’ “The Road Forward” playbook, which was announced last month to address the future of newly arrived asylum seekers. The mayor’s blueprint intends to “integrate” migrants into New York City by adding some to the workforce. Adams specifically mentioned vacancies in agriculture, transit, manufacturing and the service industry as fields migrants can fill if they are legally allowed to work.

This past February, male asylum seekers told Amsterdam News many found jobs in Manhattan since arriving and employment was a key reason why they initially protested relocation to a Brooklyn facility.

Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs Commissioner Manuel Castro added that many migrants experience hopelessness since arriving in the United States. He thinks employment can fix that.

“Their situation is turning from the search for the American dream to a nightmare,” said Castro. “Because they’re not able to work [and] they feel shame that they cannot provide for their families and they cannot contribute to the city and United States. And they feel [if as] they’re failing as parents and providers for their families here and back home. But there is hope.”

He added that Salvadorans and Hondu-

rans eligible for TPS frequently thrive in the “Big Apple” thanks to work permits.

Adams mentioned many African asylum seekers are currently assisted by imams in the Bronx. He added “enough was enough” and that New Yorkers “deserved better from their national government.”

The New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC) agreed with Adams’ assessment on employment, and said the immigrant and refugee rights group would join the mayor’s calls on the Biden administration.

“Finding work is a basic and essential first step to allowing people to build independent lives for themselves and their families,” said NYIC’s Theodore Moore in his statement. “Without the ability to move forward with their legal cases and gain much needed work authorizations, our newest arrivals are forced to live in desperate circumstances that often lead them to work in an unregulated economy open to abuse and wage theft.”

But the same immigration advocates also condemned Adams just a few days later over comments at this week’s African American Mayors Association Conference, where he said the migrant crisis was destroying New York City and that none of “his folks” came to Washington, D.C. to fight for resources.

Tandy Lau is a Report for America corps member and writes about public safety for the Amsterdam News. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep him writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visiting https://bit.ly/ amnews1.

New Jersey has re-launched the Governor’s Fellows Program, a state employment program designed to attract and retain a diverse pool of qualified individuals interested in pursuing a career in public service. The newly revised program will offer an opportunity for recent grads and emerging professionals to be hired into key policy and programmatic areas. The launch of the new program will play a critical role in broadening the unique perspectives and diversity represented in New Jersey’s state workforce.

Eligibility for the Governor’s Fellows Program will be based on several qualifications, including effective communication and teamwork skills, established excellence in professional or academic achievement, proven leadership ability, and a demonstrated commitment to public policy.

The deadline for Fellow applications is May 12, 2023, with interviews being held throughout the summer. The expected start date will be September 2023. For more information, visit: https://info.csc.state.nj.us/jobannouncements/DefaultJobAnnouncement/ JobList

NJ Hall of Fame announces nominees The New Jersey Hall of Fame has listed some 50 individuals for its class of 2023. The nonprofit is encouraging the public to go to VoteHallofFame.com to support famous Jerseyans who have made an impact on the world.

Those listed include the poet, writer, and activist Amiri Baraka; pianist Dr. George Theophilus Walker, who became the first African American to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music; WNBC’s award-winning chief meteorologist Janice Huff; George Clinton, founder of Parliament Funkadelic; singer (Fifth Dimenion)/actress Marilyn McCoo; and former NFL players Tiki Barber and Drew Pearson.

The public can vote on the New Jersey Hall of Fame Class of 2023 nominee list until May 19.

Sheryl Lee Ralph, Terence Blanchard to be awarded Rutgers degrees Emmy Award-winning actress and Broadway star Sheryl Lee Ralph will receive an honorary doctor of fine arts degree when she addresses See NEW JERSEY on page 27

April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023 • 5

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Dr. Robin D. Stone, centering Black women Dr. Robin Stone (Contributed photo)

Black

New Yorker

By ARIAMA C. LONG Amsterdam News Staff, Report for America Corps Member According to Dr. Robin D. Stone, Black women give so much to others that they often have few reserves to care of themselves. “In the face of being strong, we give so much of us. We’re pouring so much into everybody else that we have nothing left for ourselves,” said Stone, 58, a licensed mental health counselor and former selfhelp journalist who has dedicated her works, and now her practice, to holistically treating Black women and Black families.

Stone’s practice at Muse & Grace Mental Health Counseling Services in Midtown Manhattan incorporates narrative and creative arts therapies to help clients cope with racial pressure and trauma, microaggressions, stress, and difficult work and family dynamics. Both individual and group counseling are available. The facility is also a training center that helps students pursue their degrees and licenses in mental health and wellness.

Stone believes it is necessary for Black and brown professionals to operate in the mental health industry, but also that these same communities learn to seek a variety of support. “I think every Black person should experience therapy at some point in their life,” she said. “Just growing up Black in this country can affect you profoundly—your sense of self, how you walk through the world.”

Stone was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. She grew up with her sister in a single-parent household. She knew early

on that she wanted a career in writing. In grade school, she was engrossed with literature. By high school, she was writing for her school newspaper, and in college, sought out an accredited journalism school. She attended Michigan State University and created a Black newspaper for the students.

“I was always fascinated with the power of story and storytelling. My mother was an avid reader,” said Stone. That was a great example for her.

Stone has worked at several publications over the course of a 20 year career, including the Oakland Press, Detroit Free Press, and Boston Globe. She came to New York in 1990 to work at the New York Times, staying there for about seven years before making the switch to magazine writing at Essence.

Stone said it was critical to tell Black stories, especially from Black women’s perspectives. She wrote about mental and physical health, food, nutrition, and holistic living.

After enjoying her time working at a prestigious Black publication, Stone left and dove into independent projects. She wrote an in-depth book, “No Secrets, No Lies,” about healing sexual abuse and stigma in Black families. “I wrote that book from the perspective of a survivor, which I am, as well as the perspective of other survivors who I interviewed,” said Stone.

Around this time, in 2006, she struggled with the death of her first husband to cancer. After a stint at Health magazine, she decided to go back to school in her 50s to get her master’s in applied psychology from New York University and a master’s in Health Arts & Sciences from Goddard College in Vermont.

“I wanted to study how Black women can navigate and thrive in the face of racism and how we relate to our own bodies and how we can take care of ourselves,” said Stone. That has become the foundation of her counseling motto to support Black women, families, and couples. She encourages women to learn to center themselves before supporting others to thrive as a collective.

Stone currently resides in Harlem with her son, current husband, and blended family.

Ariama C. Long is a Report for America corps member and writes about politics for the Amsterdam News. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep her writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visiting https://bit.ly/amnews1.

THE URBAN AGENDA

By David R. Jones, Esq

Congestion Pricing Will Ease Traffic, Raise Revenue, Reduce Pollution The Metropolitan Transit Authority’s financial health depends on packed buses and people wedged into subway cars during the morning and evening rush, shoving past each other to beat the signature warning, “Stand clear of the closing doors.”

Two weeks ago, subway ridership reached four million on a single day for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic pushed the MTA to the brink of financial collapse. A one-day peak is great news, but not enough to recoup the losses from COVID lockdowns and commuters lost to hybrid work. The MTA faces a $3 billion hole in the 2025 budget.

would directly benefit from system repairs and upgrades. What is more, only four percent of outer-borough workers (about 128,000 people) would pay congestion fees as part of their daily commute. The study also found only two percent of outer-borough workers who live in poverty (about 5,000 people) would be asked to pay congestion fees as part of their daily commute.

It is worth pointing out that other cities have had success with congestion pricing programs.

According to research prepared for the U.S. Department of Transportation, London, Singapore and Stockholm all experienced less traffic after setting up their own tolls.

The only way to generate enough money for infrastructure repairs and upgrades is implementation of long-delayed congestion pricing, which is expected to create $1 billion for public transportation annually while improving air quality. The program, which was approved by Albany lawmakers in 2019, would provide badly needed revenue for the MTA, reduce vehicle emissions, tackle road congestion and increase commuter rail and bus investment.

That said, there are legitimate concerns.

Activists in the Bronx are anxious that their neighborhood would face traffic gridlock from diverted traffic. Others fear it would place an unfair burden on people from the outer boroughs and around the region who must travel into Manhattan for business. What groups are going to be exempt or eligible for discounts? Is there an accommodation for lowincome workers? What’s a bargain to shelter New Jersey drivers?

I strongly support the plan. Congestion pricing is now critical because the recent report from the International Panel on Climate Change said that we have now reached a tipping point and must do all we can to reduce carbon emissions to avoid a climate catastrophe by 2030. The urgency of the moment cannot be overstated; congestion pricing is a readily available solution with proven success in reducing carbon emissions.

Like all matters involving the MTA, Gov. Kathy Hochul will have the final say. However, exemptions from paying or discounted rates mean higher charges on the remaining drivers to meet the program’s revenue-raising goals.

Concessions, therefore, are the politically charged fault line in the parley to get the program underway.

What is also true is that many of our fellow New Yorkers cannot afford more fare increases, with low-income New Yorkers already straining under current fare burdens.

Despite the noise, congestion pricing is a solidly progressive solution. Businesses and individuals who can afford to pay the higher tolls would help those with less — people who rely on the bus and subway networks tend to be poor and low-income workers.

The tolls are intended, in part, to cut down on traffic congestion, which is a growing NYC problem. While train and bus ridership remains 40 percent below pre-pandemic levels, bridge and tunnel traffic volumes across the city are now nearly back to 2019 levels. It shows in the traffic jams during the morning and evening rush. The situation only promises to get worse: New vehicle registrations in 2021 were up 34 percent over the previous year.

More cars on the road feed the vicious cycle of more gridlock and more air pollution.

The primary concern of opponents – that congestion pricing would unfairly impact the poor and low-wage essential workers – is misguided. Officials haven’t decided on a fee scale yet, but an MTA study of various fee scenarios suggested the tolling program would mostly impact commercial trucks and the well-heeled drivers in private vehicles who can afford to pay.

The congestion pricing plan, championed by former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, would toll vehicles entering Manhattan south of 60th Street. The zone runs from 60th to the Battery, but omits the F.D.R. Drive Eastside artery and the West Side Highway along the borough’s edges.

Roughly 7.7 million people flowed through this district on an average weekday before the pandemic and about 24 percent traveled by car, taxi, van or truck.

A study of congestion pricing by Community Service Society of New York found the impact on poor and low-income people is not as severe as naysayers suggest. The study found 57 percent of outer-borough residents depend on MTA commuter bus and rail service, and

New York City has overcome bigger issues than this through the years. With negotiation, compromise and sacrifice, we can fairly and fully address all the pushback. After years of discussion, the time for congestion pricing has arrived.

David R. Jones, Esq., is President and CEO of the Community Service Society of New York (CSS), the leading voice on behalf of low-income New Yorkers for more than 175 years and a member of the MTA Board. The views expressed in this column are solely those of the writer. The Urban Agenda is available on CSS’s website: www.cssny.org.

6 • April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Earth Day: Mayor Adams on City’s strategic climate plan

By ARIAMA C. LONG Amsterdam News Staff, Report for America Corps Member Earth Day has been going strong since 1970. This Saturday New York City unveiled another long-term climate plan to protect the environment and promote a green economy.

Mayor Eric Adams has started a few green initiatives, including planting trees in heat vulnerable areas as well as investing in 300 miles of nature trails in parks, solar panels on schools, energy efficient buildings for Local Law 97 compliance, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and more electric vehicles and weatherized bike storage. There’s also a big push for new training programs to grow green jobs, like tree climbers and pruners.

“I say over and over again, we have two mothers. One gave birth to us, the other sustained us. The same love and nurturing that we show the mom that gave birth to us, let’s show it to the one that sustains us,” said Adams at a series of Earth Day events this past weekend. “Mother Earth is here, is going to continue to be a part of who we are and we have to ensure that we give it the treatment that she deserves.”

PlaNYC is the Mayor’s sustainability plan. It aims to connect residents with nature and to show how investing in open spaces will improve equity, social resilience, and health. PlaNYC builds off of former Mayor Bill de Blasio’s climate plan from 2007 that included congestion pricing.

The city said this is the fifth in a series of climate plans set to be released every four years by local law, and was developed with input from a coalition of city agencies in the New York City Climate Cabinet and the Sustainability Advisory Board.

Comptroller Brad Lander, at a separate press conference, said that 89% of the electricity that the city uses comes from burning fossil fuels. He said it’s necessary to convert resources entirely to clean and renewable energy in the future, not just for public spaces but for homeowners too. “We have seen in Superstorm Sandy and Hurricane Ida what it looks like to lose New Yorkers’ lives to the climate crisis. And those events have cost us already billions of dollars,” said Lander.

Various city agencies, including the Department of Citywide

Mayor Eric Adams delivers remarks and volunteers with NYC Parks on Earth Day at Alley Pond Park in Queens on Saturday, April 22, 2023.

(Caroline Willis/Mayoral Photography Office photo)

Administrative Services (DCAS), Department of Transportation (DOT), and Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), have already announced their contributions to combatting the climate crisis.

The city received $10.1 million in federal grants to help electrify its vehicle fleet and has taken steps to reduce carbon emissions from food production and consumption. About 61,000 people are employed in energy efficiency industries across the five boroughs, and the city will spend about $20 to $30 billion in retrofitting buildings by 2030, according to Deputy Mayor for Operations Meera Joshi.

Just recently, the Department of City Planning (DCP) began reviewing the first of 17 policy proposals the city made to modernize zoning regulations to support climate goals under the City of Yes for Carbon Neutrality amendment. The rest of the proposals aim to remove barriers to building more greener energy buildings, transit, water, and waste systems.

“New Yorkers have been witnesses to the rising sea levels

and more intense storms that climate change is bringing to the five boroughs, and the City of Yes for Carbon Neutrality will help them do their part to slow this trend,” said DEP Commissioner and Chief Climate Officer Rohit T. Aggarwala in a statement. “By removing outdated regulations, we will help to expand the use of solar energy, electric vehicles, building electrification, and a circular economy for organic waste, all of which will help to slow climate change.”

For the most part, environmental community justice groups are hopeful about the strategy as looming state climate goals that need to be zero emissions by 2030, draw closer.

“As an organization rooted in the South Bronx, an epicenter of pollution and environmental justice, we are hopeful about PlaNYC and the benefits it would bring to frontline communities in the form of cleaner air, more open green space, and accessible green workforce trainings, among other things,” said South Bronx Unite Executive Director Arif Ullah.

Sonal Jessel, director of policy at

WE ACT for Environmental Justice, said in a statement that she was excited about the plan, but also pointed out the city still has “dismal ratings for ozone levels in the air.”

“This results from the fact that most sources of pollution, like industrial facilities and bus depots, have been placed in communities of color, turning them into sacrifice zones,” said Jessel.

She advocated that the state pass the Cumulative Impacts law, which cuts down on issuing permits for projects that would potentially pollute communities of color.

Jessel said it was unsurprising that Black and brown neighborhoods got hit hard by COVID-19 since many of the same communities have suffered “adverse health impacts of air pollution.”

State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins also doubled down on her support for passing the Cumulative Impacts law to advance environmental justice, and recently advanced bills that will protect the state’s waterways from pollution and help support local efforts to remove lead pipes from New York’s water supply.

“New York is continuing to lead

the nation on climate action and sustainable practices, with this package of legislation being the latest example of our commitment to the fight,” said Stewart-Cousins in a statement. “The investments we make in our communities today won’t matter if there isn’t a habitable planet tomorrow. That’s why we will continue moving the needle on environmental protection and preservation, so that generations from now, New Yorkers can still live safely in the places they call home.”

Joshi additionally advocated for the passage of the Waste Reduction Act. The state needs to make manufacturers responsible for reducing waste and increasing the recyclability of packaging so that costs don’t fall back onto taxpayers in the city, she said.

Ariama C. Long is a Report for America corps member and writes about politics for the Amsterdam News. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep her writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visiting https://bit.ly/amnews1.

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023 • 7

Offering the community more ways to go We’re always looking for ways to support people’s choices in the communities we serve. That’s why Bank of America is adding charging stations for electric vehicles (EVs) to over 90 financial centers nationwide. We’re also supporting the choices our teammates make with employee rebates on EVs.

See all we’re doing at bankofamerica.com/metroNYC

I am proud of the steps we’re taking in the New York City community to help people pursue what matters to them. The same goes for my teammates, as many have chosen to participate in My Environment,® one of our employee engagement initiatives.

José Tavarez President, Bank of America New York City

What would you like the power to do?®

Scan for details When you use the QRC feature certain information is collected from your mobile device for business purposes.

Bank of America, N.A. Member FDIC. Equal Opportunity Lender. © 2023 Bank of America Corporation. All rights reserved.

8 • April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023

Go With The Flo

FLO

ANTHONY Actor Bill Cosby was spotted in Manhattan on April 14.

This is the first time the disgraced comedian has been seen in public since he was released from prison on June 30, 2021, according to the Daily Mail. The 85-year-old star of “The Cosby Show” walked with a cane along with an aide as they entered an office building in midtown Manhattan…..

“Act Your Age “ will return to Bounce on June 3 with two allnew episodes back-to-back starting at 8 p.m. ET/ 7 p.m.

CT. The premieres kick off the second half of the 16-episode first season of “Act Your Age,” running weekly on Saturday nights through the summer.

Kym Whitley, Tisha Campbell, along with special guest Yvette Nicole Brown star in the comedy about three vibrant, successful Washington D.C./Northern Virginia-area women in their 50s who are each at a personal crossroads and who decide the best way forward in life is together…

Simone Biles and Jonathan Owens tied the knot at the 1910 Harris County Courthouse in Houston, Texas on April 21, multiple outlets report. “I do,” the Olympic great wrote on Instagram April 22, next to photos of the bride and groom at the small wedding ceremony.

Owens commented, “Wifey got a great ring to it. First day of forever.” Biles was clad in a white, ruffled, halter gown. The Houston Texans NFL player sported a beige suit. Following this legal ceremony, the newlyweds were expected to head to the islands for a destination wedding….

Black Women Film Network (BWFN), celebrating 26 years of preserving the voices of Black women in film and television, announced the official selections for the annual BWFN Short Film Festival on May 6 at MODEX Studio in Atlanta, Georgia. The selections include “Unexpected,” which is produced by Emmy winner Sheryl Lee Ralph; “Look Back At It,” “Summer,” “Welcome To Afro tree,” “Brief Exchanges” and more…

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THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS W I T H T H E F L O

New Chief Judge Wilson performs Senator Cordell Cleare’s swearing-in ceremony

By ARIAMA C. LONG Amsterdam News Staff, Report for America Corps Member Though Harlem Senator Cordell Cleare has been in office a little over a year, her numerous supporters lauded her as a long-time public servant of the community worthy of an official position many times over. She finally held her swearing-in ceremony this past Sunday to commemorate her first full term.

“Harlem does need to unite, now more than ever, because there are people outside of Harlem looking in at ways to capitalize on and ways to move in,” said Cleare. “We have to turn that around and that’s what I’m fighting for in Albany.”

As a staunch advocate and district leader, Cleare had fought to keep the historic Wadleigh School for the Performing Arts and Visual Arts open in Harlem when former Mayor Bill de Blasio and the education department had opted to close it down despite the school’s reputation for fostering talented Black youth. Cleare chose the school’s auditorium to host the swearing in and excitedly spoke about the now “100% graduation rate” among its current students.

School supporters, members of democratic clubs, elected officials, and community leaders filled the aisles while the stage was occupied by heavy weights, like fellow Harlem native Chief Judge of the New York State Court of Appeals Rowan Wilson, Mayor Eric Adams, Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, US Senator Chuck Schumer, State Senate Majority Leader Andrea StewartCousins, and Assemblymember Inez Dickens among others.

“There’s not a moment that Cordell is afraid to ask the question or make the statement on behalf of the community she represents,” said Stewart-Cousins fondly. Cleare represents District 30, which comprises Harlem, East Harlem (El Barrio), the Upper West Side, Washington Heights, Hamilton Heights, and Morningside Heights.

Cleare follows in the footsteps of former Senator Bill Perkins, whom she worked with for several years as his ‘second in command,’ and former Senator Constance Baker Motley. Cleare is the second Black

woman elected to the state senate from Manhattan, Motley being the first. She was also an instrumental advocate on behalf of the Exonerated Six, a group of young Black and Latino boys from Harlem falsely convicted for the rape of a white woman in Central Park decades ago.

The proceedings were hosted by Valerie Jo Bradley and Judge Machelle Sweeting. The event began with prayers from religious leaders of the Muslim, Jewish, and Christian faiths, before launching into speeches.

Schumer spoke movingly about Cleare’s late son, Jordan Emmanuel Nieves who passed in 2021 and was one of the driving forces behind Cleare’s earliest community activism in the 1990s. Her son had tested positive for lead poisoning as a child, prompting Cleare to crusade for safe housing and eliminating lead poisoning risks for children citywide. She was eventually named Co-Chair of the New York City Coalition to End Lead Poisoning in 1997.

“She is continuing to fight but now she’s in the room as a state Senator she has a voice that no one can ignore,” said Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine, “because of that when Cordell speaks everyone listens.”

Wilson administered the oath of office to Cleare as she was joined by her family members on stage.

Cleare wore a lavender suit in honor of her mother’s favorite color, she said.

“I take you with me to Albany,” she said to the crowd, “When we’re talking about public housing, jobs, and unemployment, I’m thinking about you. Small businesses, I am thinking and advocating for you.”

Throughout the event, Wadleigh student performers Juan Cotto, Damiah Howell Best, Malaya Williams, and Jada Mojica wrote and sang original music; singers Amanda Saldana and Dez Turner wowed with vocals; dancers Angelina Marin, Frabel Almonte, Wynter Gray, Juvanique Henriquez, Jennelis Lantingua, Analese Palanquet, and Jayleen Vasquez choreographed a West African and Dominican dance; and on instruments were pianist Nami Nizar and jazz soloist Allen Robinson III. “You saw those children today,”

said Cleare in her speech after the official swearing-in, “remember them. We throw away our children too much.”

about politics for the Amsterdam News. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep her writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift Ariama C. Long is a Report for of any amount today by visiting America corps member and writes https://bit.ly/amnews1.

State Senator Cordell Cleare holds swearing-in ceremony on Sunday, April 23 at Wadleigh School for the Performing Arts and Visual Arts in Harlem. (Ariama C. Long photos)

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Majid Aqsa celebrate EID Imam Konate of Majid Aqsa introduced Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine to believers at the EID Celebration on 115th Street between 5th Avenue and Madson Avenue in Harlem. (Bill Moore photos)

Nightlife

April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023• 9

Written by David Goodson

50 years strong: Hip-Hop from the physical, metaphysical, philosophical, and spiritual realms In the song “Rappers R N Dainja,” the Blastmaster KRS One stated back in the 9 Cinco that he will expand your consciousness and dismiss foolishness.

