Valley Stream
HERALD
School board race coverage
Auto body shop burglarized
South holds drive-by parade
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Vol. 31 No. 23
JUNE 4 - 10, 2020
Owners react to Phase One of reopening reopening of her business on Monday, Elfante, who was used to selling $3,000 to $5,000 worth The Phase One reopening of of flowers a week, now orders a Long Island’s economy began quarter of that. She can no lonMay 27, and many non-essential ger pay her employees and laid businesses reopened them all off. She for the first time in runs her business about a dozen weeks alone. with curbside pick“I’ve owned my up and drop-off. business for 16 After months of a years, and to work so statewide closure, hard and then all of ow n e r s o f n o n a sudden it’s gone, is essential businesses tough,” she said. in Valley Stream “I’m counting on my said they had lost Valley Stream comcustomers, time and munity to support money, and that their local florist resuming their sershop and get my vices has been diffibusiness back to cult. nor mal with my “Reopening my employees. I’m hopbusiness has been ing and praying, unsettling,” said because this is my Lisa Elfante, the livelihood.” owner of Central Deo Singh, the F lorist in Valley liSA ElfANtE owner of D Singh Stream. “I lost a lot General Contractors Owner, of business since we Inc., does construcw e r e c l o s e d o n Central Florist tion work at schools Mother’s Day and in various commufor communions and nities. With the pandemic conother events.” tinuing, he does not take a job if Due to the closure, wholesal- there will be too many people at ers made little to no money, and a construction site. farmers were forced to throw out “It was exciting opening up many flower. Now, since the Continued on page 4
By NicolE AlciNdor nalcindor@liherald.com
i
Peter Belfiore/Herald
HUNdrEdS of pEoplE in Valley Stream and Elmont hit the streets on Monday to protest the police killing of George Floyd and police violence against black people in America.
Hundreds in V.S., Elmont protest George Floyd’s death By pEtEr BElfiorE pbelfiore@liherald.com
Their names were on the protesters’ minds and lips for most of the evening Monday: ■ Breyonna Taylor, shot eight times in March in her home when police entered without warning. ■ Ahmaud Arbery, shot while on a jog in February after two white men pursued him in a pickup truck.
■ Eric Garner, who died after groaning that he could not breathe as police arrested him. ■ Sean Bell, killed in a hail of gunfire in 2006 by plainclothes NYPD officers. ■ George Floyd, who died on Memorial Day after Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin pressed his knee to Floyd’s neck for more than eight minutes as Floyd pleaded for his life.
In Valley Stream and Elmont, hundreds marched in their memories, exactly a week after Floyd’s death. It took place against a backdrop of national outcry over police violence against black people, and while some of the protests had become violent, Monday’s remained peaceful. “We felt it was only right to organize something like this,” said Elmont resident Goldie Harrison, 26, noting that in Continued on page 3
’m counting on my Valley Stream community to support their local florist shop and get my business back to normal with my employees.