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NYC Social Issues / Community Issues NYC
August 18, 2025 / NYC Social Issues & Community Issues NYC / NYC Neighborhoods & NYC History / Gotham Buzz
This section is dedicated to the Social Issues / Community Issues section on Gotham Buzz NYC.
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1. The reports at the top of this section will contain either current reports of issues, or prior reports of current events in NYC.
2. The rest of this section will contain reports done previously, which over time we'll organize by schools / education, healthcare, crime, sexism and racism. Affordable Housing reports will be published in the Real Estate & Business section and Climate Change reports will be published in the Parks Sports & Environment section.
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NYC Social Issues NYS
Crime, Healthcare, Education, Sexism & Racism,
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Queens Social Issues & Community Issues
Crime in NYC - NYC Crime Statistics & Crime News Reports
NYC Healthcare - NYC Hospitals, Clinics & Health Issues
The Corona Virus in NYC & NYS - CoVid Special Section
NYC Public Schools & NYC Public Education & Charter Schools NYC NYS
NYC Social Issues NYS
Crime, Punishment, Enforcement & Prevention
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NYC Mayor Adams & First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright Set out on Ambitious Plan to Stop Violent Crimes Before They Happen
Eric Adams, Sheena Wright & Persons of Interest
The NYC Mayor & First Deputy Mayor have Set Out on an Ambitious Effort to Prevent Crimes Before They Happen through the Gun Violence Prevention Task Force [GVPTF]
UPDATED _ August 19, 2023 vs 8.16.23 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Social Issues & Law Enforcement / News Reporting, Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.
Last Thursday I headed down to City Hall to hear a presentation by First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright, and Andre T. Mitchell of Man Up! in Brooklyn, who are the Co-Chairs of the Mayor's Gun Violence Prevention Task Force. The Mayor's Office of Ethnic & Community Media [MOECM] had organized the roundtable presentation at City Hall, and there were a bit more than a couple of dozen local media reporters in attendance.
The photo at right top shows two characters in the CBS TV series Person of Interest who spend their time trying to prevent crimes before they happen. The photo bottom right shows the Mayor & First Deputy Mayor, who are working to reduce and prevent crime in real life.
If one sets aside the drama, theatrics, rule bending & breaking, and the sensationalism of the TV series, there are some interesting parallels between what the folks in real life are trying to do, vis a vis what the imaginary characters of the TV series were trying to do. We'll have more on this later in the report.
Behind the Scenes at City Hall with Sheena Wright
The First Deputy Mayor, Sheena Wright, provided an overview of what the Adams Administration has quietly been working on - mostly behind the scenes - in the neighborhoods in NYC most wracked by violent crime.
Since June of 2022, Wright, Mitchell and the Gun Violence Prevention Task Force have been laying the ground work to try to prevent crime in the high violence communties, before it starts. She described it as going upstream to root out the underlying causes of violent crime.
The Task Force has taken a holistic approach to the problem, rather than taking the historic / authoritarian approach to violent crime, which had further oppressed the people in the affected communities, by over policing them. For example during the Bloomberg Administration, the NYPD was instructed to stop and frisk people, seemingly at will.
This is not to say that the Adams Administration has reduced policing in these neighborhoods, because they have not. In fact they have increased policing in these neighborhoods, BUT they have concurrently begun reinvesting in these neighborhoods, which for decades, they told us, have experienced significant community disinvestment. I have not yet independently verified the disinvestment claim, but believe it is directionally correct.
The photo at right shows Jose Bayona, Executive Director of the MOECM; Sheena Wright, First Deputy Mayor and Andre T. Wright, Founder of Man Up! at a Round Table meeting at City Hall.
- CLICK here to read the rest of our report on the Adams Administration Approach to Violent Crime & NYC Crime Statistics Update.
Mayor Adams Vetoes the How Many Stops Act - 586-A
Feb 01, 2024 at 12:15 am by PeterParker
Mayor Adams Justifies his Veto of the How Many Stops Act - 586-A
Jan 30, 2024 at 12:15 am by PeterParker
China Secret Police in NYC, Springtime Forest Fires in NYS & Climate Change & Murdoch's Mendacious Media
May 18, 2023 at 12:15 am by PeterParker
Honoring the Sacrifice Made by NYPD Officers Mora & Rivera
Mora & Rivera were Policemen, Civilians, Minorities, Immigrant and son of, Husband, Sons, Brothers and Real Heroes
What Can We do to Make Sure they didn't die in Vain?
February 7, 2022 / NYC Neighborhoods / News Analysis & Opinion / Manhattan Buzz NYC.