Why? Because in the atomic structure of Hip-Hop, he declared, “I AM THE NUCLEUS.” Creeping up on 30 years since the release of that album, KRS, because of his willingness to defend the pillars of Hip-Hop from the physical, metaphysical, philosophical, and spiritual realms, it still firmly occupies that spot. With the world buzzing about the 50th anniversary of Hip-Hop, KRS-One went back to the future and returned to the essence of the birthplace of energy, to the Community Center (1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx). Launching Birthplaceofhiphop.nyc, KRS-One will lead a series of community-based programs, including a masterclass in Hip-Hop. The classes and popup exhibits will showcase and celebrate not only how Hip-Hop began but also its soul and current expressions.

The story began during the summer of 1973 as a back-to-school fundraiser at the Community Center for an affordable housing building. Now, 50 years after its humble beginnings, this spirit is thriving worldwide and has been expressed in word, music, dance, and a variety of art forms. Hip-Hop stands alone as a movement in the sheer scope of its influence.

On April 25, KRS-One joined community leaders, tenants, and the building’s owners to officially launch what is to come on August 11 and beyond: a celebration that will display the artform, the epicenter of the world-wide cultural phenomenon known as Hip-Hop. “The 50th Anniversary of Hip-Hop is a global movement that speaks to the grit, voice, and power of how it came to be in the first place: We used our voices when they tried to silence us. We used our creativity when they tried to stifle us,” said Hip-Hop icon and legend KRS-One. “We created the culture because we wanted to stand out and stand up for our artistry. Hip-Hop is the people’s movement. I am excited to showcase this to the world in the space where it all began—at 1520 Sedgwick in the Community Center. It feels right to be here, where it all began.”

Both leading up to the anniversary on August 11, and beyond, KRS-One will host a series of educational programs that include Hip-Hop’s major “cultural” contributors, the history of Hip-Hop over 50 years, and never before seen exhibits launching on August .

Hip-Hop has always been about community and KRS-One and Birthpla-

ceofhiphop.nyc are now calling on the worldwide Hip-Hop community to participate in a logo competition to celebrate Hip-Hop’s 50th anniversary. The winning design will recognize the elements of Hip-Hop necessary to both celebrate the 50th anniversary and inspire future generations to continue to grow and expand Hip-Hop’s message.

More info about the contest can be found by visiting www.birthplaceofhiphop.nyc/logo-contest/ The contest is open from 12:01 a.m. April 28, 2023 until May 31, 2023, at 11:59 p.m.

“I’m especially excited about this global logo contest,” KRS-One said.

“We’re calling all creatives, designers, graffiti artists to show us their best representation of what Hip-Hop is. As HipHop marks this historic milestone, we look to this generation of Hip-Hop creatives, designers, and enthusiasts to create the official logo of Hip-Hop’s 50th anniversary.”

Fans who think that his trek into the Bronx will serve solely as an ambassador, fret not. The Lehman Center for the Performing Arts (on the campus of Lehman College/CUNY, 250 Bedford Park Boulevard West, Bronx, NY 10468), in association with Sal Abbatiello of Fever Records, will celebrate the 50th anniversary of Hip-Hop on Saturday, May 6, 2023, at 8 p.m. with The Hip-Hop Fever 2023 concert. KRS-One headlines a lineup that also features Grandmaster Melle & Scorpio, Kurtis Blow, the Sugar Hill Gang, Nice N Smooth, Soul Sonic Force, Cl Smooth, Black Sheep, Keith Murray, and Sweet G. Hosted by Video Music Box’s own Ralph McDaniels and Abbatiello, with music by Grand Wizard Theodore and DJ Hollywood.

Tickets for Hip-Hop Fever ($40, $45, $60, $65, $70) can be purchased by calling the Lehman Center box office at 718960-8833; para Español: 718-960-8835 (Monday through Friday, 10 a.m.–5 p.m., and beginning four hours before showtime on weekends), or online at https:// www.lehmancenter.org/events/HipHop-fever. The Lehman Center is accessible by the #4 or D train to Bedford Park Blvd. and is off the Saw Mill River Parkway and the Major Deegan Expressway.

Doors open at 7:00 p.m., and showtime starts at 8:00 p.m. sharp.

Over and out, holla next week, til then….but wait.

As I was about to hit Send, I just heard we lost one of our last remaining champions. RIP to the great Harry Belafonte, who has died at 96.

10 • April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Union Matters A day for mothers

The heart of your family, the soul of a union Gregory Floyd President, Teamsters Local 237 and Vice President at-Large on the General Board of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters

With Mother’s Day approaching, there will be countless tributes and remembrances dedicated to the first person who welcomed us into the world after a nine-month wait. Over the years, some acknowledgments have been happy; some, unfortunately sad; but all make an important statement of fact: “Mom made a difference in my life.”

Maya Angelou said: “There is no influence as powerful as that of a mother.” Former President Barack Obama credits his mother with “What is best in me I owe to her.” Michael Jordan called his mother “his root, my foundation,” while Stevie Wonder said, “Mama was my greatest teacher, a teacher of compassion, love and fearlessness.”

Clearly, we know that mothers have a huge impact not only on their own children, but on other peoples’ kids as well. Throughout history, mothers worldwide have played roles from warrior to waitress for their offspring and those of others. In our country, from protesting our involvement in Vietnam to drunkdriving to Black Lives Matter—and so many more issues, mothers have led the marches and held the banners: Mothers Against Drunk Driving, Moms Demand Action, Moms United for Black Lives, Another Mother for Peace, Wall of Moms, and Harlem Mothers S.A.V.E., to name just a few. In each, mothers made a difference for the better, fueled by their personal pain and instinctive empathy.

The same is true of the labor movement.

Over the past decade, about 60% of newly organizing workers have been women. Women now are also the faces of some of the largest labor movements in years. For example, after the death of AFL-CIO president and prominent national union leader Richard Trumka in 2021, Liz Shuler, longtime labor leader and supporter of Moms Rising Together, took over as president—marking the first time a woman took the helm of the largest and most powerful federation of labor unions in the country.

The pandemic created an opportunity for new movements in industries that haven’t organized before—movements also led by women.

In 2021, the gender gap in union representation narrowed: About 10.6% of men are members of a union, compared with 9.9 percent of women, a proximity not achieved since statistics were recorded in the 1980s.

Among the factors contributing to this narrowing gap is that unions can be a route to equal pay. Especially with approximately 25% of households nationwide now headed by a single parent—80% of whom are women—and 21% of children living pri-

marily with a single mother, unions provide the much-needed pathway to worker safeguards and benefits that are of particular concern to women, such as maternity leave, childcare accommodations, paid vacations, and so much more. In fact, studies have found that unionization tends to benefit women more than men, especially in eliminating pay disparity.

Trying to fight the fight without strong union backing can be a most exhausting, costly, and disappointing struggle. Just ask another hardworking Alabama mom, Lilly Ledbetter, who unbeknownst to her, worked for over two decades in a Goodyear tire factory for lower wages because of her gender than those doing similar work. It was only when she was cleaning out her locker upon retirement that she discovered she hadn’t been paid equally, thanks to an anonymous note slipped into her locker.

Ledbetter went on to fight the battle for pay equality for years, first filing a formal complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and later initiating a lawsuit under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Equal Pay Act of 1963. Although a jury initially awarded her compensation, Goodyear appealed the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court, which overturned the ruling on the grounds that her claim was filed too late— outside of the 180 days from first being employed as required by law.

She received nothing, but she persisted, and in 2009, President Obama, just nine days after being sworn into office, signed into law his first piece of legislation: the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. In my own union, Local 237, we fought and won an historic gender-based class action lawsuit, too. We filed against New York City on behalf of school safety agents—70% of whom are women, mostly Black and Latina—performing similar duties as peace officers working for other City agencies, 70% of whom are men—but who earn approximately $7,000 more per year than their counterparts working in public schools.

Our union may have brought the legal action against the city but it was three school safety agents—Patricia Williams, Bernice Christopher, and the late Corinthians Andrews, all mothers—who made personal sacrifices and persevered throughout years of court wrangling that resulted in equal pay for not only their co-workers, but for retirees as well.

As we remember Mom on her big day, let’s also think about the contributions that all moms make to help the world become a better place both within and beyond their own families. Especially in the labor movement, mothers will always hold a special place. They are the soul. It’s the Sisterhood alongside the Brotherhood, working in partnership for all families, helping them not just survive but thrive.

Harry Belafonte—the activist artist who influenced the labor movement

Harry Belafonte speaks at 1199 celebration of the life of Martin Luther King., Jr. in 1987 (Photo credit: 1199)

By KAREN JUANITA CARRILLO Amsterdam News Staff The passing of legendary artist and political activist Harry Belafonte has been felt throughout the labor movement. Beyond his celebrity, Belafonte was a major supporter of the Civil Rights Movement––and, by extension, its ties to labor activism.

Actors’ Equity, the union that represents stage, theater, and film performers, tweeted that “Equity mourns the passing of legendary actor, musician, and activist Harry Belafonte. Belafonte received the union’s Paul Robeson Award in recognition of his extensive civil rights and social justice advocacy.

He will be deeply missed.”

In a statement about the actor, who once served as president of the union’s not-for-profit culture-based project, Bread & Roses, 1199SEIU President George Gresham said, “1199SEIU healthcare workers mourn the passing of our beloved ‘Mr. B.’ Harry Belafonte was a pioneering artist, social justice warrior, and healthcare champion.

His lifelong commitment to advancing freedom and equality—often risking his own career and livelihood in the process—is testament to his character and courage.

“I cannot think of a social justice

movement in my lifetime that didn’t have Mr. B behind it in some way.”

Belafonte’s extensive civil rights and social justice advocacy turned him into a great example of how celebrity can be used to further economic justice. Of course, the actor’s major role of supporting Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his family stands in the forefront. But Belafonte’s work with King was only one part of his activism.

When King was assassinated in 1968 in Memphis, Tennessee, he had been championing a strike by some 1,300 African American sanitation workers.

King’s Poor People’s Campaign saw him advocate for fair wages and demand economic reforms to help end poverty.

Demanding economic reforms that would help low-wage and exploited workers was a challenge Belafonte also pursued. When he took up the mantle of supporting King’s work in the 1950s, it was not his first foray into progressive politics. Belafonte had long admired the stance of the activist/actor Paul Robeson, who had been branded a communist because of his labor union activism and his trips to the Marxist-Leninist–oriented Soviet Union.

Even after he was blacklisted by Wisconsin Sen. Joseph McCarthy in the 1950s, Belafonte remained enchanted See UNION continued on next page

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Continued from page 10

by Robeson’s forthright stature and came to look at the way he had combined art and activism as an important roadmap to follow.

Belafonte became as much of an activist artist as Robeson. As recently as 2013, LaborPress reported that Belafonte told an audience in Queens, “We’ve got to get outside of the box. The way to get outside the box is to radicalize the schools, radicalize unions, radicalize people, radicalize religion.

“Radical doesn’t mean violence,” Belafonte cautioned. “Radicalize doesn’t mean to hurt, harm, or disrupt. The word ‘radical’ means different from the norm.”

Belafonte had said that he thought organized labor was not fighting for its rights with the urgency that it needed. “I do genuinely believe that the labor movement has got to understand that it has got to stop behaving as the victim, and to begin behaving like the masters of destiny,” he is reported to have said.

The actor often spoke out in support of labor struggles he came across. He was vocal in supporting strikes by unions like Local 802 - American Federation of Musicians when it waged a Justice for Jazz Artists campaign in 2013 to gain retirement and recording protections for musicians who

Harry Belafonte speaks at 1199 event on February 29, 2008 (Photo credit: Belinda Gallegos).

often worked in clubs and in studios their whole lives but retired and found themselves living in poverty.

Belafonte had been a supporter of the labor organizing teachings of Tennessee’s Highlander Folk School. Highlander–– which styled itself a “movement-building” center––was famous for holding seminars and classes for civil rights organizers in the 1950s. It also sponsored regular lectures about labor economics, union organizing, and labor history.

Belafonte wholeheartedly believed in Highlander’s movement-building philosophy. He went on to work with and become a confidante of Long Beach, California, labor

organizer Ernest McBride; United Automobile Workers (UAW) President Walter Reuther; Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters President A. Philip Randolph; and Cesar Chavez and the United Farm Workers union.

In 1959, Belafonte formed part of a triumvirate with baseball star Jackie Robinson and actor Sidney Poitier that promoted African nationalism and trade union organizing. The three helped fund the efforts of Kenya’s Justice Minister Tom Mboya to put together Project Air Lift Africa, which brought 81 Kenyan students to the U.S. to attend college. “I, along with Jackie Robinson and fellow artist Sidney Poitier, agreed to help implement Tom’s vision,” Belafon-

April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023• 11

te wrote in the foreword to the 2009 book “Airlift to America. How Barack Obama, Sr., John F. Kennedy, Tom Mboya, and 800 East African Students Changed Their World and Ours” by Tom Shachtman, which details the efforts to get Project Air Lift Africa up and running.

“I wrote letters and gave concerts to raise funds to charter airplanes that would bring young people from East Africa who had successfully applied for scholarships at many of our colleges and universities,” Belafonte said. “The concerts did well and the response to the mailing was extraordinary.

Postal workers from the Bronx sent oneand two-dollar contributions with letters explaining how important they realized the airlift would be for the future of a free Africa.

Many people from across America sent their precious contributions, few exceeding twenty-five dollars. It was an amazing outpouring of belief in a dream.”

Project Air Lift Africa united Kenyan trade unionism with the organizing work of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU). Its efforts helped Kenyan students gain important labor, governmental, and nation-building skills as the country moved toward independence from Britain.

Belafonte the celebrity will be remembered for having leveraged the power of his fame to help improve the social and economic conditions of working people.

12 April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Opinion The shooting of Ralph Yarl and the firing of Tucker Carlson—the venomous link

EDITORIAL

If there is any veracity to Klint Ludwig’s comments that his grandfather is a racist and deeply immersed in the conservative views of Laura Ingraham and Tucker Carlson, then we have a direct connection to the venom spewed on Fox News and the actions of Andrew Lester. And if Lester, the 84-year-old white man in Kansas City, Missouri, who shot 16-year-old Black Ralph Yarl, who arrived at the wrong door to fetch his twin brothers, was in part motivated by the hate-filled rhetoric of these commentator, then we can rejoice that Carlson has been canned, though he is like scum on water, will probably rise again on some media outlet.

Yarl, according to his lawyer Lee Merritt, is recovering quite well, and we are not at all concerned about the fate of Carlson, the retinue of misinformationists who share his poison-dipped words.

Good, too, that Dominion delivered a blow to Fox over the defamation charges, though even if it has to fork over nearly $800 million, that’s but a pittance to the googob of bucks at its disposal.

And this removal of one of the network’s loudest disseminators and the settlement are but slap on the wrist to the menace they promulgate by the minute.

Added to the media turbulence this week, Don Lemon is no longer on the air, though he, too, like Carlson—and there’s no intention here to compare them or their plights—will surface somewhere since we know a lot about the public and its amnesia.

Good news, also, that President Biden has finally ready to run, and let’s hope he modifies his race and not exhaust himself trying to counter Trump’s madness, just take it slow and easy, just Biden his time.

Member

Alliance for Audited Media

‘Do something!’ We need an Emmett Till moment

By DR. VALDA CROWDER “Do something” was the plea from Dr. Jason Smith, whose medical team treated eight people injured in the first of two mass shootings in Louisville, Kentucky, in one week. The surgeon’s remarks about an April 10 incident that left five dead were directed at policymakers on the local, state, and national levels.

In a news conference with the Louisville acting chief of police, Smith said they “barely had [time] to adjust their operating table schedule.” There has been so much violence—at least 42 homicides.

For evidence, look no farther than Louisville’s second—next mass shooting. Just days later at Chickasaw Park, gun violence left two dead and four injured; many physicians from across the nation could have made Smith’s remarks. As an emergency medicine doctor for more than 30 years in urban, suburban, and rural hospitals, I would have added that the situation is worse today than three decades ago.

In 1991, when I was a resident, the shooting deaths of four people at Michigan’s Royal Oak Post Office was nationwide news for days. “Going postal” had already become an expression based on a rash of murders at U.S. post offices. Although I am on the frontline of this violence, including the shootings at the Royal Oak Post Office, I never thought that firearms would become the leading cause of deaths among children and teens.

Now incidents with four or more dead are too common. In a Kaiser Family Foundation poll, roughly half of U.S. adults (54%) reported that they or a family member have had first-hand experience with gun violence. On the same day as the Chickasaw Park shooting, a birthday party in Alabama ended with four dead and more than 28 shot.

For years, gun violence looked like something that happened in somebody else’s neighborhood. Today, mass shootings happen anywhere and anytime in a bank, a private elementary school, a park,

and most recently during a 16th birthday party, a wrong turn into a driveway, or a knock on a door.

We can do something. America must see what Smith and I routinely see. They need to see what gun violence really looks like.

We need an “Emmett Till” moment.

In 1955, the open-casket funeral of Emmett Till drew international attention to the savagery of Jim Crow segregation, spurring a national Civil Rights Movement. A 14-year-old Black boy had been kidnapped, beaten, mutilated, shot, lynched, and thrown in the Tallahatchie River in Drew, Mississippi. Jet magazine published a photo of Till’s brutalized body.

Now almost 68 years later, we must “do something” to stop the gun violence.

Opening the casket of someone who was shot by an assault rifle in a mass shooting may be the shock the nation needs. It may be the photograph that launches a bigger, broader movement to overwhelm the clout of gun manufacturers and other See MOMENT on page 25

Black voices are speaking out, but are they being heard?

Cedric Richmond is latest national black voice to appeal to FCC in support of Standard General’s acquisition of TEGNA and diversity in media ownership

By HAZEL TRICE EDNEY

Cedric Richmond, former U.S. Representative (LA-2), chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, and senior advisor to President Joe Biden, and current director of the White House Office of Public Engagement, has become the latest voice of Black America to appeal to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for racial diversity in media ownership.

In an opinion-editorial published in the Baltimore Sun, Richmond exhorted the FCC not to “cave to special interests who have sought to pit minority groups against each other in an effort to block one of the biggest opportunities in history to advance media ownership diversity in our country.”

Richmond was referring to Standard General’s acquisition of media company TEGNA, a deal widely viewed as a major opportunity to instantly enhance minority media ownership and transform local newsrooms by Elinor R. Tatum: Publisher bringing a level of new and and Editor in Chief racially diverse media faces Kristin Fayne-Mulroy: Managing Editor and voices into them like Nayaba Arinde: Editor never before seen or heard Cyril Josh Barker: Digital Editor across America. “It’s an excitDamaso Reyes: Investigative Editor ing opportunity. But rather Siobhan "Sam" Bennett: than celebrating this thrilling Chief Revenue Officer and Head of Advertising moment, deal critics have reWilbert A. Tatum (1984-2009): sorted to the ugliest of rhetoChairman of the Board, CEO and Publisher Emeritus ric,” Richmond pointed out.

The FCC has given Standard General no feedback or provided any reasons for not taking a vote, and it appears to be running out the clock on the deal, for which Richmond exhorts the commission to clarify any “substantive grounds for rejecting” the acquisition or “act and change its course.”

In his appeal, Richmond joined a distinguished line up of civil rights leaders, activists, and media professionals supporting the acquisition. They include household names such as Rev. Jesse Jackson of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition and Rev. Al Sharpton of the National Action Network, media personality Roland Martin, civil rights lawyer Barbara Arnwine, and Benjamin Chavis of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), among many others.

Richmond recently appeared on Sharpton’s radio show, “Keepin’ It Real.”

In response to Sharpton’s questions about the state of media diversity, Richmond gave a dismal report on the state of Black media in America.

“It’s not diverse at all, especially when you talk about the ownership of media in the United States,” he said. “You know it far better than I do because you have been there and been a voice…one that has always pushed for diversity. It’s something that we’ve never been able to accomplish or never been able to hold the powers that be to make them diversify it. Now you’re talking about a day and age where you have so much misinformation, so much fake news,

so much alternative facts…people really need to know the truth and we always say that facts and truth empower people to know what’s going on in their community.

That’s why your TV show is so important, your radio show is so important among other voices that are out there.”

According to Richmond, “if we don’t own it and you don’t have diversity in ownership, then you are at the whim of what others say.”

When Sharpton asked Richmond why Standard General’s deal with TEGNA matters, Richmond explained, “The proposed acquisition by Standard General of TEGNA would create the country’s…biggest TV broadcasting company owned by a minority, led by a female, and you have history.

For an administration that focuses on diversity—and I know for a fact that the president when he says it, he means it—and the FCC is in the process of letting this golden opportunity to empower minority voices [fail]…You’re talking about a deal that would infuse almost $2 billion into TEGNA to allow them to expand local news funding. The leadership of Standard General, Soo Kim, has a great track record in terms of labor, in terms of investing in companies. Immediately off the bat, they’re saying they won’t lay anyone off in the newsroom for three years, and they’re going to continue to create local grant funds for local journalism.”

Even with top civil rights and Black media voices pushing for the TEGNA acquisition, See BLACK VOICES on page 25

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS O P I N I O N

Embracing a new generation of inspiring leaders DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not represent those of the New York Amsterdam News. We continue to publish a variety of viewpoints so that we may know the opinions of others that may differ from our own.

April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023 • 13

Journalists and politicians: getting ready for White House Correspondents Dinner

ARMSTRONG

WILLIAMS

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell is facing one of the most critical decisions of his life: retirement. Having served for nearly 40 years as a senator and seven years as the Republican leader in the Senate, McConnell is now confronted with the inevitability of retirement at the age of 81. While he may be mentally sharp, his physical health is fragile, as evidenced by a recent fall that resulted in hospitalization and rehabilitation, which affected him more than anticipated, according to Senate insiders.

As we all age, our bodies tend to slow down, even for the best of us. Therefore, we must learn to use our minds more effectively, because our bodies may not always cooperate.

The mere thought of retirement is likely to cause “the Oak” to recoil with regret. He is not accustomed to contemplating this possibility, and there is still much work to be done. Obtaining his current position was not an easy feat and making the decision to retire may feel like a failure to achieve all that he set out to accomplish. However, in the realm of politics, there will always be unfinished business—no one can ever be perfect or achieve all of their goals.

McConnell’s colleagues are now in a frenzy to identify a suitable replacement who can frustrate the Democrats and maintain the same level of effectiveness. McConnell is a rare breed in this regard, and finding someone with his level of skill and experience will not be an easy task. Although McConnell is an excellent legislator, he is an even more skilled politician. He relishes the game of political strategy, and he has mastered it.

At present, there is little information available regarding a possible successor. Despite his age, McConnell is still relatively young compared to some of his

much-older peers in the Senate.

If he were to retire at the same age as the oldest sitting senator, he would still have another eight years as a senator.

Despite the clear desire among Republicans for McConnell to continue in his role, a larger issue looms in the background: Is the Senate populated by too many elderly politicians?

In my opinion, the answer is yes. Both chambers of Congress are home to many octogenarians and septuagenarians, as exemplified by Nancy Pelosi and Steny Hoyer. Even Senator Diane Feinstein, at the age of 89, is feeling pressure to step aside for a new generation of leadership.