On Wednesday morning I made my way into Manhattan to observe the funeral of slain NYPD Officer Mora. To be sure, it was a solemn occasion. I got off the subway near 42nd Street and Fifth Avenue. Once above ground, I made my way to Fifth Avenue and 42nd where I came across the largest gathering of police officers I have ever seen in my life [see photo at right].
As I walked up Fifth Avenue, I could hear the eulogies over the loud speakers, echoing in the street. I took a few photos and some video of the gathering which spanned all the way up to 50th Street by St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Eventually I had to detour off of Fifth Avenue, make my way down to Sixth Avenue, and then cut back in at 50th Street to get close to the cathedral on Fifth Avenue.
A Communal Gathering of Policemen from the TriState Area and Beyond, at Officer Mora's Funeral at St. Patrick's Cathedral on Wednesday, February 2nd, 2022
As I walked and listened I looked around at all of the policemen gathered in honor of a fellow member of the fraternal order of policemen – not just of New York City but of NYS - and for that matter - the U.S. All of the police men and women were standing, some standing silently listening to the speeches, while others made small talk with each other, between the speeches, about their kids, their families, their jobs, their departments [homicide / detectives / street patrolmen], cars and boats, as well as chatting about which police department or organization they represented.
It reminded me of other funerals I had attended, which it’s been said, are for the living – not the dead. Yes, we come to honor the dead, but they have since gone. And it is left to us who are left behind, to make sense of things. It is our job to figure out how to take the lessons their lives and make them work for us, so that they will not have died in vain.
The expansiveness of the showing of support was somewhere between impressive and overwhelming, as I walked silently through this sea of dark blue, which filled over 8 city blocks on a wide avenue - and which spilled well into the cross streets both east and west of the entire eight blocks. There were thousands of police, mostly men with some women, mostly white but also many minorities, who had come to pay their last respects for a member of their ranks who had made the ultimate sacrifice. A sacrifice that all of them know they must be ready to make each day as they don their dark coats to serve and protect the community. Us.
I noticed the badges sewn to their coats, representing Trenton and Teaneck New Jersey, Suffolk and Nassau Counties, New York State, and of course the NYPD, as well as a smattering of policemen from more distant communities. They projected a sense of sadness and courtesy, as I made my way through the crowd. I sensed that they must also have felt some measure of comfort, standing there, side by side with others like themselves, knowing that they are supported by so many others who share their sense of duty, ready to face down danger.
This seemed a bit like a George Floyd like moment for the police in the city and perhaps the nation. These two young officers, were senselessly murdered, while responding to a domestic violence call within a few blocks of the 32nd precinct Harlem police station where the two police officers worked. Shortly after the policemen entered the apartment, the assailant shot them down with a barrage of bullets from a semi-automatic gun which the assailant had stolen in Maryland.
As I came upon St Patrick’s Cathedral, surrounded by the police, it seemed like a fortress with its big, thick church doors closed, to keep out the noise and cold air while the mass continued inside. A coterie of media people were on a platform across the street from the front of the cathedral, waiting for the doors to open. The Mayor, Police Commissioner Sewell and Wilbur Mora’s brother and sister gave speeches. Karina, Mora's sister, gave her speech in Spanish, as the Moras immigrated here from the Dominican Republic decades ago.
- CLICK here for the rest of our report about the Tribute Paid to Slain Officers Mora & Rivera of Harlem Precinct.
NYC Crime Statistics NYPD for 2021 Murdoch mass media distorts the truth to divide the nation selectively picking crime statistics labeling propaganda
Apr 24, 2022 at 03:41 pm by mikewood
NYC Crime Statistics Year to Date August 2021
Aug 11, 2021 at 03:41 pm by mikewood
Crime in NYC - NYC Crime Statistics & Crime News Reports
Aug 18, 2025 at 12:15 am by PeterParker
QB 1060 / BX
Closure of Rikers Island Moves Another Step Forward
In Oct 2019 NYC Council Designated Neighborhood Jail Locations in Four Boroughs
Community Board One in Astoria Only Approved the Closure of Rikers Island
January 26, 2020 / Bronx Neighborhoods / Queens Neighborhoods / Queens Politics / Bronx Politics & Government / Queens Buzz NYC & Bronx Buzz NYC.
A week ago, on Tuesday, January 21st I attended the Community Board One meeting at the Astoria World Manor where the board was asked to approve the closing of the Rikers Island Detention Facility effective sometime before the end of the year 2026.
The photo at right was taken from an airplane while landing at LaGuardia in a prior year. Rikers Island Correctional Facility is a stone's throw away from LGA.