And rightfully so—what more do they have to prove or achieve? Holding onto their seats beyond a certain point reeks of arrogance, as if the position belongs to them alone and not to the people they represent.

Now, I’m not saying that about McConnell, but the question is a fair one. What more can be accomplished by someone who has been in power for decades that cannot be achieved through a younger generation of leaders with fresh perspectives and ideas? Passing the torch to a new leader can bring new life to a party, especially as it becomes increasingly populated by younger people who want to see leaders who represent them and their interests. It’s a question that all members of Congress, including senators, should ask themselves periodically.

Capable leaders guide their citizens toward the correct path and inspire us to have faith in the finest qualities of our nation. While America may not require exclusively young leaders, it does need competent ones who can set an example as good policymakers and effective leaders. Regrettably,

this could be an area where our country is currently lacking.

Last week’s arrest of the 21-year-old national guardsman who apparently leaked classified documents online sheds some light on the issues persisting in the United States.

On the topic, I am somewhere between rage and despair. This case shows that when we fail to have good leaders to inspire faith in our country, its citizens will betray it.

As an American, it is infuriating to consider that another citizen, especially a soldier, would betray their country so effortlessly. It is especially enraging to think about this occurring now, during a time when national security is of utmost importance, given the schemes of countries such as Russia and China. The fact that an immature and mentally fragile individual has access to classified information is deeply concerning, and we must strive to improve our efforts to prevent such incidents from happening again.

We are not safe in this world.

Tyranny is on the move, and feels unbridled. That is perhaps worse than the scourge itself.

Self-inflicted wounds through intelligence leaks of our own service members should cause us all to shudder as we imagine our enemies using this against us and our allies. We need leaders to inspire us to believe that the shared idea of America is worth more our own greedy self-interest. That the world is not better served with another country at the throne. We need these leaders, and we need them now.

Armstrong Williams (@ARightSide) is manager / sole owner of Howard Stirk Holdings I & II Broadcast Television Stations and the 2016 Multicultural Media Broadcast Owner of the year. www.armstrongwilliams.co | www.howardstirkholdings.com

CHRISTINA

GREER, PH.D. Every year, I look forward to the White House Correspondents Dinner, a time when the president of the United States and journalists gather together and make fun of themselves for an evening. It is also an opportunity to raise money for future generations of journalists and provide support for programs that educate the public about free speech and First Amendment rights.

This year, “Daily Show” correspondent Roy Wood Jr. is hosting the event and there will probably be insightful political analysis from a comedian who has been a steadfast student of politics for quite some time. If you have seen his comedy specials or watched his analysis on the “Daily Show,” underneath the charming Alabaman accent and sometimes self-deprecating jokes are laser-sharp observations and analysis of racial, class, and institutional inequities.

As someone who writes about the news and has podcasts to discuss politics and political events, I am always aware of that fine line between journalists and the politicians they observe and with whom they speak. I am not a journalist by training, but I do take my analysis of New York City, New York State, and national politics very seriously. I have also, over time, become friendly with several other journalists and politicians, largely due to the sheer amount of time we spend together discussing and dissecting politics.

As you can imagine, sometimes that line can be blurred.

Therefore, it is important to have a night where folks gather to acknowledge some of the

troubling aspects of our journalistic and political systems, while also recognizing those who have dedicated their lives to public service. Being a journalist is not easy, nor is being a politician. There are many similarities between the two professions: long nights, sacrifices for families, and for many, a lack of real financial compensation.

At least once a week, someone asks me if I will ever run for office. To say I am thoroughly disinterested in that occupation is an understatement. I have the utmost respect for people who choose to dedicate a portion of their lives to solving problems for their communities and various parts of their city, state, or the nation. Similarly, I think of the dedication of journalists who miss family functions and important events because they are trying to bring information to communities large and small.

As I watch the White House Correspondents Dinner this year, I will reflect on all of the hard work and dedication of journalists and politicians who continue to serve our nation. I also look forward to enjoying one of the sharpest comedic minds in the game right now. I know Birmingham will be beaming with pride as they watch Roy Wood Jr. on the dais where so many came before him.

Christina Greer, Ph.D., is an associate professor at Fordham University; author of “Black Ethnics: Race, Immigration, and the Pursuit of the American Dream”; co-host of the podcast FAQ-NYC; and host of The Blackest Questions podcast at TheGrio.

14 • April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Caribbean Update

Prominent whites joining Caribbean reparations fight

BY BERT WILKINSON Special to the AmNews

When King Charles of Britain is formally crowned as the United Kingdom’s monarch in a glittering ceremony early next month, royal monitors and people around the globe will be watching to see if Britain finally apologizes for the horrors of the transatlantic slave trade in which the UK played a leading role.

Since the Dutch government formally said in late December it was sorry for its role in the genocide, London is under increasing pressure to not only apologize for slavery but also to begin reparations talks with Caribbean governments.

Caribbean governments have long written to Britain and other European governments asking for a formal sit-down to discuss the issue, but Britain has stalled even as the Dutch appear ready to lead the way in any reparatory justice talks.

In the past week, some prominent British citizens have not only said they will join the repa-

rations movement, but have also set up a group called “Heirs of Slavery.” They said that the time has come for them to get involved in correcting a grave injustice to people of African descent, even as they called on the British government to begin long-demanded talks with the region.

Announcing the establishment of the group on Monday, members said that its numbers include descendants of many families who are easily able to trace their history back to that era and the role their ancestors played in enslaving Africans. It includes writers, journalists, businesspeople, members of the British aristocracy, and other figures. Recently retired BBC journalist Laura Trevelyan, author Richard Atkinson, and journalist Alex reputed to be the son of a former British cabinet minister—are among its members.

The group says it wants the world to know that a significant portion of their family wealth came from slave plantations and the trade in the Caribbean in general. The plan is to support “the ongoing consequences of this crime against humanity. British slavery was legal,

industrialized, and based entirely on race,” Renton said to the Guardian. “Britain has never apologized for it, and its after-effects still harm people’s lives in Britain as well as in the Caribbean countries where our ancestors made money.”

Britain has been under increasing pressure to own up to its sins of slavery, as Prince William and his wife found out on a three-nation regional tour last year. The royal party was met with protests and objections in every country. Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness surprised everyone when he bluntly told the visitors that Jamaica was planning to dump whoever is the British monarch as its head of state and become a republic.

Since then, a constitutional reform team has been established and just last week recommended to the cabinet and parliament that Jamaica’s switch to a republic should be made very soon.

Prince Charles, soon to become King Charles, did speak about the horrors of slavery during a ceremony in Barbados in late 2021, when the

U.S. Immigration Weekly Recap FELICIA PERSAUD

IMMIGRATION KORNER Immigration again looks set to take center stage in next year’s general elections as the GOP plows ahead with hard-nosed plans going nowhere and New York City Mayor Eric Adams, along with NYC lawmakers, takes a jab at the Joe Biden administration on asylum seekers as May 11 approaches—the day Title 42 is expected to be lifted. Here are some of the top immigration news items for this week.

1: Immigration Still Top of Agenda for 2024.

What else is new? As another silly season comes around, immigration is still the issue at the top of the agenda, according to most polls.

And as usual, politicians on both sides of the aisle are continuing to present their plans on the hot button issue. House Republicans released sweeping immigration legislation last week that would tighten asylum eligibility, expand migrant family detention, and crack down on the employment of undocumented workers.

The 137-page proposed bill represents the legislative response to high levels of migration on the U.S.-Mexico border from House Republicans, who have made border security a focal point of their new majority. But it’s highly unlikely to make it into law.

On the left, New York City’s Democratic Mayor Eric Adams and other New York City officials demanded that the White House back New York with concrete plans to support asylum seekers in the coming months in what is the most sternly worded rebuke of

the federal government yet.

“Our national government has abandoned this city,” Adams said at a press conference on Wednesday, April 19, at City Hall. “Everything we fought for is in jeopardy if we don’t get this right.”

Adams is calling on the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to re-designate Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for migrants coming from Venezuela, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Sudan, South Sudan, and Cameroon; expand access to humanitarian parole for newly arriving asylum seekers and asylum seekers already in the United States; and increase the number of and reassign existing U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) officers to reduce application processing times. He said all of these actions can immediately be taken by the executive branch of the federal government and without legislation being passed by Republican leaders in Congress who refuse to offer any support for the ongoing crisis.

Caribbean American Congresswoman Yvette Clarke also weighed in, saying: “Given the partisan climate created by Republicans, it’s time the administration takes the necessary steps to expedite work authorization for asylum seekers.”

No word from the White House or Vice President and Immigration Czar Kamala Harris on the criticism, but Harris was in Miami on April 21 to talk about climate change.

Fifty-eight percent of voters in seven key Electoral College battleground states disapprove of how the president is handling immigration, compared with 32 percent who approve, according to a new swing-state poll from Global Strategy Group, first shared with POLITICO. A majority of voters surveyed—52 percent—believe Biden is ignoring problems at the border, while 50 percent

island became a republic and ditched thenQueen Elizabeth as its head of state and installed a local as president. Other Caribbean nations have been making similar rumblings in recent months.

“We encourage the hundreds of thousands of people in Britain with similar family history to explore and acknowledge them,” said Atkinson.

“Until the painful legacy of slavery is recognized by the descendants of those who profited from it, there can never be healing.”

“I joined this group in an attempt to begin to address the appalling ills visited on so many people by my ancestor, John Gladstone,” said descendant Charles Gladstone.

Caribbean governments have already hired a British law firm that had won millions for descendants of Kenyan tribesmen who were slaughtered by British soldiers in the colonial era to represent them. The attorneys say the region has a strong case even as the umbrella reparations commission is continuing its years of research as it builds its case against Britain and other European countries.

said the president is ignoring the situation of national Airport in Alexandria, Louisiana, to Augusto C. Sandino International Airport in undocumented immigrants.

Managua, Nicaragua, and transferred to local law enforcement authorities.

2: Immigration Scam Post Officials also flew Eduardo Rocha Dos Scams continue to be an issue globally, including when it comes to U.S. immigration. A Santos, 41, a citizen of Brazil who was wanted Facebook post shared in Ethiopia recently was for attempted murder there, from Massachuone such scam. It falsely claimed the United setts to Belo Horizonte, Brazil, where he was States is offering free travel opportunities to 2 turned over to the proper authorities. million Africans. The post includes a link that 4: Green Card Freeze for International Nurses purportedly leads to an application to register The American Association of International for the green card lottery. However, the U.S. embassy confirmed that the post was a scam. Healthcare Recruitment responded today to Moreover, the link leads to a job search appli- the State Department’s May Visa Bulletin, indicating a catastrophic green card freeze for incation unrelated to U.S. visas.

The post in Afaan Oromoo translates to: ternational nurses. This statutory throttling of “Our people who are interested in trav- international healthcare talent comes as hoselling to America without any expense, pitals struggle to staff bedsides in the pandemplease download an application that leads ic’s wake, the organization said in a statement.

The freeze means that only nurses with to travel opportunities that America provides to two million Africans and register green card petitions filed earlier than June 2022 may proceed with their green card inby fulfilling the DV requirements.”

DV refers to the U.S. Diversity Visa program terviews. All other international nurses’ green or Green Card Lottery, which grants U.S. visas card petitions are halted.

“One in six registered nurses practicing to 55,000 foreigners every year who are picked medicine today in the United States is an imthrough a machine lottery system. migrant. American hospitals, particularly 3: ICE Continues Focus on Removing Crim- those serving rural populations, would have collapsed long ago without the contributions inal Immigrants The Enforcement and Removal Opera- of international nurses,” said AAIHR President tions (ERO) element of the U.S. Immigration Patty Jeffrey, R.N. Legal experts anticipate that and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is continu- the Department’s 10-month timeline will ining its focus on removing immigrants who crease dramatically, probably meaning nurses are a criminal threat to Americans. Last week, who petition this summer will not be able to ICE removed an unlawfully present Nicara- enter the U.S. until 2025 at the earliest. The imguan wanted in El Salvador for arms traffick- migration quota has not changed since 1990. ing. Maximino Pichardo, a 37-year-old citizen The writer is publisher of NewsAmericasNow. of Nicaragua, was flown by an ICE Air operations charter flight from Alexandria Inter- com – The Black Immigrant Daily News.

April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023 • 15

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Arts & Entertainment Art pg 15 | Trends pg 20 | Jazz pg 22

A ‘Hueman’ experience painted beyond the canvas

Art patrons mingling in the gallery.

Bryant Small and Demarcus McGaughey at Kente Royal Gallery during the Artist Talk. (Brenika Banks photos)

Audience listening to Demarcus McGaughey at Kente Royal Gallery.

By BRENIKA BANKS Special to the AmNews Private conversations overflow onto canvases as Harlem, the global Black Mecca, continues enriching its historical identity. Harlem’s Kente Royal Gallery recently hosted Demarcus McGaughey’s Artist Talk, with a discussion that provided an in-depth dive into McGaughey’s new series, “Hueman: People of Color.” Harlem’s artistic culture thrives a century after its explosive Renaissance Era as present-day artists persist in celebrating African descendants.

McGaughey revealed how he originally thought the paintings were incomplete with the absence of skin tones. “The more I spent time with them, the more I felt like they spoke to me,” said McGaughey.

Each portrait presents someone he knows personally. “[This series] is a way of me turning my friends into icons,” said McGaughey. “These are intimate, private conversations on canvas.” McGaughey was once “terrified” of painting large artworks until last year. The Texas native created this current series during his

February 2022 artist residency at Chateau Orqueveaux in France.

The space of a French art studio in lieu of his Brooklyn apartment broadened his creativity.

In this collection of artworks, McGaughey deliberately excluded the melanated hues associated with having a “Black” skin tone. Instead, he wanted his works to focus on the beauty and natural features of his subjects. During the Artist Talk, moderator and award-winning artist Bryant Small complimented McGaughey on his ability to paint easily identifiable Black people. “Even without skin tone, you know what a Black face looks like from the noses and the lips,” said Small. “[McGaughey has] a way of capturing the energy and spirit of people through the eyes; you don’t need color for that.”

McGaughey explained how the title of each painting inspired the topic he and his friends spoke about. “The Invisible Man” painting derived from a conversation where the featured friend felt that “the world is going to forget him.” “He wants to be this awesome dad but feels like he can’t connect sometimes to his family and his

kids; he feels invisible,” said McGaughey. McGaughey purposely wanted this series to have his subjects connect with the audience through the eyes. However, with the piece, “Moment of Rest,” he intentionally painted his workaholic friend with her eyes shut. “She works a lot and when we took the photo of her, I was like, ‘oh wow, I never seen her like this’ [with her eyes closed],” said McGaughey. “It’s me showing the importance of getting rest and self-care, even if it’s for a moment.”

McGaughey said his best moments of motivation came during late nights and early mornings. This burst of artistry showed McGaughey that his painting was growing beyond hobby status. “I really started to feel like a for-real, certified artist,” he said. While in one of his zones, he created, in seven days, six of the pieces featured in “Hueman.”

One of them, titled “Dans Mes Yeux (In My Eyes),” instantly connected with Nigerian-American Bomopregha Julius. “She’s me,” said Julius. “I’m a dark-skinned Black girl with short hair.” Julius, who understands how spending money on luxury brands can be redirected to

support Black artworks and galleries, shared, “I just walked up to it and thought this should be my first piece.” Attracted to Black identity and figures in art, she wants items in her new Harlem home to represent her American-Nigerian roots. “This [painting is] a visual representation of that “between” culture.”

McGaughey describes this art collection as “different chapters” to a book. “I like for people to look at my art and be inspired,” he said. Inspiration is important for young people to comprehend and embody. Kente Royal Gallery owners Dodji and Phyllis Gbedemah are grateful to inspire the youth in Harlem with their gallery. “As a community gallery, it brings us so much joy to see the children of Harlem enjoying our exhibitions,” said Dodji Gbedemah. “It melts our hearts to hear them say to each other, ‘I want to be an artist and one day have my work in the gallery.’” Gbedemah said he was impressed by McGaughey’s talent and professionalism. “He is one of the artists who are doing art full time and I respect that.”

Black humanity is often compromised by skin color. The iden-

Bomopregha Julius and Dodji Gbedemah conversing in the gallery

tity of “Hueman” represents a re-evaluation of Black beings combating this insidious social stigma. An art collector isn’t only buying a painting by Demarcus McGaughey; they are purchasing his experience and passion.

“Hueman: People of Color” will be on display at Kente Royal Gallery until April 29. For more info, visit www.kenteroyalgallery.com.

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Mothers’ Day Gift Guide: Choices to make her smile

By MAGRIRA Special to the AmNews Mother’s Day is quickly approaching, and it is the perfect occasion to show appreciation for the remarkable women who have nurtured and supported us. In the African American community, Mother’s Day has an even greater significance as we recognize the strong and resilient mothers who have played a crucial role in shaping our culture and history. This year, why not consider celebrating the mother figures in your life with a unique and thoughtful gift?

Books written by African American authors are an excellent option for a Mother’s Day present. Many African American writers have made significant contributions to literature, and their words can be a source of inspiration and comfort. Consider purchasing a copy of Maya Angelou’s classic memoir, “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” or explore the works of contemporary authors such as Brit Bennett’s “The Vanishing Half.”

Jewelry is always a timeless and elegant gift option, and there are many designers who create pieces inspired by African culture. Adorned by Chi offers quirky and cute pieces that celebrate African American girl magic, while The Afropolitan Shop features a range of sophisticated jewelry that draws on African traditions.

Consider giving your mother figure a piece of jewelry that celebrates her connection to her heri-

tage and culture.

Looking for a unique and fashionable gift idea? The UGG x Telfar Logo-Embossed Fleece Tote Bag is a standout style from their collaboration, perfect for anyone looking to add some buzz to their collection. For a pop of color, consider gifting the Autumn Adeigbo Floral Headband, which adds a touch of whimsy to any outfit.

Or, give the gift of luxury with the Brandon Blackwood Mini Kendrick Trunk, a best-selling mini bag that will surely impress. The ManLuu Cane Maxi Ring, inspired

by Creole heritage and Martinique jewelry traditions, makes for a beautiful addition to any jewelry box.

For skincare enthusiasts, the Shani Darden Skin Care Sculpt & Firm Set includes a moisturizer, retinol, and facial sculpting wand for a firmer, more radiant complexion. The Estelle Colored Wine Stemware Set adds a modern touch to at-home happy hours with its stylish tinted glasses. Comfort dressing has never looked cooler than with the Tove Lexy Ruched Midi Dress, made with ultra-soft jersey cotton that looks and feels like silk. And for a self-care gift, the Madewell KNC Beauty® Five-Pack Eye Mask Set, infused with turmeric and coconut, is perfect for the matcha lover in your life. Finally, the Sephora Favorites Black-Owned Beauty Set, featuring top-rated picks from Black-owned brands like Bread Beauty Supply and Fenty Beauty, is a must-have for any

The ManLuu Cane Maxi Ring (Courtesy photos)

beauty lover.

If you are unsure about what gift to get, a gift card is always a safe and practical option. Consider purchasing a gift card to your mother figure’s favorite store or restaurant. To support African American-owned businesses, look for gift cards to local shops or restaurants in your area. By doing so, you can help strengthen and

The Vanishing Half

empower the African American community while showing your mother figure how much you appreciate all that she has done for you.

Mother’s Day is a special time to honor and celebrate the remarkable women in our lives who have nurtured and supported us. Whether you choose to give a book, a piece of jewelry, or a gift

card, take the time to show your mother figure how much you appreciate her and all that she has done for you. After all, as Maya Angelou once wrote: “I sustain myself with the love of family.”

By celebrating Mother’s Day in the African American community, we can honor the love and strength of our families and the enduring legacy of our mothers.

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023 • 17

alvin ailey american dance theater

may 12 – 14

michelle buteau May 4 @ 7PM A night of comedy with the hilarious Michelle Buteau (Welcome to Buteaupia, First Wives Club, The Circle, Adulting).

earthquake’s father’s day comedy show Sun, Jun 18 @ 7PM Earthquake hosts his annual Father’s Day Comedy Show with Donnell Rawlings, Nephew Tommy, Tony Roberts and Vanessa Fraction.

trevor noah Off the Record Tour May 22 @ 8PM Emmy Award-winning Daily Show host Trevor Noah is back on tour with “the greatest stand-up show of the year” (The Times).

daymond john A Better Future for All Starts with Entrepreneurship Jun 22 @ 7PM Daymond John comes to North to Shore to share the philosophies and practices that have helped him in his continued success.

North to Shore is sponsored by Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey, New Jersey Travel and Tourism, NJM Insurance Group, OUTFRONT Media, PSEG and RWJBarnabas Health. Visit NorthtoShore.com for more info.

avery*sunshine Sun, Jun 4 @ 7PM Let Avery*Sunshine melt your blues away with playfully creative lyrics, bright ‘n’ easy grooves and soulful vocals.

jazmine sullivan & jhené aiko with Queen Naija Fri, Jun 23 @ 8PM • Prudential Center Get in on the heat when three soulful sovereigns of R&B — Jazmine Sullivan, Jhené Aiko and Queen Naija — burn up the stage.

@NJPAC • 1.888.MY.NJPAC • njpac.org Groups of 9 or more call 973.353.7561 One Center Street, Newark, NJ

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Harry Belafonte, versatile entertainer, civil and human rights activist, dead at 96

(C) Harry Belafonte (Bill Moore photo)

Harry Belafonte (AP Photo)

By HERB BOYD Special to the AmNews Whether on film, in song, at the podium, or on the ramparts, there was an artistic and political consistency in Harry Belafonte’s life. In the tradition of his idol Paul Robeson, Belafonte was unflinching in standing up for the downtrodden, expressing a relentless fight for civil and human rights. That principled life of conviction and speaking truth to power came to an end on Tuesday morning, according to his publicist Ken Sunshine, who said Belafonte died of congestive heart failure. He was 96.

Belafonte first attained worldwide celebrity as a calypso singer, with millions singing along with his version of “Day-O,” a song capturing laborers in banana production, although he was born in Harlem, on March 1, 1927. The popularity of that song in 1956 was just a harbinger of his phenomenal accomplishments, particularly as a singer, actor, and activist.

Harry Belafonte with daughter Gina (Press photo)

In 1944, after dropping out of high school, Belafonte enlisted in the US Navy. Perhaps the most rewarding aspect of his military tenure was the number of worldly wise men he met who gave him some lessons on politics, especially the complexities of colonialism, racism, imperialism, and fascism.

These encounters proved instructive and forged his contact with militant activists upon his return to civilian life.

“Even though he was known internationally for his voice and his skills as an actor, I knew him as a civil rights activist and personally believe if there was no Harry Belafonte, there would be no Martin Luther King,” said Charles B. Rangel, former representative to Congress and a friend and ally of Harry Belafonte. “He was so dedicated to King and the march from Selma to Montgomery, not only financing but organizing and bringing people to Montgomery, including me, who didn’t intend to march 54 miles but wound up doing it anyway.

“He was able to bring cameras to focus on that march. After Bloody Sunday, which was a few weeks earlier, a lot of people worried the march would be a failure, but Harry was the one who told everybody ‘we have to do it.’”

Rangel concluded, “I met with him at his home recently and he was frail and his voice was weak, but he was talking about the things we had to do to bring this nation past the polarization and hatred that exists. I never found anyone as committed personally to the Civil Rights Movement, even at the expense to his professional career and his family. He was talking about what we have to do next.”

Much of Belafonte’s productive life is captured in his memoir “My Song” with Michael Shnayerson (2011). The hefty tome is split between Belafonte the actor and Belafonte the activist, and even some of his most ardent fans were surprised at just how much of his time, energy, and resources were devoted to civil and human rights struggles.

Belafonte patterned his life and social commitments after his mentor and idol Robeson, rarely ever compromising his artistic and political integrity. In fact, his art and politics were so tightly interwoven that they are as immutably consistent and unimpeachable as they are inseparably linked.

One of the most memorable moments in his life was when he and his lifelong friend Sidney Poitier were couriers during the civil rights days, delivering funds to the embattled Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) field workers in Mississippi. His connection to the Harlem community resonates in several significant ways, perhaps most incipiently when he was a member of the American Negro Theater, where he and Poitier received early tutelage in stage and screen.

A few years ago, a branch of the New York Public Library (NYPL) was named in his honor, an occasion that he shared with Cicely Tyson.

Some of this papers and memora-

bilia are housed at the Schomburg Center. It isn’t easy to find one passage that summarizes his steadfast conviction and unwavering commitment to freedom, justice, and equality, but this one may service: “Race was the cutting edge in everything I did,” he said about his role as a Black entertainer. “To let myself be turned into an object of ridicule would undermine not just my stage persona, but my purpose as well.”

The steadfastness and outspokenness Belafonte evinced as a young man continued into the august of his years, even criticizing President Obama and calling President Bush the “greatest terrorist in the world.” He was often unsparing in discussing the need for the younger generation to commit themselves more to voter registration and to take a stand against the rampant police abuse.

Robeson, in his final words as Othello, said he had done the state some service. The same can be said and underscored in the life and legacy of Harry Belafonte.

Trends

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April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023 • 19

Lauren Halsey installation on Met roof garden is first for Black artists

American artist Lauren Halsey in her Los Angeles studio (Russell Hamilton photo courtesy of David Kordansky Gallery, Los Angeles)

By RENEE MINUS WHITE Fashion & Beauty Editor The Metropolitan Museum of Art roof garden is the site of the first commissioned installation by an African American artist.

Lauren Halsey’s “the eastside of south central los angeles hieroglyph prototype architecture (I)” (gallery 926) is a large-scale architectural structure installation that stands tall on the roof of the Met. Halsey was commissioned by the Met just two years ago and worked on the project during COVID. Her creation is a site-specific work of art. It’s monumental and educational, and looks awesome against the backdrop of New York City, even at a mistygray Monday morning press preview.

“My installation for the Met’s roof garden reflects my interest in conflating narratives from contemporary South Central Los Angeles with those evoked in ancient pharaonic architecture. My hope is that viewers in New York feel the connections intuitively,” said Halsey, who was born in Los Angeles in 1987.

The full-scale architectural structure is imbued with the collective energy and imagination of the South Central Los Angeles, and the community where she was born and continues to work. It rises 22 feet high and is composed of more than 750 glass-fiber reinforced concrete tiles. The cube-like structure is surrounded by four

Halsey’s commissioned installation on the Metropolitan Museum roof garden, on exhibit through October 22, 2023. (Photo courtesy of the Met)

columns (borrowed from the Met’s collection) and four sphinxes. The faces on top resemble members of Halsey’s family.

In her work, Halsey rethinks the possibilities of art, architecture, and community engagement. She produces both stand-alone artworks and site-specific projects.

Combining found, fabricated, and hand-made objects, Halsey maintains a sense of civic urgency (Photo by Renee Minus White/A Time To Style) and free-flowing imagination in her art. Her work reflects the lives phrases like “Waz up Ken folk,” of people and places around her. It also ad- “You Ain’t who you think you are,” dresses the crucial issues confronting people and “Build Autonomy, Solidarity.” of color, queer populations, and the working “We are incredibly excited for visclass. Inspired by Afro-futurism and funk, itors to experience Lauren Halsey’s Halsey creates a visionary form of culture magnificent commission for the that is at once radical and collaborative.

Museum’s roof garden,” said Max The exhibit is easy to walk through and Hollein, Marina Kellen French Diis educational through its related wall art rector of the Met. “With this instaland text. It has connections to sources as lation, Halsey channels the Met’s varied as ancient Egyptian symbolism, Egyptian art collections through the 1960s Utopian architecture, and contem- lens of Afro-futurism.” porary visual expressions, such as tags that Bloomberg Philanthropies and reflect the ways in which people aspire to other sponsors support the exhibition. make public places their own. It’s very Halsey’s work is on display at the much in the graffiti art family, with bold Met through October 22, 2023.

(Photo by Renee Minus White/A Time To Style)

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“White Girl in Danger”—Michael R. Jackson’s newest offering needs more work

By LINDA ARMSTRONG Special to the AmNews Michael R. Jackson proved that he has what it takes to write the book, music, and lyrics for a musical and relay a message with great power, joy, and passion, as evidenced by his Pulitzer Prize- and Tony Award-winning musical “A Strange Loop.” Upon hearing that he had written a musical called “White Girl in Danger,” playing at the Tony Kiser Theater at Second Stage (305 W 43rd Street), co-produced by Second Stage and the Vineyard Theatre, I was intrigued to see if he had done it again.

Sadly, he has not. This musical, which also features a book, music, and lyrics by Jackson, is a work in progress at best.

Looking at the way the entertainment business showcases white actors with storylines that feature them over Black actors, especially in the area of soap operas, Jackson gives us a town called Allwhite and a soap opera where the Allwhite Writer assigns meaty, wacky storylines to

the three white three-hour musical, lead actresses— Jackson is relentless Megan, Maegan, and in projecting scenes Meagan—while the of more racial issues Black actors are relthan Blacks face, egated to the unimand the audience portant characters in again hearing the the “Blackground.” words “White Girl in They don’t get storDanger” repeated. ylines, except those I understand that having to do with viJackson wanted to olence or slavery. make a statement, One of the characthat Black Lives ters, Keesha, decides Matter and that that she wants more: Black performers She wants a meaty getting their time storyline.

Her to shine in the inmother character dustry matters as Tarra Conner Jones and LaToya Edwards in scene from “White Nell advises her to well, but he is trying Girl in Danger” (Marc J. Franklin photo) stay with how she is to bring this meswritten, as do other Black female type-scenes are projected and sage home through relentless characters, but Keesha is deter- hears the repeated phrase “White bombardment. At first, I was symmined to be featured no matter Girl in Danger.” During the mu- pathetic to the message he was what her character has to do. She sical, when the “Blackground” trying to share, but after a while I is ready to assimilate to be accept- actors want more than their insig- felt overwhelmed and uninspired. ed. The Allwhite Writer finds ways nificant narrative in the storyline, While the production definiteto cut off her attempts. one often hears the phrase “White ly went on too long and had too Before the musical begins, the Girl in Danger” again, associated many repetitive messages, the audience sees a large screen on with various scenes. cast gave it their all. I thoroughly which snippets of soap-opera During the intermission for this enjoyed the amazing singing voice

and spectacular performance of Tarra Conner Jones as Nell, Keesha’s mother, and LaToya Edwards was entertaining as Keesha. The threesome of Kayla Davion, Jennifer Fouche, and Morgan Siohban Green were delightful as Florence, Abilene, and Caroline—the Black characters from the slavery scenes. James Jackson Jr. (who starred in “A Strange Loop”) is absolutely enjoyable as Clarence the High School Janitor. Eric William Morris plays three boyfriend roles in the soap opera and gave each their own distinctive delivery. Other cast members include Molly Hager, Alyse Alan Louis, and Lauren Marcus, who plays Megan, Maegan, and Meagan. Liz Lark Brown and Vincent Jamal Hooper are also in the cast.

The musical has direction by Lileana Blain-Cruz, but again, the storyline is all over the place. Jackson truly needs to revisit this piece, cut it down, and not badger his audience to get his point across.

For more info and tickets, visit www.2st.com.

“Peter Pan Goes Wrong” will have you hooked!

By LINDA ARMSTRONG Special to the AmNews “Hilarious” has a new definition with “Peter Pan Goes Wrong” on Broadway!

Mischief Productions, which gave us the knee-slapping funny “The Play That Goes Wrong,” has done it again, this time with a story that we all know and love: “Peter Pan,” but like no Peter Pan production you’ve ever seen. This production is a joyous, interactive delight that will have you laughing from the time you sit down until the time you leave.

In this play within a play, with some of the most hilarious physical comedy you will enjoy, we watch the Cornley Drama Society take a stab at doing “Peter Pan.” In their production, nothing makes sense or bodes well. The actors often break the fourth wall to talk to and insult the audience. You are encouraged to shout your reactions; so can your children. Just know the actors will shout back at you.

This is a very funny play in which everything malfunctions, from lightup costumes that short out, to hooks to help the actors to fly that don’t exactly elevate them and doggie doors that the actors get stuck in. Any-

to Surace, lighting by Matt Haskins, sound by Ella Wahlström, original music by Richard Baker and Rob Falconer, and wig/hair & make-up design by Tommy Kurzman.

Neil Patrick Harris is featured in the show through April 30 as the Narrator, and he is worth the price of the ticket alone. He is joined by an absolutely superb ensemble that consists of Matthew Cavendish, Bianca Horn, Harry Kershaw, Chris Leask, Henry Lewis, Ellie Morris, Charlie Russell, Jonathan Sayer, Henry Shields, Greg Tannahill, and Nancy Zamit, along with Ryan Vincent Anderson, Stephen James Anthony, Fred Gray, and Brenann Stacker.

My 20-year-old daughter Jasmine barely took a breath from the time we sat down, she was so busy laughing her a– off. I found myself laughing so much, I had tears in my (L-R): Henry Shields, Ellie Morris, Henry Lewis, Charlie Russell, Jonathan Sayer, Neil Patrick Harris, and eyes. The entire audience had the Matthew Cavendish in a scene from “Peter Pan Goes Wrong” (Jeremy Daniel photo) adventure of a lifetime. Neverland thing that you think can go wrong tently entertained by this phenom- Lewis, Jonathan Sayer, and Henry was never this much fun. does, and a lot of things you enally skilled ensemble of actors, Shields; spot-on direction by Adam “Peter Pan Goes Wrong” will have would not expect to falter do as and a book, props, and set that lend Meggido; and an extraordinary, ver- you Hooked! well, but I don’t want to be specif- themselves to the most crazy hi- satile set designed by Simon Scullion.

“Peter Pan Goes Wrong” is playic: The pure fun, joy, and pleasure jinks and physical comedy.

The rest of the technical aspects of ing at the Ethel Barrymore Theis in experiencing it for yourself.

“Peter Pan Goes Wrong” has a this production all work beautiful- atre (47th Street). For tickets and I can guarantee you that both you clever, splendid book co-written by ly to enhance the enjoyment of the more info, visit www.PanGoesand your children will be consis- Mischief company members Henry zaniness. Costumes are by Rober- WrongBway.com.

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New ‘harlem is…Healing’ salutes more Harlem heroes

Community Works NYC and the New Heritage Theatre Group will offer a second, larger-than-life “harlem is… Healing” outdoor exhibition at St. Nicholas Avenue (120th Street), opening on May 5 and showing through August 1.

In April 2020, the organizations launched a campaign to highlight local heroes responding to the coronavirus pandemic by posting tributes on social media. Sadly, the need didn’t end quickly and by now, they have posted 52 tributes as the work they promote continues through turmoil toward social justice and economic pressures. These celebrations of neighbors helping neighbors have been featured on social media, on the website at www.harlem-is.org and the Youtube channel, as well as in this year’s physical exhibit.

The sidewalk display once again will highlight nine local heroes who reflect a diversi-

ty from all walks of life—people who have continued to contribute to community health through medical and mental health services; with food and teaching about urban farming; through the arts, faith, and youth activities; or in direct support to neighbors. The exhibit by Community Works NYC/New Heritage Theatre Group, in partnership with the NYC Department of Transportation’s Art Program (DOT Art), features powerful images of nine of 52 honorees, taken by Harlem photographer Tau Battice with bold design by Clara Alonso.

According to Barbara Horowitz, founder and president of Community Works, “We have been part of a collective trauma, and we are emerging from it through the enormous work of our honorees.”

Voza Rivers, executive producer of the New Heritage Theatre Group, said, “In this harrowing time, it becomes even more im-

portant to remind ourselves of how local heroes can make a difference.”

Response to the exhibit featuring the first nine honorees was so strong that the city extended the display through May and invited a second round to remain on display through August.

On May 15, a historic community celebration will be held at the site to mark the opening, complete with a marching band that will take visitors four blocks to First Baptist Corinthian Church (116th Street). The opening will kick off arrangements for guided tours of the exhibit, along with short walking tours for teachers, students, community groups, and other visitors.

The exhibit honorees highlight the contributions of restaurateur Melba Wilson, who kept people working and was able to feed first responders; and Janet Rodriguez, whose SoHar-

lem Collective saw a chance for seamstress skills to produce protective masks and clothing. Tony Hillery seized the opportunity to teach urban farming skills, while Dr. Lena Green provided free mental health services.

Tony Hillery, founder and CEO, Harlem Grown Phyllis and Dodji Gbedemah, owners, Kente Royal Art Gallery M. Scott Johnson, sculptor, artist, and arts educator

The full list of honorees includes: Vy Higginsen, executive director, Mama Foundation for the Arts Janet Rodriguez, founder and CEO, SoHarlem Collective Melba Wilson, restaurateur and president, NYC Hospitality Alliance Aurora Flores, cultural activist, journalist, and band leader Rhina Valentin, TV host, actor, activist, and producer Dr. Lena Green, social worker and executive director, Hope Center

Healing Harlem is the continuing theme of this campaign, and more broadly for Community Works NYC and New Heritage Theatre Group, which has sought to connect neighborhoods through the arts and education for 20 years. The exhibit is an extension of Community Works’ 32-year mission to connect neighborhoods.

Con Edison provided support for photography and public programming. The “harlem is…” program is dedicated to the memory of Community Works’ Board Chair Michael Davidson.

Limited free group tour information is available by email to bh@communityworksnyc.org.

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ANDRE WARD PLAYS, HUGH MASEKELA INDUCTED For Jazz Appreciation Month, let’s talk about jazz; sounds redundant but not so. Jazz is divided into a mirage of components but it is all music, from the roots of Africa that has been redressed, reconstructed, and individually created by each musician committed to interpret sounds (from rustling trees to birds to subway high volume screeches to children playing) engulfed with their life experiences and the backdrop of world affairs. This is a culmination of jazz or Black music or a spirited interpretation of life from love to transition, complications, pitfalls and all that happens all around.

Saxophonist, composer, and educator Andre Ward has based his musical foundation on his love for jazz and R&B. He makes no excuses about his spiritual connection to his favorite music group Earth, Wind & Fire, founded by Maurice White (drummer, vocalist). “I wanted my music to have the same spiritual flair and feeling as EWF with a message,” said Ward. “Their music included the whole vocabulary of musical genres, that’s what caught my attention.” Ward was motivated to play saxophone after watching the saxophonist Don Myrick playing with the Phenix Horns and later with EWF. As a staunch fan of EWF, Ward explains, “jazz took me over at an early age, I was totally engaged in listening to Charlie Parker and John Coltrane but completely lost my mind over Cannonball Adderley. So, it doesn’t matter what genre I play, jazz is my foundation.”

Ward’s fifth album entitled Africa Rising (Orpheus Enterprises) was recently released. The company was co-founded by Charli Huggins (Melba Moore’s daughter). On the album, the Chicago native pays tribute to the sound of Earth Wind & Fire with “Secret Place” (with Chantel Hampton on vocals) and offers his jazz version to “Don’t Ask My Neighbors” an R&B classic by fellow Chicagoans the Emotions. The album’s latest single is Ward’s reimagining of Sade’s “Kiss of Life.” Ward noted, “who doesn’t love Sade, I wanted to put my voice and message on it. My doing covers allows me to put my footprint on classics while paying respect and homage to great musicians.”

(L-R): Naledi Masilo, vocals; Mandla Mlangeni on trumpet; Lesedi Ntsane on flugelhorn; Wayne Escoffery on saxophone; Nhlanhla Mahlangu on alto sax (Lawrence Sumulong photo for Jazz at Lincoln Center)

The graduate of Berklee School of Music toured with Lalah Hathaway before joining R&B singers Will Downing, and later enjoying a nine-year stint with Freddie Jackson, with four years as the band’s musical director. He is hoping this current album will spark an interest for people to check out his earlier releases. Some of which made the Top 10 Contemporary Jazz Albums charts. “Africa Rising represents music as a universal language that promotes black excellence; hopefully, it empowers black audiences.

Without role models and opportunities given to me none of this would be possible.”

Hugh Masekela’s trumpet gave him an international voice to actively fight against South Africa’s then horrendous atrocities of apartheid. His anti-apartheid compositions such as “Soweto Blues” and “Bring Him Back Home” became anthems around the world. In the 1960s during his self-exile, he took up residence in New York City, where he was assisted and mentored by both activist and philanthropist Harry Belafonte and trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie.

His love of country, activism and music were one in the same not to be divorced. This dual interpretative combination was the force

that popularized his unique sound and experiences of South Africa and American Jazz.

Recently, before a live exuberate audience at Dizzy’s jazz club, Masekela was posthumously inducted into the Ertegun Jazz Hall of Fame. The trumpeter’s children, Selema Masekela and Pula Twala, and his nephew, Mabusha Masekela, accepted the Ertegun Jazz Award from Seton Hawkins (Jazz at Lincoln Center) and Themba Khumalo (South African Tourism).

“My father was a man of the people and it is so important that we acknowledge what is happening here today,” said Selema Masekela. His induction carries on his legacy for our family and the Hugh Masekela Heritage Foundation. When signing anything for his fans, he always wrote ‘love and Teach’ and this is what he did his entire life.”Adorned Now, the Ertegun Hall of Fame will be adorned with Masekela’s name among such jazz royalty as Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Billie Holiday, Thelonious Monk and Charlie Parker.

The induction ceremony also featured a live performance by bandleader and trumpeter Mandla Mlangeni, pianist Zoe Molelekwa and alto saxophonist

Nhlanhla Mahlangu (both Manhattan School of Music students and recipients of HMHF scholarship), vocalist Naledi Masilo, guitarist Saidou Sangare, flugelhorn Lesedi Ntsane, bassist Jimmy Mngwand and drummer Kabelo Boy Mokhatla with special guest tenor saxophonist Wayne Escoffery.

Their exhilarating compositions of Masekela and originals by Mlangeni had many patrons up dancing, a rare sight at Dizzy’s plus multiple standing ovations and encores.

The heavy South African contingency was a result of the South African Tourism Board.

The trumpeter, composer and leader of the ensemble Mlangeni was the only musician who was flown in from South Africa at the request of Seton Hawkins, Director of Public Programs and Education Resources at Jazz at Lincoln Center. While in New York, Mlangeni conducted informal jam sessions, performed his original music and discussed the music of South Africa at Brooklyn and York Colleges. “Seton is looking to share the music of South Africa and its culture in the states and hopefully develop an exchange program,” stated the trumpeter.

It was such a pleasure to finally see Mlangeni perform in New York,

we met some years ago during my visits covering the Johannesburg and Cape Town Jazz Festivals.

While there I also had the opportunity to see him perform in local jazz clubs in a variety of configurations as a leader and sideman, he even performed with a rock band in one of the festivals. His reputation precedes him as one of South Africa’s premiere trumpeters, who made quite an impression on the “big apple.” I was impressed years ago as some of my previous reviews will demonstrate. “My music represents the sounds of my extensive travel abroad which is an amalgamation of African music and my interpretations,” said Mlangeni. “There is good music and bad music like Duke Ellington said, I can’t worry about labels.

The trumpeter has recorded eight CDs including two recent releases entitled Oratorio of a “Forgotten Youth and Future is Now. He is currently working on a big band commission to include; chorus, string quartet and brass with a poet. The composition will be premiered on May 27 which is the Celebration of African Day. “Jazz is a continuation of the Black diaspora from around the world,” said the trumpeter. We look to seeing more of him here in the city.

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CLASSROOM

Verina Morton Jones, suffragette, teacher, and clubwoman leader ACTIVITIES

By HERB BOYD Special to the AmNews

Lillian Wald’s Henry Street Settlement House

Whenever the history of the National Urban League (NUL) is cited, luminaries such as George Edmund Haynes, Eugene Kinckle Jones, and even a white woman—co-founder Ruth Standish Baldwin— are mentioned. Rarely is a Black woman included among these early pioneers, even though Verina Harris Morton Jones should be considered.

Born on January 28, 1865, in Cleveland, Ohio, Morton Jones was an acclaimed doctor, suffragette, and member of several women’s organizations. Not much has been published about her formative years, but she was apparently from good stock and home training.

She enrolled at the Woman’s Medical College of Pennsylvania in 1884, and earned a medical degree four years later. After graduation, she moved to Holly Springs, Mississippi, where she became a physician in residence at Rust College, at the same time, teaching in the college’s industrial school.

She was the first woman to pass the state medical board of examination, thus becoming the first woman to practice medicine in Mississippi.

In 1890, she married Dr. Walter A. Morton and they moved to Brooklyn, where she set up practice. She achieved another first when she began practicing in Long Island’s Nassau County. Always seeking ways to expand her social and professional career, she was active in the Kings County Medical Society, as well as the NAACP, directing their Mother’s Club in Brooklyn. It should be noted that she was among the few women actively involved in the famed Niagara Movement’s female auxil-

iary, from 1905 to 1906. She also worked with the Committee for Improving Industrial Conditions for Negroes in New York City.

While a resident of Brooklyn, Morton Jones co-founded the Lincoln Settlement House with Mary White Ovington. She provided the funds for the down payment

on its building at 129 Willoughby Street. By May of 1908, she was at the helm of the settlement house, which was an extension of Lillian Wald’s Henry Street Settlement. At the Lincoln facility, children were enrolled without charge and could also participate in a day nursery and clinic. A full agenda of ac-

tivities filled the day at the center, including a popular debate, classes in sewing, choral groups, folk dancing, cooking, carpentry, and embroidery as part of the outreach activities. It was fully incorporated in 1911 and relocated to a larger facility at Fleet Place.

As a suffragette, Morton Jones was president of the Brooklyn Equal Suffrage League. In this capacity, she conducted programs to educate voters, help document racial discrimination at voting places, and later testified before investigative committees of Congress.

Her renown as a social activist earned her a wide reputation, leading to her being elected to the board of directors of the NAACP. Her friendship and working relationship with Ovington may have played a role in her becoming active in the Urban League, which traced its origins to several social formations, including the National League for the Protection of Colored Women.