Queens Community Board One in Astoria Votes on Rikers Closure
The presentation consisted of two slides. One highlighted the social / moral blight that Rikers Island had become. The second slide simply proposed the request in very limited terms - the closing of Rikers Island and the conversion of it to a ‘public place’. The presentation to the Committee was done by a team lead by Dana Kaplan, Deputy Director of the NYC Mayor's Office of Criminal Justice.
So please note that the Community Board had no role in the placement of neighborhood jails, nor did they sign off on anything that may become of Rikers Island going forward. They only approved the closing of the Correctional Facility and the allowance of use for it as a "public place".
I spoke with CB1 District Manager Florence Kolouris after the meeting about what exactly that meant. She told me that there isn’t any definition, per se, given for public place – but a couple of examples of prior public places include Lincoln Center, Fort Totten and Queens Borough Hall.
The Community Board approved the measure with a recommendation that CB1 be kept in the loop throughout the closing process, including any demolition. Plenty of questions followed regarding what would become of the 400 acre island. Nothing concrete was proposed at this time, but the audience was assured that any changes would have to come through the Community Board via the ULURP process [Uniform Land Use Review Procedure].
The Bronx & Queens - Rikers Island Community Jurisdiction & Prison Population
It’s worth noting that technically Rikers Island is a part of the Bronx – not Queens – even though the only road traveling onto the island originates in the Astoria / East Elmhurst neighborhoods of Queens. In addition to Queens Community Board One, Bronx Community Board Two, representing the Hunts Point neighborhood, also has influence over the island. Since the Dinkins Administration in the 1990's, there's been a floating barge facility that's docked in Hunts Point, that is considered a part of the Rikers Island Correctional Facility.
Currently there are an estimated 7,000 plus inmates on Rikers Island. At its height, in 1991, Rikers Island held an estimated overcapacity inmate population of nearly 22,000. By the time the facility is to be closed in 2026, the inmate population is expected to have declined to between 3,000 and 4,000.
The photo at right shows the Rikers Island Correctional Facility which will be closed by the end of 2026.
- CLICK here to read the rest of our report on the Rikers Island closing in Queens & the Bronx approved by Community Board One in Astoria / Queens. The designated Rikers replacement jail sites in four of the five boroughs was approved in an October NYC Council meeting.
NYC Crime Continues To Drop, Breaking Records
Mayor de Blasio & NYPD Discuss City Safety & Ongoing Improvements
February 7, 2017 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Government / Gotham Buzz NYC.
This just came in on the heels of our coverage of the Public Safety discussion below. Mayor de Blasio and NY Police Commissioner O'Neill spoke in the Bronx regarding ongoing efforts and results in improving safety in the city. The following are some of the crime statistics noted in their meeting taken directly out of a press release sent by them.
Chief of Crime Control Strategies Dermot Shea, NYPD: Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Good afternoon, everyone. As you've heard, we have begun a strong start to 2017 in terms of overall crime reduction. Strategies that have been put in place to address repeat offenders, illegal gun possession and gangs are having the desired effect. We're building on the momentum of the last few years.
- So, some of the highlights for crime statistics from this January - overall index crime is down 0.2 percent for the month of January. When you carry it over to this morning, we are now down 2.7 percent in overall index crime in New York City.
- To note - with the overall index crime, January marks the tenth consecutive month of reduced index crime. That's the momentum we've been talking about. Currently, four out of five boroughs in New York City - all but Queens - are down to start the year.
- Homicides - we recorded 20 homicides in January. That's down two from 22. That 20, as the Mayor alluded to, is the lowest January that we have ever recorded going back a minimum into the 1960s.
- Shooting incidents - down 1.7 percent in January. Last January we hit the modern mark with 59 shooting incidents. We came in with 58 this January.
- Talking about momentum again - nine of the last 13 months we've had a reduction in shooting incidents. Nine of the last 13.
- Three months in a row we've had a reduction in shooting incidents in New York City. We have now, when you look at New York City as a whole, we now have 24-hour periods where we do not record a shooting incident in New York City. That kind of thinking was impossible in the not too distant past.
- This is the new normal. We want to build on it and we feel that we will build on it but there's still plenty of work to do.
- Stabbings and slashings for January - down 7.2 percent.
- Robberies - down 7.5 percent. Lowest January robbery number we've seen.
- Felony assaults in New York City - down 5.4 percent.
- Burglaries tied the lowest mark set last year.
- Transit crime - down 1.4 percent.
- And housing crime - not to be outdone - down 1.9 percent.
- Clearly, a wide breath of crime across New York City - property and violent crime, down.
But there is, I alluded to, there is still work to do - three categories we saw increases in January.
- Rape was up 8.9 percent.
- Grand larceny, specifically, credit card related skimming and forging of checks - those two drove grand larcenies. And grand larceny was up for the month of January 4.7 percent.