Two years later, in 1913, Morton Jones was elected to the board of directors of the NAACP; she served on its executive committee until 1925. Her multitude of social and political organizations didn’t appear to interrupt her medical practice, which by this time had relocated to Hempstead.

Her new environs did not interfere with her dedication to community activities, most notably in helping organize the Harriet Tubman Community Club in1928, which complemented her leadership at the settlement house.

Morton Jones was an Episcopalian. She and her husband had one son, who became an attorney. Morton died in 1895. Six years later, she married Emory Jones.

She died on February 8, 1943, in Brooklyn at 78.

FIND OUT MORE Several directories of American physicians include a profile of Verina Harris Morton Jones, and Mary White Ovington discusses her with reverence in her book.

DISCUSSION There might be more about her early years in other resources.

PLACE IN CONTEXT Verina Harris Morton Jones came of age during a peak period of social movements for women and was a key participant in those movements.

THIS WEEK IN BLACK HISTORY April 23, 1872: Charlotte Ray became the nation’s first Black woman lawyer.

April 24, 1944: The United Negro College was founded.

April 25, 1950: Chuck Cooper is the first African American drafted by the NBA.

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Education

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

NYC high school students graduate from STEM Afterschool Program having learned foundations of medicine

Mini Medical School at Touro in Harlem (TouroCOM photos)

Ninety-five high school students from throughout New York City recently celebrated completion of an afterschool science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) program called MedAchieve that is run by the Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine (TouroCOM) in Harlem. The graduation ceremonies and after-party were held on the medical

school’s Harlem campus.

MedAchieve started in 2011 to inspire and encourage underrepresented minority (URM) high school students to consider careers in STEM. Through intensive support over the course of two years from their medical student mentors, who provide many of the weekly lectures and labs, the students

learn about the foundations of medicine in human anatomy, physiology, and genetics, as well as how the body responds to stress injury and disease.

Seated next to their TouroCOM medical student mentors in the school’s large lecture hall, the graduating students received accolades from faculty and administration, followed by certificates, stethoscopes, and lab coats as they were called up to the lectern one by one.

“Don’t ever forget this opportunity – build on it!” said TouroCOM Dean of Student Affairs Dr. Nadege Dady, who spearheads the program. “Some of our MedAchieve alumni have gone all the way to medical school, so come back, keep in touch with your mentors, and most of all—stay committed!”

Addressing health disparities “I’m definitely interested in being a doctor. I want to do surgery,” said Emmanuel Chery, a senior at Columbia Secondary School in Harlem who just completed his second year of MedAchieve. Chery is currently weighing acceptances from Harvard University and Brown University’s Program in Liberal Medical Education (PLME), which includes acceptance to the Warren Alpert Medical School at Brown after completion of the undergraduate degree.

“MedAchieve is a good program,” said Chery. “I recommend it to students at my own school. It delivered on what it promised.” Among the highlights he cited were learning about the osteopathic approach to medicine and talking about healthcare disparities in class.

“It’s important to discuss health disparities,” said Chery, who is Black. “Every week, whether we covered microbiology or another medical topic, they always brought up environmental conditions and health disparities, and [how] those often reflect on the minority communities.”

While MedAchieve was founded as a science enrichment program for high school students in the local Harlem community, it has attracted students from other underserved areas in New York City.

Of the 65 high schools that have participated, 60% are from Manhattan (21% Harlem), 24% from the Bronx, 10% from Queens, and 6% from Brooklyn.

The majority of alumni responders to a recent survey said MedAchieve helped prepare them for college or university, they intended to apply to medical school, and MedAchieve influenced their career choice.

Colleges and universities attended by program alumni include CUNY, Yale School of Public Health, Lehigh University, New York University, CUNY School of Medicine/

Sophie Davis Biomedical Education, SUNY, Cornell University, UCLA, and New York Institute of Technology.

Barriers remain After the graduation ceremonies, the MedAchieve Class of ’23 adjourned to an afterparty in the TouroCOM cafeteria where there were lots of laughs, singing and photos— and information about graduate programs at Touro schools in addition to TouroCOM. MedAchieve alumni who meet academic requirements for admission and apply to Touro’s School of Health Sciences, College of Pharmacy, College of Dental Medicine, and doctorate or master’s in Interdisciplinary Sciences programs will be granted interviews.

According to Dady, research that discusses barriers to STEM fields for URMs points to a lack of clinical shadowing opportunities, mentorship, and proper guidance about applications.

David Gandolfo, a second-year TouroCOM student who was Chery’s MedAchieve mentor, cited lack of financial resources as well.

“The cost of everything is definitely a barrier—taking the MCAT, study materials, taking board exams…if you’re not willing to go into debt, it’s very intimidating,” he said, noting the application, interview, and admittance process is “not friendly to people who are not financially stable. That’s something that needs to change.”

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Continued from page 12

entrenched influences.

This shocking picture requires planning.

Conversations among loved ones is a good starting point. Quick approvals with doctors and journalists based on these conversations is another key ingredient. It literally will require the blood, sweat, and tears of the entire village.

But is it worth the collective trauma?

History books are filled with images that in-

Black voices Continued from page 12

it appears they are not being heard.

Unless the FCC does an abrupt turnaround, it is still on course to allow the proposal to die, despite promises from Kim to maximize newsroom investment and diversity. “No one in the history of this country has had to deal with what the FCC is doing to Standard General,” Richmond concluded.

“We (Standard General) want to partner with community journalism groups to amplify the work they’re doing and the communities they represent,” Kim said in an interview last June. “We’re open to exploring new partnership models to get diverse viewpoints and perspec-

spired our nation to change. In addition to Emmett Till’s body, photographs of fighting in Vietnam helped to end the 20-year war. Who can forget seeing a Buddhist monk set on fire?

What about the front-page image of a South Vietnamese general firing a pistol into the head of a Viet Cong officer? And how about the picture of a naked child fleeing a napalm attack?

Ten years ago, a journalist asked to take a photo of the operating room table right after a shooting victim was taken to the morgue.

He wanted to show the blood and bits left

tives on the air and to make sure people have the resources to do it.

We’re calling it enhanced community access or creative community access, and we’re excited about the possibilities it will open up.”

Together, Standard General and TEGNA would be led by television industry veteran Deb McDermott, the first woman from broadcast management to be inducted into the Broadcasting and Cable Hall of Fame.

TEGNA has a national audience with stations in more than 50 markets. “I’ve long believed the people producing the news should be as diverse as those who tune in to watch it every day—and this deal is an opportunity to achieve exactly that,” Kim said last year.

Yet, a year later, the FCC mysteriously appears poised to allow the

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the country’s economy was improving. But a World Bank report released this month said that while Zimbabwe’s poverty levels are declining, they remain elevated.

“Food availability does not equate to food security since not every Zimbabwe has access or can afford grain,” said Tatenda Macheka from the World Food Program in Zimbabwe, commenting on Mutsvangwa’s announcement. “The rural ‘Zimvac’ estimates that 3.8 million people will be cereal insecure at the peak of the lean season. WFP has been providing food assistance since the start of the lean season in October and continuous work with the government to assist those in need. At

on the ceiling, table, walls, floor, and medical team. His editors and my hospital declined the idea. We had not even discussed the idea with the parents whose hopes and dreams for their child were dashed.

Now, given the increased frequency and brutality of mass shootings, I would answer yes to a journalist who wants my help in requesting a photographing of a loved one killed by gun violence. Ask yourself, your family, and friends: “What can each of us do?”

Will you help to stop gun violence? If read-

venture to fail.

Richmond explained in his op-ed: “The review process is meant to be completed within 180 days based on an informal ‘shot clock.’ Yet it took the FCC nearly a full year to make any announcement about it all; and when the commission finally did last week, the message was that it was going to delay a ruling even further by referring the deal to an administrative law judge for more hearings.

Keen industry observers were quick to point out that this further delay was likely a death sentence for the transaction—since this drawn-out legal process will likely continue well past the May 22nd closing deadline for the acquisition. Indeed, Standard General acknowledged as much in its public statements.”

Among the deal’s earliest support-

peak WFP will reach 700,000 people with food assistance while the government will support 3.1 million with cereal.”

Recently, the government released the Zimbabwe Vulnerability Assessment Committee or ZimVAC, which confirmed the figures Macheka talks about.

However, the government is projecting optimism and talking about making Zimbabwe food secure. Once known as the breadbasket of the region, Zimbabwe has been more like an economic basket case for over 20 years now. The government attributes that mainly to drought and Western sanctions while critics say it is because experienced commercial farmers were pushed off their land and replaced with farmers with minimal resources in 2000.

ers are interesting in “doing something” contact Dr. Valda Crowder, Director, Health Committee for Black Women for Positive Change; email: drvaldac@gmail.com.

Valda Crowder, MD, MBA, is a board-certified emergency medicine physician who serves as medical director of emergency medicine at UPMC Community Hospital in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and is director of the Health Committee for Black Women for Positive Change.

ers, Ben Chavis, President/CEO of NNPA, which has more than 22 million readers per week, said this week that the FCC should immediately revive Kim’s proposal.

“The National Newspaper Publishers Association takes the position that the FCC should reconsider this issue of Soo Kim and the issue of the potential benefit to communities of color as a result of this proposal. We believe that upon a rereview by the FCC, it should be reconsidered because it would bring great economic benefit and strongly deal with the issue of equity. The FCC not approving this merger contributes to inequity,” Chavis said.

Despite what appears to be deaf ears at the FCC, the civil rights community shows no sign of giving up.

“The FCC’s failure to seize this opportunity to advance minority media ownership is beyond disappointing,” wrote Richmond. “From Day 1, the BidenHarris administration has taken bold action to enhance diversity, equity, and inclusion throughout government. Undermining the attempt by a minority business leader to acquire a major media property, and doing so in a way that is totally unprecedented, is, on its face, at odds with the administration’s approach and core values. It is difficult to understand how we have come to this place.”

The FCC is running out of time to do the right thing, Richmond said.

But it’s not too late. He and others are clear: Our voices won’t be silenced even if they aren’t being heard.

RE-OPENING ITS WAITING LIST TO THE ELDERLY

Our Lady of Fatima Apartments 78-01 30th Ave, Jackson Heights, NY, 11370 Beginning on 4/25/2023 our property at 78-01 30th Ave, Jackson Heights, NY, 11370 will be re-opening its waiting list to the elderly (head of household or spouse is 62 or older.)

Qualifications and eligibility for the affordable apartments, which include units for the mobility impaired, will be based on Section 8 guidelines.

Interested persons may obtain an application:

DON’T PLAY WITH FIRE. IF YOU SMOKED, GET SCANNED.

G e t S a ve d B y T h e S c a n . o rg

BY MAIL Send a written application request to: Our Lady of Fatima C/O POP Management, 191 Joralemon Street 8th Floor Brooklyn, NY, 11201

ONLINE OR

�� www.ccbq.org/service/ senior-housing �� info.popm@ccbq.org

Completed applications must postmarked by 5/11/2023 and be sent by regular mail to the PO Box listed on the application.

The first 500 applications selected in the lottery will be added to the waitlist. All applicants will be notified of their status.

If you have a disability and need assistance with the application process or any other type of reasonable accommodation, please contact Sheena Williams at (718) 722-6155.

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THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Religion & Spirituality Alton Maddox, Jr., the ‘People’s Lawyer’ and Attorney-at-War, dead at 77

By HERB BOYD Special to the AmNews Additional reporting NAYABA ARINDE Amsterdam News Editor “Blacks must boycott New York courts now,” attorney Alton Maddox, Jr. said in the Amsterdam News seven years ago. “It makes no sense for us to go into these racist courts and expect justice.” That same year, he repeated that demand during his testimony before the New York Commission on Statewide Attorney Discipline. Such a declaration was typical of a man who was known as the “Attorney at War,” and the “People’s Lawyer” who joined the ancestors on Sunday, April 23, 2023. He was 77.

Sources close to the family told the Amsterdam News that Maddox had been staying in the Bronx for over a year, and died in a nursing home on Saturday night/Sunday morning April 23, 2023.

In exclusive quotes to the Amsterdam News, both Mayor Eric Adams and Rev. Al Sharpton spoke about the passing of the man known as the “People’s Attorney.”

Mayor Adams said, “He was a legal genius who used his legal knowledge as a shield, and swiped to fight on behalf of marginalized people of color.”

Rev. Sharpton declared, “I’ve spoken to Charles Maddox to give the condolences of NAN [the National Action Network] and myself. I had not spoken or seen Alton in 20 years (2003) and we had our tactical and ideological differences (that he chose to make public), [but] now is the time to give our prayers and thoughts to his son and grandchildren.”

For several decades, Maddox was a hot topic for news agencies, mainly because of his take-no-prisoners legal practice and the controversial cases he litigated without compromise or concession. “I am the only attorney in the state of New York who has brought two special prosecutors to a case— Tawana Brawley and Howard Beach,” he often exclaimed. It was the former that got him suspended from practicing law in 1990 after he refused to respond to a grievance committee hearing complaint about his conduct in the Brawley case.

Maddox, Sharpton, and attorney C. Vernon Mason were a trio of lawyers who

Alton Maddox (Solwazi Afi Olusola photo)

brought public attention to cases, especially in regard to racist attacks and police abuse. It was in 2000 that a jury found Maddox, Sharpton, and Mason liable in a defamation case during the Brawley case.

Maddox vehemently defied the verdict and refused to pay “one red cent” of the damage award.

“My parents would never let me work for white people as I was growing up because they didn’t want me exposed to that way of instilling the racial superiority of whites,” Maddox told the New York Times in 1987.

That early training and attitude characterized his courtroom demeanor and his activism, which were inseparably linked.

Born on July 21, 1945 in Inkster, Michigan, an all-Black town on the outskirts of Detroit, Maddox grew up in Newnan, Georgia.

He attended Howard University, where he earned his bachelor of arts degree in 1967 and then a juris doctorate from Boston College in 1971.

Before gaining notoriety in the Tawana Brawley case, in which she stated she was abducted and raped, Maddox represented Michael Stewart, an emerging artist, who died in police custody in 1983. Later, he was the attorney for Cedric Sandiford and the family of Michael Griffith, who was killed on the Belt freeway while fleeing a white mob.

Maddox accused the NYPD and Black Commissioner Benjamin Ward of a cover-up.

Each case enhanced Maddox’s expanding reputation, and in rapid succession, his clients included the family of Yusuf Hawkins; Michael Briscoe, who was arrested along with others accused in the Central Park jogger case in which he was found innocent; he even represented Sharpton, who faced a 67-count indictment alleging fraud and theft. Sharpton was acquitted.

All this occurred while Maddox was enduring charges about his professional behavior in and out of court. He continued to host weekly meetings of his United African Movement at several locations in Brooklyn, including the Slave Theater and subsequently in Harlem at the Cotton Club.

These were popular gatherings where Maddox had a bully pulpit to expound on current issues as well as Black history, particularly from a legal and political perspective. Indispensable to these lively sessions was his wife, Leola, who died in 2017.

Over the last several years, Maddox was less visible and there were reports he had moved back to Georgia, although now and then, word would come about his ongoing fight for civil and human rights in various speaking engagements. But there was very little account of any fresh courtroom battles.

“They don’t want me back in the courtroom,” he often said, “because they don’t want any more butt whippings.” He would say this with a smile on his face and the brash refusal to bite his tongue or to curtail his desire to speak truth to power. “No justice, no peace” was his mantra and war cry.

John Walker, long-time moderator of Maddox’s United African forum, told the AmNews, “There’s not a professional, legal person who did not benefit from the influence of attorney Alton Maddox, with his professionalism and master ability.

His skills traversed the international arena. He was a dedicated asset to our community. He will be missed, but students and activists will forever be able to study his devastatingly effective court decorum. His delivery was a masterclass.”

“Attorney Alton Maddox united the Black world, he wanted us to understand human rights. He worked with all the grassroots community leaders and groups,” said longtime activist Veronica Phillips-Nickey. “He was Dr. John Henrik Clarke’s attorney. He invited local, national, and international speakers to his United African Forum at Harlem’s Oberia Dempsey Center and the Slave Theater in Harlem.”

Reminiscing fondly, the original UAM member added, “Attorney Maddox brought us to the court room in cases, and taught about the double meanings of legalese.

There are many students who went to law school because of Alton Maddox. He loved his people so much that he gave free classes to students”.

Nickey concluded, “After the Central Park Five case, his dear wife Leola sent up the summer camp at Peg Leg Bates Freedom Retreat in Kerhonkson, New York. There he taught our children how to defend themselves in court, and life skills with healthy food and fresh air. He was a magnificent man who left us a great blueprint for freedom to follow.”

Maddox associates told the AmNews that his son Charles Maddox will be taking the body of Alton Maddox back to Georgia.

The AmNews learnt just before press time that there will be a viewing on Monday, 1 May, 2023, at Harlem’s Abyssinian Baptist Church (132 W 138th Street, May 1, 2023 with viewing 10 a.m., and service at 11 a.m.

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Food Insecurity Continued from page 3

SNAP and CFC are performing.

“Many older New Yorkers do not know where they’re next meal is coming from. They face a crisis for access to healthy and nutritious meals,” said Council Member Darlene Mealy. “Instead of continually underfunding our conjugal meals programs and providers, we must make an inflation adjustment in the budget.”

The Department of Social Services (DSS) testified that the city has expanded its more culturally sensitive meals to avoid food waste and increased SNAP outreach, even as supply chain issues and inflation have made it more difficult to keep pantries and community kitchens stocked.

DSS said that previously available federal and state emergency food assistance funding from the pandemic are reduced or ending all together.

“We value the council’s support and advocacy in reach-

Database Continued from page 3

as a result of public or Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) requests filed on their behalf by the Legal Aid Society. Supervising attorney Anthony Posada told the Amsterdam News the report confirms the lack of formalized process for the inclusion of New Yorkers as young as age 11.

“Since we started our initiative to help people with FOIL requests, [they’re] at first met with resistance and people are denied those requests for information about themselves,” he said. “We weren’t promising they could get off, but at least they could see, and seeing [plays] an important part for them to learn how they came to be included in the database in the first place. It just shows that there are no constitutional protections.”

The report cracks open the NYPD’s murky methodology for what qualifies someone being added to the database. The department frequently relies on selfadmissions, but New Yorkers aren’t telling on themselves. Instead, the OIG-NYPD found that posting “gang-related” emojis or photos is often sufficient evidence for inclusion.

Those who should no longer be in the database are not removed but instead deactivated. There’s no formal process for New Yorkers to contest their entry.

Barrett ultimately posed 17 recommendations for the NYPD stemming from the investigation, including a review (and subsequent removal) for unwarranted inclusions in the database.

Yet the OIG-NYPD still officially determined no evidence of harm after reviewing the gang database.

However, the report concedes no individual entrant’s background was investigated to determine whether their inclusion was detrimental to external living factors like housing or employment.

Police Reform Organizing Project (PROP) Deputy Director Josmar Trujillo also pointed out that the report does not examine the database’s effects at the federal prosecution level. “[The inspector general’s] oversight is just over the NYPD and they may say [prosecutors are] beyond their scope, but gang policing is a collaboration of multiple agencies,” said Trujillo. “If you only look at what the NYPD is doing, you’re going to [be] limited to just looking at that tip of the iceberg and not the entire iceberg.”

While the simple inclusion on the database is arguably benign in a nutshell, presumed gang members

ing out to partners across government to highlight the importance of tackling food insecurity and mobilizing resources to meet neighborhood’s needs,” said DSS. DSS also confirmed that benefits processing is still experiencing a backlog due to the high demand during the pandemic, causing longer wait times.

In New York State, seniors and disabled seniors should be able to access a “simplified SNAP-only application” called the Elderly Simplified Application Project (ESAP). A senior can be eligible for ESAP if all people in the household are over 60 and have no income coming in.

On average there are 42,000 general SNAP applications a month, said DSS, but they don’t necessarily track ESAP applications.

Ariama C. Long is a Report for America corps member and writes about politics for the Amsterdam News. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep her writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visiting https://bit.ly/amnews1. are prone to federal racketeering charges intended for organized crime. Trujillo said the Black and brown entrants who overwhelmingly populate the database are usually from low-income communities and rely on public defenders to fight the 1970 RICO Act, designed to prosecute mobsters—who can employ highlevel lawyers.

The offices of local and regional prosecutors were consulted for the report.

Advocates were also critical of the investigation’s prolonged timespan. They say they proposed this review back in 2017. It officially started a year later and hit multiple roadblocks, including an initial promise last spring for a 2022 release. Posada said the OIG-NYPD consulted him and Legal Aid for the investigation pre-pandemic.

“It gives the police department ample time to change their systems, or to find other ways to keep the information under different headings,” he said. “Three years go by, it’s not going to be the same. It’s not gonna reflect what that system is actually doing.”

White people make up just .6% of the gang database, despite federal officials identifying white supremacists as the “greatest domestic threat” to the U.S. in 2021.

“It is not something that is producing public safety, which is what is mentioned to justify its existence,” Posada said of the database. “Rather, it is being used as a weapon to criminalize [and continue] this narrative that Black and brown people are criminal and who they associate with makes them guilty. We don’t see that same approach applied to students at fraternities.

“They have their own codes, they have their own signs. They fit all the criteria that the NYPD itself is using to label people as gang members.”

But Trujillo said balancing out the disparities by entering more non-Black and brown people to the registry is not a viable solution.

“It’s just night and day the difference between what the laws were designed for and how they’re used now against Black and Hispanic men and women,” he said.

“That power in the hands of the NYPD will never bring justice to people, so I would not want to add more white people [to] the database, because it doesn’t solve the problem of what the NYPD is doing.”

Tandy Lau is a Report for America corps member and writes about public safety for the Amsterdam News.

Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep him writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visiting https://bit.ly/amnews1.

April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023 • 27

Metro Briefs Continued from page 3

Mayors Bass, Adams, Turner, and Lightfoot are each members of the Democratic Party and each one was elected to manage the governmental services of a nonmajority Black city.

The mayors attending the African American Mayors Association were also able to visit Vice-President Kamala Harris at the Vice-Presidential residence.

––compiled by Karen Juanita Carrillo

New Jersey Continued from page 4

graduates at Rutgers University-New Brunswick’s 257th anniversary commencement on May 14 and to jazz musician Terence Blanchard when he delivers remarks at Rutgers University-Newark’s commencement ceremony on Tuesday, May 16. Rutgers University-Camden will hold its commencement on May 15 and will award an honorary doctor of letters degree to Dana Redd, the former mayor of the city of Camden who will deliver the keynote address.

Somerset County orgs receive project funding Various organizations in Somerset County recently received funds through the New Jersey State Council on the Arts Local Arts Program (LAP). Among the 15 organizations awarded grants were the American Theatre Group, which received $35,000 to support the “2023 season of artistic productions, the professional development program for Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) and Queer-identifying playwrights, and an arts education program for students and recent graduates”; the Downtown Somerville Alliance, $34,000 to “assist in the development and installation of a statue of Paul Robeson on Division Street in Somerville”; and the Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum, $18,000 to be used to “commission the creation and publication of a youth historical fiction book titled ‘Truehart Sourland Journals.’”

Booker’s Restaurant & Bar saved by Jersey power couple A new-owner’s reception on April 13 welcomed New Jersey power couple Tracey and Cheri Syphax for their takeover of West Philadelphia’s Booker’s Restaurant & Bar (https://bookersrestaurantandbar.com). The restaurant, which features African American Southern foods, struggled to survive during the COVID-19 shutdowns.

The Syphaxes, owners of the Phax Entertainment Group, LLC., will keep Booker’s open and Black-owned.

At the welcome reception, citations [were] presented on behalf of Philadelphia’s City Councilmember Jamie R. Gauthier, her Chief of Staff Mariya Khandros, and the Mayor of Trenton, Reed Gusciora. The event was also attended by notables such as Pennsylvania House Speaker Joanna McClinton; Philadelphia 76ers’ General Manager Elton Brand; WDAS’s Patty Jackson; and Douglas H. Palmer, former mayor of Trenton, to name a few.

Compiled by Karen Juanita Carrillo

28 • April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023

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NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF NEW YORK HILTON RESORTS CORPORATION, Plaintiff -against- SHEILA G. SCOTT, CRANFORD L. SCOTT, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated November 1, 2022 and entered on November 9, 2022, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Courthouse located on the portico at 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on May 24, 2023 at 2:15 p.m. premises situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City and State of New York, being an undivided ownership interest as tenant-in-common with other owners in the Timeshare Unit in the building located at 1335 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY; known as The NYH Condominium. Together with an appurtenant undivided 3.1810% common interest percentage. This a foreclosure on ownership interest in a timeshare unit, a studio penthouse on a floating use basis every year, in accordance with and subject to declarations. Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions dated October 27, 2003 and November 3, 2003 as CFRN # 2003000442513 as recorded in the Office of the City Register, County, City and State of New York. The Timeshare Unit is also designated as Block 1006 and Lot 1302.

The Foreclosure Sale will be conducted in accordance with 1st Judicial District’s COVID-19 Policies and Foreclosure Auction Rules.

All bidders must wear a face mask/shield at all times and social distancing must be observed by all bidders at all times. Bidders who do not comply with the face mask and/or the social distancing mandate will be removed from the auction.

Said premises known as 1335 AVENUE OF THE AMERICAS, NEW YORK, NY Approximate amount of lien $93,944.86 plus interest & costs.

Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale.

Index Number 850031/2022.

SCOTT H. SILLER, ESQ., Referee DRUCKMAN LAW GROUP PLLC Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 242 Drexel Avenue, Westbury, NY 11590 NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF NEW YORK HILTON RESORTS CORPORATION, Plaintiff -against- LOUIS L. GIORDANO, ANTOINETTE R. GIORDANO, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated February 21, 2023 and entered on February 23, 2023, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Courthouse located on the portico at 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on May 17th, 2023 at 2:15 p.m. premises being an undivided ownership interest as tenantin-common with other owners in the Timeshare Unit in the building located at 102 West 57th Street, New York, NY. Together with an undivided .015171% interest in the common elements. This a foreclosure on ownership interest in a timeshare unit, a studio penthouse on a floating use basis every year, in accordance with and subject to declarations. Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions dated October 10, 2008 and October 31, 2008 as CFRN # 2008000426142 as recorded in the Office of the City Register, County, City and State of New York. The Timeshare Unit is also designated as Block 1009 and Lot 37.

The Foreclosure Sale will be conducted in accordance with 1st Judicial District’s COVID-19 Policies and Foreclosure Auction Rules.

All bidders must wear a face mask/shield at all times and social distancing must be observed by all bidders at all times. Bidders who do not comply with the face mask and/or the social distancing mandate will be removed from the auction.

Said premises known as 102 WEST 57TH STREET, NEW YORK, NY Approximate amount of lien $53,650.70 plus interest & costs.

Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale.

Index Number 850079/2022.

JERRY MEROLA, ESQ., Referee DRUCKMAN LAW GROUP PLLC Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 242 Drexel Avenue, Westbury, NY 11590

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SUPREME COURT-NEW YORK COUNTY- HILTON RESORTS CORP., Pltf. v. SHEILA G. SCOTT, CRANFORD L. SCOTT, Defts. Index # 850311/2018. Pursuant to Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated March 2, 2023, I will sell at public auction Outside the Portico of the NY County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street, NY, NY on Thursday, May 11, 2023, at 2:15 pm, an interest of an undivided 9,000/28,402,100 tenant in common interest in the timeshare known as Phase I of HNY CLUB SUITES located at 1335 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York. Approximate amount of judgment is $55,796.05 plus costs and interest as of April 22, 2018. Sold subject to terms and conditions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale which includes annual maintenance fees and charges. Mark McKew, Esq., Referee. Cruser, Mitchell, Novitz, Sanchez, Gaston, & Zimet LLP, Attys. for Pltf., 341 Conklin Street, Farmingdale, NY.

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Fee Simple Absolute Vast Estate Trustees Proclamation We the Trustees of the 1928 Vast Estate Express Trust whose names are: Dwight Cory with surname Lewis, doing business as Dwight Cory Lewis, Mark Andrew with the surname Ahart doing business as MARK ANDREW AHART, Jamelah Johari with the surname Arnold doing business as JAMELAH JOHARI ARNOLD, Asah Saleem with surname Ahart doing business as ASAH SALEEM AHART here by proclaim we are Moslems of the West. We the Trustees of the 1928 Vast Estate Express Trust proclaim we are the descendants of the original inhabitants of the Americas, and we are the free holders in due course of the fee simple absolute vast estate.

The fee simple absolute vast estate was placed in an Irrevocable Express Trust for the heirs in Succession and we are those heirs. All heirs are fiduciaries and beneficiaries of said Trust; A religious body politic and corporate was also created for the heirs by filing an affidavit of organization under Hurd’s Smith Revised Statutes Chapter 32 section 36. The affidavit was filed August 1, 1928 at approximately 2:52 p.m. in Cook County, in the state of Illinois. Please refer to document # 10105905, BK 521, pg 579 recorded in the Torren’s system of Cook County Illinois recorder of deeds. We the Trustees of the 1928 Vast Estate Express Trust here by are proclaiming liberty through out the lands and we are making a claim of postliminy under General Orders No. 100 Article 43; We are not subject to: any color of law, taxes, nor any encumbrances. We the Trustees of the 1928 Vast Estate Express Trust are proclaiming our ancestral and religious names which are Nobel Dwight Cory with surname Lewis el, Nobel Mark Andrew with surname Ahart Bey, Nobel Jamelah Johari with surname Arnold Ahart Bey, noble Asah Saleem with surname Ahart Bey. The Trustees of the Vast Estate Express Trust here by proclaim our free national name as the members of the religious body politic and corporate is Moorish Science Temple of America not to be confused with any irregular Moorish Science Temple of America, sovereign citizens, or any other organization not following the principles of love, peace, freedom, truth and justice. The Trustees of the 1928 Vast Estate Express Trust are proclaiming our nationality to be Moorish American and we are proclaiming we are part and parcel of the United States of America Republic. We the Trustees of the 1928 Vast Estate Express Trust has taken the oath of Amnesty and Reconstruction signed by Abraham Lincoln. The following persons Lewis, Dwight Cory, Dwight Cory Lewis, Dwight C Lewis, Dwight Cory Lewis 156-73-312056, Dwight Cory Lewis 384 293 431, Dwight Cory Lewis xxx-xx-5580, Asah Saleem Ahart, Ahart, Asah Saleem, Asah Saleem Ahart 156-14-046091, Asah Saleem Ahart 674722120, Asah Saleem Ahart xxx-xx-0612, Andrew, Mark Ahart, Mark Andrew Ahart, Mark Andrew Ahart 156-66-128962, Mark Andrew Ahart xxx-xx-1037, Mark Ahart Al Bey 597 674 943, Jamelah Johari Arnold 156-71-332559, Jamelah Johari Arnold xxx-xx-7871, Al Bey Jamelah, Johari Ahart 106 021 945, Jamelah Johari Arnold-Ahart 525309579, Arnold, Jamelah Johari, Jamelah Johari Arnold, Mark Andrew Ahart L8100582, Jamelah Johari Arnold new surname Ahart L8100582 has been conveyed into the 1928 Vast Estate Express Trust and is now the property of said Trust. We the Trustees of 1928 Vast Estate Trust extends our hand of fellowship to all United States of America government officials and to all other governments from near and far lands.

SUPREME COURT-NEW YORK COUNTY- HILTON RESORTS CORP., Pltf. v. DARRELL GLENN PORTER, Deft.- Index # 850194/2021. Pursuant to Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated July 21, 2022, I will sell at public auction Outside on the Portico, NY County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street, NY, NY on Thursday, May 25, 2023, at 2:15 pm, an undivided 11,000/16,783,800 tenant in common interest in the timeshare known as HNY CLUB SUITES Phase 2 located at 1335 Avenue of the Americas, in the County of NY, State of NY. Approximate amount of judgment is $73,674.97 plus costs and interest as of March 22, 2022.

Sold subject to terms and conditions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale which includes annual maintenance fees and charges. Scott H. Siller, Esq., Referee. Cruser, Mitchell & Novitz, LLP, Attys. for Pltf., 341 Conklin Street, Farmingdale, NY.

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF NEW YORK HILTON RESORTS CORPORATION, Plaintiff -against- CHARLES LEO FONAROW, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated April 5, 2022 and entered on April 19, 2022, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Courthouse located on the portico at 60 Centre Street, New York on May 31st, 2023 at 2:15 p.m. premises situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City and State of New York, being an undivided ownership interest as tenant-in-common with other owners in the Timeshare Unit in the building located at 1335 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY; known as The NYH Condominium. Together with an appurtenant undivided 3.1810% common interest percentage. This a foreclosure on ownership interest in a timeshare unit, a studio penthouse on a floating use basis every year, in accordance with and subject to declarations. Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions dated October 27, 2003 and November 3, 2003 as CFRN # 2003000442513 as recorded in the Office of the City Register, County, City and State of New York. The Timeshare Unit is also designated as Block 1006 and Lot 1302.

The Foreclosure Sale will be conducted in accordance with 1st Judicial District’s COVID-19 Policies and Foreclosure Auction Rules.

All bidders must wear a face mask/shield at all times and social distancing must be observed by all bidders at all times. Bidders who do not comply with the face mask and/or the social distancing mandate will be removed from the auction.

Said premises known as 1335 AVENUE OF THE AMERICAS, NEW YORK, NY Approximate amount of lien $38,120.82 plus interest & costs.

Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale.

Index Number 850106/2020.

HAYLEY GREENBERG, ESQ., Referee DRUCKMAN LAW GROUP PLLC Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 242 Drexel Avenue, Westbury, NY 11590

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NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF NEW YORK HILTON RESORTS CORPORATION, Plaintiff -against- DEIDRA B. CIZON, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated November 1, 2022 and entered on November 14, 2022, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Courthouse located on the portico at 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on May 24, 2023 at 2:15 p.m. premises situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City and State of New York, being an undivided ownership interest as tenant-in-common with other owners in the Timeshare Unit in the building located at 1335 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY; known as The NYH Condominium. Together with an appurtenant undivided 1.4182% common interest percentage. This a foreclosure on ownership interest in a timeshare unit, a studio penthouse on a floating use basis every year, in accordance with and subject to declarations. Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions dated October 27, 2003 and November 3, 2003 as CFRN # 2003000442513 as recorded in the Office of the City Register, County, City and State of New York. The Timeshare Unit is also designated as Block 1006 and Lot 1305.

The Foreclosure Sale will be conducted in accordance with 1st Judicial District’s COVID-19 Policies and Foreclosure Auction Rules.

All bidders must wear a face mask/shield at all times and social distancing must be observed by all bidders at all times. Bidders who do not comply with the face mask and/or the social distancing mandate will be removed from the auction.

Said premises known as 1335 AVENUE OF THE AMERICAS, NEW YORK, NY Approximate amount of lien $66,705.42 plus interest & costs.

Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale.

Index Number 850053/2022.

HAYLEY GREENBERG, ESQ., Referee DRUCKMAN LAW GROUP PLLC Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 242 Drexel Avenue, Westbury, NY 11590

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF NEW YORK HILTON RESORTS CORPORATION, Plaintiff -against- DEIDRA B. CIZON, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated November 1, 2022 and entered on November 14, 2022, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Courthouse located on the portico at 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on May 24, 2023 at 2:15 p.m. premises situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City and State of New York, being an undivided ownership interest as tenant-in-common with other owners in the Timeshare Unit in the building located at 1335 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY; known as The NYH Condominium. Together with an appurtenant undivided 1.4182% common interest percentage. This a foreclosure on ownership interest in a timeshare unit, a studio penthouse on a floating use basis every year, in accordance with and subject to declarations. Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions dated October 27, 2003 and November 3, 2003 as CFRN # 2003000442513 as recorded in the Office of the City Register, County, City and State of New York. The Timeshare Unit is also designated as Block 1006 and Lot 1305.

The Foreclosure Sale will be conducted in accordance with 1st Judicial District’s COVID-19 Policies and Foreclosure Auction Rules.

All bidders must wear a face mask/shield at all times and social distancing must be observed by all bidders at all times. Bidders who do not comply with the face mask and/or the social distancing mandate will be removed from the auction.

Said premises known as 1335 AVENUE OF THE AMERICAS, NEW YORK, NY Approximate amount of lien $66,705.42 plus interest & costs.

Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale.

Index Number 850053/2022.

HAYLEY GREENBERG, ESQ., Referee DRUCKMAN LAW GROUP PLLC Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 242 Drexel Avenue, Westbury, NY 11590

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April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023 • 29

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SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF NEW YORK

101 LEGAL NOTICES

INDEX NO. 850226/2022 Plaintiff designates NEW YORK as the place of trial situs of the real property SUPPLEMENTAL SUMMONS

JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION Mortgaged Premises: 10 LITTLE WEST STREET, UNIT PH1C, NEW YORK, NY 10004 Block: 16, Lot: 9111 Plaintiff,

vs.

SHUIGUN CHEN, if living, and if she/he be dead, any and all persons unknown to plaintiff, claiming, or who may claim to have an interest in, or general or specific lien upon the real property described in this action; such unknown persons being herein generally described and intended to be included in the following designation, namely: the wife, widow, husband, widower, heirs at law, next of kin, descendants, executors, administrators, devisees, legatees, creditors, trustees, committees, lienors, and assignees of such deceased, any and all persons deriving interest in or lien upon, or title to said real property by, through or under them, or either of them, and their respective wives, widows, husbands, widowers, heirs at law, next of kin, descendants, executors, administrators, devisees, legatees, creditors, trustees, committees, lienors and assigns, all of whom and whose names, except as stated, are unknown to plaintiff; MINGSEN CHEN, if living, and if she/he be dead, any and all persons unknown to plaintiff, claiming, or who may claim to have an interest in, or general or specific lien upon the real property described in this action; such unknown persons being herein generally described and intended to be included in the following designation, namely: the wife, widow, husband, widower, heirs at law, next of kin, descendants, executors, administrators, devisees, legatees, creditors, trustees, committees, lienors, and assignees of such deceased, any and all persons deriving interest in or lien upon, or title to said real property by, through or under them, or either of them, and their respective wives, widows, husbands, widowers, heirs at law, next of kin, descendants, executors, administrators, devisees, legatees, creditors, trustees, committees, lienors and assigns, all of whom and whose names, except as stated, are unknown to plaintiff; GUIXIN HONG, if living, and if she/he be dead, any and all persons unknown to plaintiff, claiming, or who may claim to have an interest in, or general or specific lien upon the real property described in this action; such unknown persons being herein generally described and intended to be included in the following designation, namely: the wife, widow, husband, widower, heirs at law, next of kin, descendants, executors, administrators, devisees, legatees, creditors, trustees, committees, lienors, and assignees of such deceased, any and all persons deriving interest in or lien upon, or title to said real property by, through or under them, or either of them, and their respective wives, widows, husbands, widowers, heirs at law, next of kin, descendants, executors, administrators, devisees, legatees, creditors, trustees, committees, lienors and assigns, all of whom and whose names, except as stated, are unknown to plaintiff; BOARD OF MANAGERS OF MILLENNIUM POINT CONDOMINIUM; NEW YORK CITY ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL BOARD; NEW YORK CITY PARKING VIOLATIONS BUREAU; NEW YORK CITY TRANSIT ADJUDICATION BUREAU; THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK; UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, "JOHN DOE #1" through "JOHN DOE #12," the last twelve names being fictitious and unknown to plaintiff, the persons or parties intended being the tenants, occupants, persons or corporations, if any, having or claiming an interest in or lien upon the premises, described in the complaint, Defendants.

To the above named Defendants YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to answer the Complaint in the above entitled action and to serve a copy of your Answer on the plaintiff’s attorney within twenty (20) days of the service of this Summons, exclusive of the day of service, or within thirty (30) days after service of the same is complete where service is made in any manner other than by personal delivery within the State. The United States of America, if designated as a defendant in this action, may answer or appear within sixty (60) days of service. Your failure to appear or to answer will result in a judgment against you by default for the relief demanded in the Complaint. In the event that a deficiency balance remains from the sale proceeds, a judgment may be entered against you.

NOTICE OF NATURE OF ACTION AND RELIEF SOUGHT THE OBJECT of the above caption action is to foreclose a Mortgage to secure the sum of $2,350,000.00 and interest, recorded on February 16, 2012, in CRFN 2012000064492 , of the Public Records of NEW YORK County, New York., covering premises known as 10 LITTLE WEST STREET, UNIT PH1C, NEW YORK, NY 10004.

The relief sought in the within action is a final judgment directing the sale of the premises described above to satisfy the debt secured by the Mortgage described above.

NEW YORK County is designated as the place of trial because the real property affected by this action is located in said county.

NOTICE YOU ARE IN DANGER OF LOSING YOUR HOME

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF NEW YORK, CAPITAL ONE, N.A., Plaintiff, vs. KENNETH D. LAUB, ET AL., Defendants.

Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly entered on October 7, 2022, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Courthouse, on the portico, 60 Centre Street, New York, New York on May 3, 2023 at 2:15 P.M., premises known as 163 EAST 64TH STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10021. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County, City, and State of New York, Block: 1399 , Lot: 25. Approximate amount of judgment is $10,653,559.26 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index # 159315/2017.

If the sale is set aside for any reason, the Purchaser at the sale shall be entitled only to a return of the deposit paid. The Purchaser shall have no further recourse against the Mortgagor, the Mortgagee, the Mortgagee's attorney, or the Referee.

DORON A. LEIBY, Esq., Referee Roach & Lin, P.C., 6851 Jericho Turnpike, Suite 185, Syosset, New York 11791, Attorneys for Plaintiff

If you do not respond to this summons and complaint by serving a copy of the answer on the attorney for the mortgage company who filed this foreclosure proceeding against you and filing the answer with the court, a default judgment may be entered and you can lose your home.

Speak to an attorney or go to the court where your case is pending for further information on how to answer the summons and protect your property.

Sending a payment to the mortgage company will not stop the foreclosure action.

YOU MUST RESPOND BY SERVING A COPY OF THE ANSWER ON THE ATTORNEY FOR THE PLAINTIFF (MORTGAGE COMPANY) AND FILING THE ANSWER WITH THE COURT. Dated: March 22, 2023

ROBERTSON, ANSCHUTZ, SCHNEID, CRANE & PARTNERS, PLLC Attorney for Plaintiff Matthew Rothstein, Esq. 900 Merchants Concourse, Suite 310 Westbury, NY 11590 516-280-7675

101 LEGAL NOTICES Notice of Formation of TRAVEL THE ARTIST WAY, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/05/23. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 200 Park Ave. S, Fl. 8, NY, NY 10003. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Josh Work at the princ. office of the LLC. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Notice of Formation of SKHH HOLDINGS LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/11/23. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 270 W. 17th St., #20A, NY, NY 10011. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the addr. of its princ. office. Purpose: To purchase, own and sell real estate in New York.

LEGAL NOTICE KRISTIN RENEE LLC. Arts of Org filed with Secy. of State (SSNY) on 12/28/2022.

Office Location: NEW YORK County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to THE LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY, 228 PARK AVE S #624872, NEW YORK, NY, 10003, USA. R/A: UNITED STATES CORPORATION AGENTS, INC. 7014 13TH AVENUE, SUITE 202, BROOKLYN, NY 11228, USA. Purpose: Any lawful act.

Notice of Qualification of EMPASS MANAGEMENT, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/28/23. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 03/14/23. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Secy. of State, 401 Federal St. - Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

NOTICE OF FORMATION OF Level Engineering, PLLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 7/7/22. Office address: 575 Lexington Avenue 17th Fl, New York City and County, NY 10022. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: 320 Cleveland Avenue, Loveland, CO 80537. Purpose: any lawful act.

KnowledgeGuru LLC Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 3/28/2023. Office location: NY County. SSNY has been designated as an agent upon whom process against it may be served & shall mail a copy to: 250 W 94th St, Apt 9C, NY, NY 10025. Purpose: Any lawful act.

Firstbase Agent LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 8/9/22. Office location: NY County. SSNY has been designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served & shall mail a copy to: 447 Bdwy, 2nd Fl 187, NY, NY 10013. Purpose: any lawful act or activity

30 • April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023

100 PUBLIC NOTICES

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

100 PUBLIC NOTICES

SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK - COUNTY OF NEW YORK HSBC BANK USA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS TRUSTEE FOR WELLS FARGO ASSET SECURITIES CORPORATION, MORTGAGE PASS-THROUGH CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2006-AR19, V. SUSAN PROCTOR, ET AL.

101 LEGAL NOTICES All Season Fit LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 3/16/2023. Office location: NY County. SSNY has been designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served & shall mail a copy to: 228 Park Ave S #402852, NY, NY 10003.

Purpose: To provide fitness and eating coaching or to engage in any lawful activity.

101 LEGAL NOTICES

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Continuums Strategies LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 11/30/2022. Office location: New York County.

SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served & shall mail to: 440 W. 34th St., #5A, New York, NY 10001.

Purpose: Any lawful purpose. continuumsstrategies.com

Now’s the Right Time

NOTICE OF SALE NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN pursuant to a Final Judgment of Foreclosure dated April 27, 2020, and entered in the Office of the Clerk of the County of New York, wherein HSBC BANK USA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS TRUSTEE FOR WELLS FARGO ASSET SECURITIES CORPORATION, MORTGAGE PASS-THROUGH CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2006-AR19 is the Plaintiff and SUSAN PROCTOR, ET AL. are the Defendant(s). I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction RAIN OR SHINE at the PORTICO OF THE CIVIL SUPREME COURTHOUSE, LOCATED AT 60 CENTRE STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10007, on May 17, 2023 at 2:15PM, premises known as 350 WEST 42ND STREET, UNIT 35C, NEW YORK, NY 10036: Section , Block 1032, Lot 1340: ALL THAT CERTAIN PLOT, PIECE OR PARCEL OF LAND, SITUATE, LYING AND BEING IN THE BOROUGH OF MANHATTAN, COUNTY, CITY AND STATE OF NEW YORK Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index # 850039/2015. Mark Arthur Berman, Esq. - Referee. Robertson, Anschutz, Schneid, Crane & Partners, PLLC 900 Merchants Concourse, Suite 310, Westbury, New York 11590, Attorneys for Plaintiff. All foreclosure sales will be conducted in accordance with Covid-19 guidelines including, but not limited to, social distancing and mask wearing. *LOCATION OF SALE SUBJECT TO CHANGE DAY OF IN ACCORDANCE WITH COURT/CLERK DIRECTIVES.

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF NEW YORK ConnectOne Bank, Plaintiff against PAL Real Estate Holdings II, LLC, MTB AMG, Inc., PAL AMG, Inc. and Arthur H. Nelson, Defendant(s) Pursuant to Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in NY County on Dec. 5, 2022; Referee will sell at public auction to highest bidder on the Portico, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY10007, at 2:15 p.m. on May 31, 2023; premises:144 West 27th Street, Unit 6R, New York, NY 10001, described as: condo unit in building known as 144 West 27th Street Condominium and street address 144-152 West 27th Street, New York, NY; designated Unit 6R in Declaration of12/8/1992 by 276 Street Associates, Parcel ID: Block 802, Lot 1023. Approx. judgment $2,303,702.84, plus int. and costs. Subject to provisions of Judgment Index No. 850120/2022. Conducted under NY County Auction Part Rules; Georgia Papazis, Esq., Referee. Jonathan P. Vuotto, Esq., Attorney for Plaintiff, 1 Blue Hill Plaza, Ste. 1509, Pearl River, NY 10965 (212) 382-2208

101 LEGAL NOTICES

101 LEGAL NOTICES

Zobuilden LLC filed Arts. of Org. with the SSNY on 02/05/2023. Office: New York County. SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail to: Reindaldo Alvarado, 3556 Webster Ave. Purpose: any lawful act.

Ramli Jewellery LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 02/17/22. Office located in New York Co. SSNY designated agent of LLC upon whom process may be served. First Agent LLC, 447 Broadway 2nd Fl 187, New York, NY 10013. Purpose: any lawful activity.

Notice of Formation of MIPH HOLDINGS LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/22/23. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: c/o Yekaterina Poyarkova, 524 E. 72nd St., Apt. 37F, NY, NY 10021. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. Purpose: To hold real estate.

Notice of Qualification of PENNBRIDGES TRANSPORTCO LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/23/23. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 03/21/23. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Jeffrey W. Bullock, Secy. of State, 401 Federal St., Ste.4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Notice of Formation of ALTO NEW YORK FLEET 6 LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/23/23. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC, 141 Manufacturing St., Dallas, TX 75207.

Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Notice of Formation of ALTO NEW YORK FLEET 5 LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/23/23. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC, 141 Manufacturing St., Dallas, TX 75207.

Purpose: Any lawful activity.

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF NEW YORK HILTON RESORTS CORPORATION, Plaintiff -against- KEITH R. HUGHES, et al Defendant(s).

Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated October 12, 2022 and entered on October 20, 2022, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Courthouse located on the portico at 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on May 10th, 2023 at 2:15 p.m. premises situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City and State of New York, being an undivided ownership interest as tenant-in-common with other owners in the Timeshare Unit in the building located at 1335 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY; known as The NYH Condominium. Together with an appurtenant undivided 1.4182% common interest percentage. This a foreclosure on ownership interest in a timeshare unit, a studio penthouse on a floating use basis every year, in accordance with and subject to declarations. Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions dated October 27, 2003 and November 3, 2003 as CFRN # 2003000442513 as recorded in the Office of the City Register, County, City and State of New York. The Timeshare Unit is also designated as Block 1006 and Lot 1303.

The Foreclosure Sale will be conducted in accordance with 1st Judicial District's COVID-19 Policies and Foreclosure Auction Rules.

All bidders must wear a face mask/shield at all times and social distancing must be observed by all bidders at all times. Bidders who do not comply with the face mask and/or the social distancing mandate will be removed from the auction.

Said premises known as 1335 AVENUE OF THE AMERICAS, NEW YORK, NY Approximate amount of lien $117,987.17 plus interest & costs.

Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale.

Index Number 850159/2020.

ROBERTA E. ASHKIN, ESQ., Referee DRUCKMAN LAW GROUP PLLC Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 242 Drexel Avenue, Westbury, NY 11590

Application for Authority of Men of Steel Enterprises, LLC filed with the Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 2/22/2023. Formed in NJ 7/21/2004. Office Loc.: NY County. SSNY is designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served.

The address SSNY shall mail copy of process to and the principal office address is 2500 State Rd., Unit A, Bensalem, PA 19020. Cert. of formation filed with the State Treas., 33 W. State St., 5th Fl., Trenton, NJ 08608. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Notice of Qualification of NONNAS PRODUCTIONS D&S, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/27/23. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 03/16/23. Princ. office of LLC: 9560 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills, CA 90212.

SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Jeffrey W. Bullock, 401 Federal St., Ste. 3, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Film and television production.

Notice of Qualification of ZM88 LLC. Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/07/23. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 03/28/23. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Seward & Kissel, Attn: Hume R.Steyer, One Battery Park Plaza, NY, NY 10004.

DE addr. of LLC: c/o Corporation Service Co., 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808.

Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State of the State of DE, Div. of Corps., John G. Townsend Bldg., Federal & Duke of York Sts., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

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April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023 • 31

32 • April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Man arrested in 2 successive Harlem murders Denim Continued from17 page 3

By MAL’AKIY ALLAH

Special to the AmNews performers were featured.

Kajori Chaudhuri, Messiah Nantwi, deputy 21, wascommissioner arrested on of Tue. theApril Community 11, and charged Relations with Bureau 2 counts for the of murder, plus one count of criminal possesNYC Commission on Human Rights, emsion of a weapon, for 2 successive Harlem murders during Easter weekend. He was out on bail following a February 2021 shootout with police in The Bronx.

Police say on Saturday April 8, at approximately 4:45 PM. Nantwi shot Jaylen Duncan, a 19-year-old male from 8 West 118th St. Harlem, in the head in the vicinity of Madison Ave and 132nd St., who was later declared dead at Harlem Hospital. They did not reveal what caused the shooting.

Then the following day at approximately 7:48PM, inside a smoke shop at 304 Malcolm X Blvd., 125-126 Sts., he allegedly shot Brandon Brunson, 36, visiting from East New York, Brooklyn, after a brief dispute.

Store surveillance video footage captured Sunday’s entire episode, but without audio, 32 • April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023

phasized that the city’s “civil rights arm” be visible and to talk about these issues. protects survivors and sexual assault vic- They exist, we know they do, and there’s no was retrieved police.

It shows sever- where was severely and charged tims under thebylaw from being discrimishamehe around it,” said injured Chaudhuri.

“It’s imal people are inside the store, Nantwi with firstand second-degree nated against in housing and while employment portant everybody speaks out.” attempted – donning a dark jacket with an FDNY logo murder, three information counts of menacing police spaces.

Clothing, in particular, is considFor more about ahow to and aan backwards baseball cap, talking use and how possession fireered extensionblack of other protected cate- officer, report criminal discrimination, to fileof a acomto a man, resisting arrest and possession of 311 graffigories, shelater said.identified as Mr. Brunson, in arm, plaint, or the complaint process, call or a “It’s tan jacket. as Brunson around instruments. really Then important for turns everyone to ti 212-416-0197. to depart, he gets shot in the head in cowReportedly, he and another male were seen ardly fashion and collapses to the floor, and at Elton Ave. and East 153rd St. painting grafother patrons run out the store. Nantwi starts fiti when a police sergeant –Darren Earl, and to leave, then suddenly stops and shoots his officers Malik Underwood and Erick Reyes, victim once more in the head, then reaches approached them and a shootout ensued. into Brunson’s pocket.

Police unloaded 31 rounds, striking Nantwi Nantwi fled the scene on foot northbound several times. They were not injured. toward 126th St. The victim was transported “You shot at a cop; you supposedly killed to NYC Health and Hospitals/Harlem where someone, why was this person not in jail?” he was pronounced deceased.

Mr. Brunson’s mother, Gwendolyn Brunson, Investigators said Brunson had been em- asked during a recent media report. “It blows ployed at the nearby Mount Morris Plaza my mind.”

Senior Housing for several years and was Initially he received a $500,000 bail, which planning to take his 6-year-old nephew on the judge later reduced to $300,000 after his an Easter egg hunt. indictment, and Nantwi posted 10% [$30,000] Nantwi [2333 5th Ave. New York, NY] was cash and was released that April. out on bail since April 2021 following a shootNantwi’s lawyer in the Bronx case declined out with police in the Bronx earlier that Feb. to comment.

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Denim

phasized that the city’s “civil rights arm” protects survivors and sexual assault vicContinued from page 3 tims under the law from being discriminated against in housing and employment performers were featured. spaces. Clothing, in particular, is considKajori Chaudhuri, deputy commissioner ered an extension of other protected cateof the Community Relations Bureau for the gories, she said.

NYC Commission on Human Rights, em“It’s really important for everyone to

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be visible and to talk about these issues.

They exist, we know they do, and there’s no shame around it,” said Chaudhuri. “It’s important everybody speaks out.”

For more information about how to report discrimination, how to file a complaint, or the complaint process, call 311 or 212-416-0197.

Ariama C. Long is a Report for America corps member and writes about politics “This shot at aNews. cop and then he was for the perp Amsterdam Your donation released only to RFA commit twohelps homicides,” reto match our grant keep her writing stories like this one; please contired NYPD detective and current professor at Johnmaking Jay College, Michael Alcazarm sider a tax-deductible gift noted. of any “The system failedbythevisiting City of New York. This amount today https://bit.ly/ person amnews1. shot at police. To me, that’s, like, a nobrainer. He should have stayed in jail.”

Harlem murders smoke shop (Mal’akiy 17 Allah photo)

Ariama C. Long is a Report for America corps member and writes about politics for the Amsterdam News. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep her writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visiting https://bit.ly/ amnews1.

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April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023 • 33

Nets plot new course after getting swept by the 76ers

By JERALD L. HOOVER Special to the AmNews The Brooklyn Nets’ season ended unceremoniously last Saturday with another playoff sweep.

The Eastern Conference’s No. 6 seed lost to the No. 3 seed Philadelphia 76ers by 96–88 in Game 4 of their best-of-seven firstround playoff series after losing 102–97 in Game 3 two days earlier. The Sixers played the close-out game without four-time AllNBA center Joel Embiid, who, according to a report by ESPN on Monday, has a sprained LCL in his right knee.

It is the second consecutive season that Brooklyn lost 4–0 in the playoffs in the opening round. They were eliminated by the Boston Celtics last April. Going back to the 2020-21 season, the Nets have now lost 10 playoff games in a row.

The task ahead is reshaping the roster, which will be led by general manager Sean Marks. The Nets are likely to be highly active and aggressive this summer through trades and/or free agency to add size, rebounding, perimeter shooting, and shot creators.

They were abused 54–38 on the glass in Game 4 and scored more than 100 points just once— Game 1—in the series.

ball award winner playing for Half Hollows Hills West, topped the Sixers with 25 points.

Nets starting small forward Mikal Bridges, who led the league in minutes played in Tobias Harris Spencer Dinwiddie the regular season, had nothing left in Game 4, shooting 6–18 for 17 points. The Nets had no offensive attack other than isolation plays for Bridges. Philadelphia exploited their lack of effective multiple threats and loaded up on Bridges, forcing others to try to make plays.

Brooklyn’s inefficient three-point shooting was a detriment—they hit just 34% of their attempts. Still, Vaughn was encouraged and optimistic about the franchise’s future.

“I told them they should feel extremely proud when they walk around the borough of Brooklyn. The way that we competed, we didn’t make excuses this year,” he said. “We figured out how to stay together. That locker room was together even until the end of the game.”

Nets starting point guard Spencer Dinwiddie, who had a team-high 20 points in Game 4, had a slightly different take than “We’ve got to get bigger over the had 19 points and 12 rebounds in Game 4 his coach. “My grandmother said that close summer,” said Nets head coach Jacque after being ejected in the fourth quarter of only counts in horseshoes and hand greVaughn after his team’s exit. “We’ve got to Game 3 for being assessed a second tech- nades, so I don’t know if anybody’s in here get nasty over the summer. We’ve got to nical foul, 76ers backup center Paul Reed for moral victories,” he said. “But we go into get guys who really love hitting, and take had a game-high 15 rebounds to go with 10 the offseason now. We’re gonna have [exit] it personal when the other team gets a re- points and was clearly the tougher player. meetings and see what else unfolds. We’re bound. That’s what we’ll be looking for.”

Forward Tobias Harris, a native of Islip (Long a team that’s in a lot of transition and we’ll Although Nets starting center Nic Claxton Island) and the 2010 Mr. New York Basket- see what happens next.”

Long Island native Tobias Harris scored 25 points for Philadelphia 76ers in their 96–88 Game 4 win and playoff sweep over Spencer Dinwiddie and Nets (Bill Moore photos)

The NBA playoffs begin to shape as injuries become prominent

By JAIME C. HARRIS AmNews Sports Editor As dramatically as Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard reestablished himself as one of the best basketball players in the world with 38- and 31-point outputs in Games 1 and 2, respectively, in his team’s first round Western Conference playoff series against the Phoenix Suns, his future on the court was placed in doubt with another knee injury.

After the No. 5 seed Clippers took Game 1 by 115–110 and lost Game 2 123–10 against the No. 4 seed Suns, they headed back to Los Angeles for Game 3 last Thursday confident in their chances to earn a series win versus the favored Suns. But early in the day the Clippers announced the 31-year-old Leonard, a two-time NBA Finals most valuable player, would be out with a sprained right knee—the same injury that had kept eight-time All-Star Paul George out of the lineup since March 21.

Without Leonard, the Suns went on to capture Games 3, 4 and 5, ending the series 4–1 on Tuesday night at home with a 136– 130. Then, yesterday, after some in the media and on social media had, without evidence, questioned the severity of Leonard’s injury suggesting he should have attempted to play through the injury, it was reported his issues were much more serious as he has a torn meniscus.

Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young and Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler have been among the standout performers during this season’s NBA playoffs (Bill Moore photos)

In the East, the Knicks were in Cleveland yesterday evening up 3–1 and vying for their first series win in the last 10 years. On Tuesday, Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young’s Trae Young Jimmy Butler remarkable effort, registering 38 points and 13 assists on the road, including a go-ahead 30-foot 3-pointer with 2.1 seconds left, lifted the No. 7 Hawks to a 119– 110 victory over the No. 2 Boston Celtics and pushing the 3–2 series back to Atlanta for Game 6 tonight. The Philadelphia 76ers swept the Brooklyn Nets 4–0 and await the winner of Celtics-Hawks.

Undoubtedly the most shocking series is between the No. 1 seed Milwaukee Bucks and the No. 8 seed Miami Heat.

The Bucks are on the edge of one of the biggest upsets in recent NBA history. Forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, plausibly the best player in the world, suffered a back contusion in Game 1 after falling to the court and only played 11 minutes in the Bucks 130–111 loss.

He sat out Games 2 and 3, and returned Monday in Milwaukee with the Bucks Now the Suns are set to face the Western The No. 2 seed Memphis Grizzlies were trailing 2–1 displaying his usual preemiConference’s No. 1 seed Denver Nuggets in at home last night trying to fight off being nence, scoring 26 points with 13 assists a semifinal matchup starting this Sunday. ousted by the No. 7 seed Los Angeles Lakers, and 10 rebounds. But Heat forward Jimmy Like the Suns, the Nuggets defeated the No. who led 3–1 following a 117–111 over Mem- Butler had a game for the ages, scoring a 8 seed Minnesota Timberwolves in a gen- phis in L.A. on Monday as LeBron James franchise playoff record 56 and pulling tleman’s sweep, finishing them off 4–1 by scored 22 points and grabbed 20 rebounds. his teammates along with him as the Heat winning a hard-fought Game 5 on Tuesday The No. 3 seed Sacramento Kings hosted the overcame a 14-point fourth quarter defiat home, 112–109. The other West semifinal No. 6 seed Golden State Warriors last night cit for a 119–114 victory. Game 5 in Miami pairing has yet to be decided.

(Wednesday) with the series even at 2–2. is tomorrow night.

34 April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS S P O R T S

Figure skating in Harlem celebrates another successful year

By LOIS ELFMAN Special to the AmNews A sellout crowd met and mingled with skating luminaries at “Celebrating Excellence & Sisterhood,” this year’s Figure Skating in Harlem (FSH) gala, held at Gotham Hall.

Celebrities of the skating world at the event included the likes of Olympic Champions Scott Hamilton and Nathan Chen, along with other well-known skaters, current FSH participants and alumnae, and this year’s honorees.

Honorees were fashion icon Michael Kors; Crystal Barnes, senior vice president, social responsibility and environmental social and governance at Paramount; and FSH alumna Flo Ngala, a rising star in photography. FSH founder/CEO Sharon Cohen was not only thrilled with Ngala’s success, but impressed by how she ties it back her experiences with the organization.

Ngala became emotional in her speech, recalling how her mother and late father helped foster her love of skating and the importance of the nurturing she received from everyone at FSH. “I stand before you filled with emotion and gratitude for an organization that literally means the world to me,” said Ngala, who earlier this year was named to the 30 Under 30 list by Forbes magazine. “While some see my career today as intriguing, I kind

of joke about how it feels like a second life of sorts, simply due to immersive and empowering experience I received at FSH during my 12 years [in figure skating]. It’s a memory of the past that follows me everywhere I go.”

High school senior India Freeman joined FSH in her freshman year of high school, introduced to it by her cousins, who had Vladimir Duthiers of CBS News, Olympic Champion Scott Hamilton, Sharon been in the program Cohen and several FSH participants (Lois Elfman photos) Starr Andrews since elementary school. “All of these doors opened the opportunities of career week.

Duthiers of CBS News. It opened South Africa, along with Cohen; up,” said Freeman, who is a Posse Starr Andrews, who this year and closed with FSH alumna Mar- Bernice Deabreu, dean of stuScholar and will attend Franklin & became the first Black female singles iama Diop, an actress/singer who dents emerita; and two staff memMarshall College in the fall. “At first, skater to medal at the U.S. Champi- performed in “The Lion King” on bers, Ila Epperson and Raquea I joined simply because I wanted to onships in 35 years, was on hand for Broadway, singing while video of Hemingway. For the FSH particido the sport. Then, I found out about the festivities. Andrews has been in- FSH was shown. pants, who were selected through the community and the sisterhood. volved with FSH for several years, inJust before the gala, it was an- an application process, this will It’s everything in one program and it cluding performing a tribute to the nounced that FSH was selected as be the trip of a lifetime. blew my mind completely.” late Mabel Fairbanks at one of FSH’s a recipient of a $75,000 grant from “We learned that the [FSH] Halle Cespedes, now an 11th virtual galas during the pandemic.

Dick’s Sporting Good’s 75for75 model held up in Detroit (Figure grader, joined FSH in sixth grade, “I love coming here and meeting program, launched in honor of Skating in Detroit was launched in missed two years during the pan- up with the girls and visiting with the retailer’s 75th anniversary.

2017), and we believe that taking demic, and rejoined this year. “I them,” said Andrews. “It’s always so The evening concluded with a skating peer-to-peer to a country didn’t realize how much I missed much fun and they’re all so sweet. quote from the late Nelson Man- where maybe girls haven’t been it until I came back and I was im- Seeing the smiles on their faces dela about how sport inspires exposed to figure skating before mersed in all the programming and makes me so happy.” people and can change the world. is enormously powerful for both seeing the girls again,” she said. “SisAgain this year, there were two This summer, 11 current FSH par- sides,” said Cohen. “That’s the terhood is one of the big things.” tables of program alumnae. ticipants (present at the gala) will way FSH can make a difference to Eighth grader Aschah Jones loved The gala was hosted by Vladimir journey to Mandela’s homeland, many other communities.”

Figure skater Franklyn Singley makes history again Franklyn Singley and partner June Smith (Photo courtesy of Franklyn Singley)

By LOIS ELFMAN Special to the AmNews In 1993, skater Franklyn Singley made figure skating history.

Not only were he and partner Tiffani Tucker the first Black skaters to medal in ice dancing at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, but they were the first ice dance team in which both partners were Black.

As the 30th anniversary of their accomplishment approached, Singley felt inspired to make another historical mark.

There is a robust adult skating competition scene in the United States (skaters 25 and over) and U.S. Figure Skating has held U.S. Adult Figure Skating Championships for more than two decades.

Singley, a skating coach, has competed several times. After last year’s Adult Championships, Singley felt an idea brewing.

“I started thinking about 1993

with Tiffani and how wonderful that was,” Singley said. “To be able to skate with her then was an amazing experience. To stand on the podium (bronze medal in junior dance) and represent was such an incredible experience. I kept thinking…I should ask Tiffani if she wants to come back and celebrate our 30-year anniversary.”

He asked Tucker, a television news anchor in Cleveland, where Singley also lives. She ultimately declined because of her hectic schedule, which includes two children. Singley then turned to long-time student June Smith, a lifelong athlete and avid adult skater.

Singley, 52, and Smith, 67, recently traveled to Salt Lake City and competed at the 2023 U.S. Adult Figure Skating Championships in the Centennial Dance division. “It meant everything,” said Singley. “In 1993, I didn’t realize the magnitude of what we accom-

plished by being visible and standing there proudly. Over the years, I’ve realized as people have come up to me and said, ‘I’d never seen a Black team before.’ Between then and now, I’ve realized how important it is to be visible. … That’s what I was going for with June.”

There were multiple moments where Singley realized that in addition to fellow competitors, judges, and officials, members of the audience were witnessing him and Smith performing. People came up to him and said they felt a sense of inclusion because of their presence.

“I want my legacy to be that the rink is my home, and when you are at my home, everyone is welcome,” said Singley, who in 2021 bought a learn-to-skate program where anyone who wants to skate has the opportunity to do so. “We started the program with 10 people, and last count were at about 215.”

April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023 • 35

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS S P O R T S

Yankees move on from a 5–5 10-game homestand

By RASHID MCDONALD Special to the AmNews

Pitcher Domingo German was scheduled to start for Yankees yesterday afternoon in the Bronx in his team’s series finale versus Minnesota Twins (mlb.com photo)

The New York Yankees completed a 10-game homestead on Sunday that featured games against the Minnesota Twins, Los Angeles Angels, and Toronto Blue Jays. They went 5–5 in those games. A 6–1 loss to the Minnesota Twins on Monday to begin a six-game road trip dropped the Yankees to 13–10, fourth place in the American League East, seven games behind the first-place Tampa Bay Rays when they played the second of three games versus the Twins on Tuesday night in the Bronx.

Last Friday, the Yankees met their division rival, the Toronto Blue Jays, for the first time this season to open a three-game weekend series. Starter Domingo German looked to build on his impressive 11-strikeout game on April 15 in a 6–1 victory against the Minnesota Twins. But German gave up four runs, including two home runs in six innings in a 6–1 defeat. On Saturday, Gerrit Cole went 5 2/3, striking out four and keeping his team in the game, allowing infielder DJ LeMahieu to hit a walkoff, bases-loaded single in the bottom of the ninth for a 3–2 victory.

In the finale on Sunday, pitcher Clarke Schmidt threw four no-hit innings until the Twins’ Matt Chapman doubled in the fifth inning. He surrendered two home runs in the sixth and the Yankees would lose the game 3–2.

Although it’s far too early for scoreboard watching, it’s unavoidable for followers of Major League Baseball not to keep a close

check on the hot Rays right now. Tampa Bay began this season by going 13–0 and set a modern-era MLB record by winning their 14th consecutive game at home to start a season with a 8–3 victory over the Houston Astros on Monday night. They were 20–3 before facing Houston on Tuesday night.

The Yankees are eagerly anticipating the

return of outfielder Harrison Bader and third baseman Josh Donaldson back in the lineup. Bader has yet to make his season debut; he’s recovering from an oblique strain. He began a rehab assignment with the Yankees Double-A Somerset team last Friday. Donaldson, who had only 16 at-bats this season before sustaining a hamstring injury, was tentatively scheduled to be activated last Wednesday, but suffered a setback when an MRI revealed a Grade 1-plus strain of his right hamstring. Donaldson is now projected to be out several more weeks.

The Yankees will play four games against the Texas Rangers at home tonight through Sunday and host the Cleveland Indians next Monday through Wednesday.

The Mets had a very impressive 10-game West Coast trip that began on April 14 and included a sweep of the A’s, a series victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers, and a four-game split against the San Francisco Giants. The Mets were 14–9 when they opened a threegame series on Tuesday night at Citi Field against the Washington Nationals. They will play three games against the Atlanta Braves at home in Queens from Friday through Sunday.

Tank Davis TKOs Ryan Garcia with a single body shot

By JASON GONZALEZ Special to the AmNews

Gervonta “Tank” Davis (left) scored a seventh round TKO versus Ryan Garcia (right) in their 136-pound catchweight fight in Las Vegas last Saturday. (Photo courtesy of Esther Lin/Showtime)

In an underwhelming but decisive finale to boxing’s most anticipated match-up in recent years, referee Thomas Taylor reached a count of 10 at the 1:44 mark of the seventh round as Ryan Garcia knelt on one knee from a body shot delivered by Gervonta “Tank” Davis in front of a crowd of 20,842 this past Saturday at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Garcia, now 23–1 (19 KOs) would be knocked down twice in the fight

by Davis, the WBA Regular lightweight champion who remained unblemished at 29–0 (27 KOs). (The WBA has the designations of Regular and Super title holders.)

The first knockdown was a counter left to the face in Round 2.

The bout-ending blow saw Garcia experience a delayed effect from a searing liver shot from Davis and a short-left uppercut placed right above the rib cage. Garcia was momentarily motionless before going down on one knee.

“I am the face of boxing,” Davis said in his post-fight interview via Showtime Boxing. He solidified himself as one of boxing’s top fighters pound-for-pound, if not arguably the sport’s biggest star, with that one body blow.

“I couldn’t breathe,” said Garcia, 24. “I was going to get back up, but I just couldn’t get up...He just caught me with a good shot. I don’t want to make [any] excuses in here...and I just couldn’t recover...He caught me with a good body shot, snuck under me, and caught me good.”

At the time of the stoppage, Davis, 28, from Baltimore, Maryland, was well ahead on all three

of the official scorecards. Judge Dave Moretti had it 59–55, Judge Steve Weisfeld 59–56, and Judge Tim Cheatham 58–56.

When Davis was asked if Garcia was the best opponent he has faced, he took a couple of seconds to answer. “I’d say he’s the best fighter,” he responded. “Definitely, we [were] going off each other’s energy in there.”

Davis claimed that Garcia’s punches never affected him, while admitting that he remained cautious.

However, he was confident that Garcia couldn’t match his ring IQ. “I just felt like I was a step, a level, above him, so everything he was doing in the ring, I was already aware of everything,” Davis said. “I was already aware a couple steps before he did it, so I was

mostly calm and just let him make his mistakes and I just countered off his mistakes.”

After his first loss, Garcia, 24, from Los Alamitos, California, bemoaned he wasn’t more patient against Davis. In the second round, when Garcia thought he injured Davis, he believed his haste worked against him. He wound up being dropped by his crafty opponent at 1:01.

“I thought I had Davis pretty hurt, to be honest,” said Garcia.

“He was actually hurt and then that’s what I get. I ran into a big shot and that’s what I get...I was impatient and then I ran into an overhand left…It didn’t really hurt me too bad, though…But then that was that. Yeah, it was simple.

I got impatient and I got caught.”

Garcia didn’t use any of the attributes that have made him a top fighter. He didn’t maximize his 5-foot-8 1/2 inch height and reach over the shorter 5-foot-5 1/2 inch Davis. Garcia was also left-hook–happy, rarely throwing his right hand to set up the left hook. He abandoned his hand speed as he declined to throw any combinations.

“I just wanted to make the fight a little bit more exciting,” Garcia said during the presser. “Again, that’s my inexperience, I guess, at the biggest stage. I definitely messed up.”

April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023 • 36

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Sports Knicks exert their will and force over Cavaliers in their playoff series

By JAIME C. HARRIS AmNews Sports Editor Donovan Mitchell had hope.

That’s what the Cleveland Cavaliers’ four-time NBA All-Star and his teammates held onto when they went into Game 5 of their best-of-seven firstround playoff series last night ( Wednesday) in their home arena, the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, looking to avert playoff elimination.

The Knicks, the Eastern Conference’s No. 5 postseason seed, had imposed their will and force on the No. 4 seed Cavaliers for a 3–1 lead and the prospect of reaching the conference semifinals for the first time since 2012-2013 season, when the loss to the Indiana Pacers 4–2.

“If you need any more motivation than this, then I don’t think you’re playing the right sport or should be playing sports,” asserted Mitchell on Tuesday. “If this elimination game doesn’t fire you up to protect home court on your own floor, then I don’t know what else could get you going.”

The Westchester County, New York, native made the decisive comment after an uncharacteristically meager performance in Game 4 at Madison Square Garden this past Sunday.

Mitchell’s shot was off-target as he missed 13 of 18 attempts, including going 0-4 on 3-pointers for 11 points as the Knicks continued to impose their force and will on the Cavaliers in a 102–93 victory.

“It’s a no-brainer for me to own that,” Mitchell said in acknowledging his well-below-standard showing. “It’s ot to be there at that moment, and I wasn’t…I’ve just got to find a way to be there in Game 5 and win the game.”

The glaring distinction between the Knicks and Cavaliers in the four games before last

Led by center Mitchell Robinson, Knicks held a 58–42 offensive rebound advantage over Cleveland Cavaliers and his counterpart Jarrett Allen, heading into Game 5 of their playoff series (Bill Moore photos) Mitchell Robinson

night was the former’s physical dominance and boundless intensity that the latter failed to match. It was no more telling than in the rebound disparity. The Knicks held a 179–158 advantage overall and 58–42 margin on the offensive glass with center Mitchell Robinson as the fulcrum. The 7-foot fourth-year pro had 18 total offensive boards leading into Game 5.

“We just play hard, you know.

They’ve got two seven-footers out there, so we just take what we can, put in more effort, and

Jarrett Allen

we got the job done,” said Robinson after Game 4.

“The rebounding has been huge and I think that it’s been critical for us and one of our strengths all year long,” said Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau. “We have to continue to do that—it’s a big part of winning. Keeping our turnovers down—we need to do better with that. The defensive rebounding is huge.”

“We keep talking about it, we keep talking about it, we keep talking about it,” repeated Cavaliers head coach Bernie

Bickerstaff Jr. regarding his team’s rebounding troubles.

“You learn when it will hurt the most. We’ve been talking about our success, going as quickly as we learn from our mistakes. In these three games, we haven’t learned quickly enough, and they made us pay.”

Defensively, the Knicks have been relentless in guarding the Cavaliers with an exceeding amount of force, with the exception of a 107–90 Game 2 defeat. They have been able to sustain pressure on the Cavs in halfcourt sets, in large part

due to their bench superiority.

Thibodeau has adeptly activated and employed his reserves, spearheaded by forward Josh Hart, while Cavaliers Bickertaff has limited resources and is essentially going to battle with a seven-man rotation, which has caused his starters to carry heavy workloads.

As Knicks point guard Jalen Brunson had his way with the Cavaliers in Game 3, posting a 24.3 scoring average in Games 1 through 4, All-Star forward Julius Randle—the team’s regular season leader in points per game (25.1) and rebounding (10.0)—is noticeably still not fully recovered from an ankle sprain that happened on March 29 at the Garden in a game versus the Miami Heat.

He sat out the Knicks’ final regular season contest and did not return until April 15, Game 1 of the playoffs.

Randle’s numbers reflect his physical obstacles. He was putting up 14.8 points on 21–65 shooting (32.3%) and 8–31 (25.8%) from behind the 3-point line and only seven rebounds per outing over four games.

After having little positive offensive impact in Games 1 and 2, shooting 6–25 and 1–8 on 3-pointers, forward RJ Barrett experienced a resurrection. He came back with 19 points on 8–12 attempts in Game 3 and 26 points in Game 4.

“Super-aggressive, you know, going downhill, getting to the line,” said Thibodeau of Barrett’s work on Sunday.

“I think a lot of the time, they were doubling Jalen, so I was able to get the ball and make some plays,” Barrett assessed. “ I was able to get into some sets, and it was a total team effort.”

If necessary, Game 6 will be at the Garden tomorrow night and Game 7 in Cleveland.

WE SAY FIGHT BACK!

Continued from page S6

people with force, ‘There’s a labor dispute, exit the building now!’”

And to his surprise the workers... listened. They all left the building and lined up across the street while Fight Back leaders spoke with their supervisors who promised that several of their members would return tomorrow and be allowed to work.

“And I remember I got really emotional. This was like a religious experience to me,” Chambers said. That experience would light a fire in him to become more active in the organization. “Jim used to always talk about building an army. Like not the army in the sense of fighting,” but an army made up of the community to fight for equal opportunities to work.

Jerome Meadows also joined Fight Back in his 20s after working as a drug dealer for the infamous Nicky Barnes. A friend told him about the organization and how it was helping people get construction work, an attractive alternative to the messenger work he was doing after leaving the drug trade behind.

When he explained his checkered past, Fight Back organizers still welcomed him and he, too, joined the direct actions to stop construction sites.

Meadows didn’t get work immediately, but he stayed with Fight Back, and within a few months he was earning $18 an hour working in demolition. But he also saw that “we really wasn’t accepted with open arms” at a job site that were otherwise lily white.

On some of his first jobs, Meadows said, they called him “derogatory names. They would write ‘Nigger go home,’ nigger this, nigger that in the bathroom.” He added that white workers left “ropes with with monkeys hanging [from them]. It was terrible.”

But Meadows and Chambers endured the abuse and racism they encountered and climbed the ranks, eventually joining Local 79 at Haughton’s encouragement.

MAKING CHANGE FROM WITHIN

During his time with Fight Back, and later within Local 79, Meadows recalled seeing a transformation happen within the real estate development community in New York City due at least in part to the pressure of the ongoing direct action work of Fight Back and other organizations.

This series was made possible by a grant from the Solutions Journalism Network. Brian Palmer contributed research and reporting to this article.

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

“If you’re building in these communities, a certain amount of work must go to people in the community,” Meadows said of the organization’s approach. Once the developers decided to start hiring minorities, he added, “they started putting [us] on [as] project managers. Women started getting key positions.”

Even within the union, which Chambers joined at Houghton’s urging after several years of working with Fight Back, he recalled that his early days as an organizer were anything but pleasant.

“I spent a few years there feeling like a hated man,” he said. “People did not like me. People were not nice to me. But there were some people there who had nothing in common with me but they took me under their wing. And they helped protect me. And it gave me time to be able to work on things.”

The hard work of Haughton, Chambers, Meadows, and the thousands of activists and union members and leaders helped transform the landscape of New York organized labor.

Chambers says that Local 79 was more than 90% white in the mid 1990s and based on public filings from Local 79 required by the government. Now, the union is comprised of than 70% women and people of color.

Getting to this point has not been easy.

“There has been a complete paradigm shift within the leadership of the building trades, in terms of the way they view diversity,” Gary LaBarbera, President of the New York State and the New York City Building and Construction Trades Councils, said in an interview with the AmNews.

“I’m very proud of what the leadership of these individual unions have taken on and collaboratively we have made a real decision, a conscious decision to expand that increase opportunity and further diversify the building trades.

“When you look at the apprentices that are coming in, over 75% identify as a minority. And so this has been a conscious effort by the building trades affiliates and the Building Trades Council, to once and for all move past that criticism, and we have committed ourselves to working with marginalized and underserved communities.”

Chambers acknowledged that the legacy of trade unions excluding workers of color was well known. “But we also understand that at some point, somebody needs to build an army of like-minded folks....And once again, I need to stress this. I don’t want you to write something that [makes] people say, ‘Oh, Lavon Chambers says that the racism is over?’

No, that’s not what I’m saying. I don’t know anywhere in America that I could actually say that. But what I am saying is that while things have changed so much, that there’s an opportunity to help people,” he added.

Our final installment will examine what programs are working to solve the access problem for workers of color and the impact they are having on the lives of young people.

April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023 •

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April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023 •

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BUILDING THE PATHWAY TO THE MIDDLE CLASS

By DAMASO REYES AmNews Investigative Editor For most New Yorkers, high school doesn’t involve welding or building bathrooms, but for the hundreds of students at the Bronx Design and Construction Academy, and the many schools like it, what students learn in their teen years puts them on a direct path to lucrative, middle class jobs.

Career and Technical Education (CTE) is the modern evolution of what used to be called, sometimes derisively, vocational education. While more than 60,000 CTE students each year in NYC gain a practical education in a trade, they also learn advanced math and the skills that will power the Green Economy.

“I always thought that construction workers were dirty,” said Bronx Design and Construction Academy senior Issa Samake in an interview with the AmNews.

Before attending the school, he believed that construction workers and those in the skilled trades “were doing a lot of dirty work, for not enough pay. I felt like people who go into construction are the people who don’t have any other choices in life— they have to go to construction to make ends meet,” he added.

A first-generation American whose parents hail from Mali, Samake, along with his classmates, takes traditional academic and even Advanced Placement classes while focusing on one of five areas: Plumbing, Electrical, Carpentry, Architecture, and HVAC. Soon after starting his first year, Samake’s opinions about the skilled trades began to change.

“I see it as hard work, and I also see it as a skill. And you need to be smart,” he said.

“One of the first things I learned when I came to the school was that no matter what trade you do, what type of construction you do...you’re gonna have to be good at math.”

He has focused on plumbing in high school and, thanks to the school’s state-of-theart facilities, has learned how to build and repair bathrooms for home and commercial spaces, among other skills.

In 2020, CTE schools in New York City had an 86% graduation rate, according to the Department of Education, compared to 79% for the system overall.

“There is a huge focus on interdisciplinary instruction,” said Venkatesh Harini, executive director of Career Connected Learning in the NYC Public Schools. “We’re trying to, at all points in time, seamlessly integrate the academic requirements with the technical requirements, so that ultimately, when a student graduates from our school system, they have a core set of skills that make them both college- and career-ready soon after they graduate.”

She said that schools Chancellor David Banks “has emphasized the importance of

Apprentices practice welding at a union training facility.

(Ornamental Ironworkers Local 580)

the company for 99 years and he believes that being an industry partner by offering internships has huge benefits for the students, the community, and his business.

“The kids that have come from this program have been amazing,” Bieder said in an interview. “This program affords them the opportunity to make a great living.

Almost all have gone on to jobs in the industry and many of the kids come from lower-income areas.”

He also noted that “there is a huge need for qualified people. Right now, I have so many contractors who tell me on a regular basis that they can’t find anyone to work for them.” Bieder said with pride that many of his former interns now come through his doors as customers who are working in the industry.

Being qualified as a skilled tradesperson can make a huge difference to the career prospects of many students.

“We have students who realize that ‘I’m struggling where I live, and one way to improve my circumstances is to learn this trade so that I could become employed and hopefully take care of myself,’” said Johnson.

“The positive is, students are able to begin their careers at 18, which will lead to them supporting themselves. As much as possible, we try to steer our students toward the high-income earning opportunities if they qualify. Unfortunately, we do not get enough students to qualify,” he added.

Johnson said that his greatest feeling of success as a teacher comes when his former students, many of whom are under 30, return to invite him to the housewarming party for their recently purchased homes.

‘WE DON’T CREATE JOBS, WE CREATE CAREERS’

reimagining learning so that we are connecting a young person’s passion and purpose to long-term economic security.”

NOT ALL ROADS LEAD TO COLLEGE

For decades, American educators have preached that the primary path to economic security is a four-year college degree, and many Americans still pursue that track. But the huge demand in skilled trades like plumbing means that not every student has to straddle themselves with the kind of college debt that even President Biden is trying to wipe out.

“College is supposed to prepare individuals for their chosen career. If a student wants to be an engineer or go into

the medical field, a step to those industries [is] college, so they have to go that pathway. However, for many other careers, the pathway is not college,” said Anthony Johnson, one of Samake’s teachers, in an interview. “They can [go] from high school…directly into a career.”

Johnson noted that some individuals are unemployed after finishing college, and their degree has nothing to do with the career they choose. “So what was the value of going to college for that person?”

For students like Samake, an internship is an important step in their path. As part of his education, he spent months working at Westchester Square Plumbing Supply. Bob Bieder’s family has run

What about those who don’t receive the opportunity to learn a trade while still in high school?

For much of the 20th century, the way into a skilled trade union was essential through birth: A family or friend connection was the only way into an apprenticeship program, which led many local unions, including some of those in New York, to being lily white.

“We don’t create jobs, we create careers,” said Gary LaBarbera, president of the New York State and the New York City Building and Construction Trades Councils, in an interview with the AmNews.

His organization provides programs that, in addition to working with New York high school students, help several groups, including veterans and those who have been affected by the criminal justice system and others, prepare to become skilled trade apprentices and join those unions.

While many unions have had long histories of exclusion, LaBarbera highlighted the forward-thinking choices that his members have taken to create change. The Continued on page S9

BUILDING THE PATHWAY TO THE MIDDLE CLASS

April 27, 2023 - May 3, 2023 •

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programs they offer train between 600 and 800 people a year, which make up around 40% of new apprentices in New York.

“Why it so vital to reach into marginalized or underserved communities is because we believe the goal of organized labor is to lift people out of poverty into the middle class, and to build a stronger middle class and to create an opportunity for people to have family-sustaining careers where they can also have good medical coverage for themselves and their families, and ultimately have retirement security,” LaBarbera said.

“This is only offered through the unionized construction industry and through our apprentice programs.”

Jamahl Humbert, Jr. is an example of how such programs make a difference.

He wakes up at 4 in the morning to travel more than 90 minutes from his home in Staten Island to the International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental, and Reinforcing Ironworkers Local 580 Training Facility in Long Island City.

The nondescript structure could easily be mistaken for an office building, but once inside, it becomes clear that this is a place where folks work with their hands.

Humbert joined the program because it offered what he described as a “lifetime skill.” The program offers the ability to get on a pre-apprentice track that is otherwise much more challenging to get into.

“I think that for a lot of people, construction skills is definitely the way to go,” Humbert said.

Nearly 90% of the participants in the Edward J. Malloy Initiative for Construction Skills are members of a minority community, said Nicole Bertrán, the organization’s executive vice president, in an interview. In addition, “80% of the graduates we place into unionized, apprenticeship opportunities stay and complete their apprenticeship and become journeypersons. That’s really important because a lot of the criticism or critique of programs like construction skills is that ‘you can get them into the apprenticeship, but then they never finish,’ which isn’t true,” she said.

Programs like these not only pay trainees and apprentices to learn; those students leave the programs debt-free, unlike the tens of millions of Americans struggling with college student loan debt.

NO MAGIC BULLETS

While these initiatives and ones like it in New York are making a real impact, there is still much work to be done on the national level. According to a recently released report by the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, which examined all registered apprenticeship programs (including those outside the construction and skilled trades), Black apprentices are underrepresented across the country, making up just 9% of apprentices, even though Black Americans make up more than 12%

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Continued from page S8

Students at the Bronx Design and Construction Academy show off their skills during an open house.

(Karen Juanita Carrillo/AmNews)

of the national workforce. However, this is still an improvement from 1960, when Black workers made up only 3.3% of apprentices in registered programs.

The report also noted that Black apprentices are least likely to complete their programs and have the lowest earnings. Justin Nalley, a senior policy analyst at the Joint Center, attributes this in part to the high concentration of Black apprentices in the South.

“In the South, you don’t have the same labor standards for workers and employers,” he said in an interview with the AmNews. “The apprentices in the South are only earning 64 cents on the dollar compared to other areas in the country.”

Real estate developer William Wallace IV of the Continuum Company, along with many of those interviewed for this article, attributed the lack of full representation in the skilled construction and construction trades to the lack of use of unionized labor. A third-generation Harlemite, Wallace is perhaps unusual among his peers, many of whom seem to only have their eyes on the ledger books, for his fierce

advocacy of the use of unionized labor in the construction industry. But he also acknowledges that labor has not always been a friend to the Black worker.

“Building and construction trades had a terrible reputation, justifiably so, for not incorporating, welcoming, and including many members of color,” he said in an interview. But he noted that in New York, since “Gary LaBarbara has been president of the Building Construction Trades Council, there was an enormous turnaround—almost a mission to be as reflective as the community in which business is being done.”

While the building and construction trades have become far more inclusive, Wallace emphasized that “the amount of work that unions have been receiving, particularly for residential work in New York, has been enormously diminished.

It used to be a 100% union town and that has changed.”

Being a developer of color in an industry with so few peers is also a motivating reason behind why Wallace is so pro-union.

“My commitment is to be sure that people

of color that are qualified have an opportunity to build,” he said. “I think you don’t find that personal kind of political commitment because there’s not [many] people of color in the development community.”

LaBarbera said that while his unions do work closely with many forward-thinking developers, “there are developers out there only committed to one thing, and that’s profit. And I don’t believe they’re really, truly committed to diversity; I don’t believe they’re really, truly committed to creating opportunities. They’re just looking at their bottom line.”

“If you think about it, building and construction is everywhere—we are born in a hospital that was built and constructed, we go back to a home or an apartment that was built and constructed,” Wallace said. “To not be [able] to be part of that is criminal.”

This series was made possible by a grant from the Solutions Journalism Network.

Brian Palmer and Report for America corps member Tandy Lau contributed research and reporting to this article.

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Harry Belafonte In Memoriam:

(1927-2023)

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PETER NOEL Special to the Amsterdam News

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