- And lastly, rounding out the crime totals - stolen vehicles which we have seen drop to unprecedented lows saw an increase of ten cars for January. So, that's 480 versus 470 - a two percent increase.
Commissioner O'Neill: Okay, thanks, Dermot. We'll take your questions.
Question: Do you think it's possible, really to keep driving crime down further at this point? And how could you achieve that?
O'Neill's response was yes, with some added context.
NYC Social Issues NYS
Healthcare Services & Access
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Mount Sinai - Living Donor Celebration - at the NY Academy of Medicine NYC
I was Almost Shocked by a Lot of What I Learned about Kidney & Liver Transplants
September 25, 2023 / Manhattan Neighborhoods NYC / Manhattan Healthcare NYC / Manhattan Buzz.
Nearly two weeks ago, on Wednesday, September 13th, I headed into the New York Academy of Medicine at 1215 5th Avenue on the Upper East Side to attend a ceremony - a celebration actually - honoring Living Donors of Mt. Sinai's kidney and liver transplant program.
To be frank, when first approached to cover this event, I wasn't sure of what to expect. But after mulling it over, and perhaps with a bit of deference to my Mother, who had signed away her organs on her driver's license [and likely elsewhere], I decided to go to see what I might learn.
New York Academy of Medicine on the UES
The ceremony was held at the New York Academy of Medicine, which is located along 5th Avenue at 103rd Street. The NY Academy of Medicine was founded in 1847 by a number of NYC doctors, most notably the Presidents of the NYU School of Medicine, the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and the Medical Society of the City and County of New York. The Academy has played an influential role in shaping public health policy in NYC, NYS and the U.S.
The building in which the New York Academy of Medicine is located, as well as the location of the Mt. Sinai Living Donor Ceremony, was built in 1926 and is also home to the NY Academy of Medicine's library of various aspects of medicine, which was first started in 1847, opened to the public in 1878, and continues to be accessible to the public to this day. Generally it's dedicated to those wishing to do research and one has to make an appointment to use it. For more information and to make an appointment see - https://www.nyam.org/library/connect/visit-library/
The Mt. Sinai Living Donor Ceremony event was held on the third floor of the building what seemed a library reading room turned into a theater. The room had 20 foot high ceilings [possibly higher], nearly floor to ceiling windows overlooking Central Park, and I'm no expert, but I believe the bookcases in the front of the room were made of oak. The Carnegie Foundation donated about one million to the NY Academy of Medicine to build this building back in the 1920's.
My point in telling you all of this, is to provide a feeling and sense of connection to the past, the early roots of scientific healthcare in this country, which I assume was part of the consideration in selecting this location for the event ... as well as its proximity to the Mt Sinai Hospital campus on the Upper East side, which is located along 5th Avenue between 98th Street and 103rd Street.
CLICK here to read the rest of our story about kidney and liver transplants by Mount Sinai at a presentation at the NY Academy of Medicine.
Why does NYC Care?
Why does NYC Care?
NYC Care is a Citywide Health Program Designed to Aid People Who Cannot Afford to Pay for their Entire Health Insurance Coverage
July 10, 2023 / NYC Healthcare / NYC Neighborhoods / Gotham Buzz.
Two weeks ago, on Monday, June 26, 2023 I attended a meeting in City Hall hosted by the Adams Administration. It was raining fairly hard as I approached City Hall on this warm June afternoon.
The purpose of the meeting was to highlight the achievements being made in providing healthcare to New Yorkers. The focus on this day, was the progress being made toward providing healthcare to those who cannot [fully] afford it, by enrolling them into the NYC Care insurance program.
The meeting was arranged by the Mayor's Office of Ethnic & Community Media. I arrived a bit early and spent time catching up with some of the other reporters while waiting for the meeting to begin.
The photo at right shows the NYC City Hall on a warm, rainy mid afternoon in late June.
What is NYC Care?
In the meeting we were told that, while the NYC Care program is a healthcare / insurance program that focuses on minorities, immigrants and those for whom English is a second language, it is available to everyone - including Whites - assuming all candidates for the insurance program meet the same preconditions.
Enrollees in the NYC Care healthcare insurance program need only meet three criteria to be eligible: 1) must be 21 years old, 2) they must have a valid government ID from the U.S. or a valid passport from their nation of origin, and 3) they may not be eligible for any other private or public health insurance program [such as Medicaid / Medicare]. There used to be a proof of six months of NYC residency requirement, but it was later rescinded.
- CLICK here to read the rest of our report on NYC Health & Hospitals NYC Care low cost / no cost health insurance in NYC.
The Nurses Strike at Mt Sinai & Montefiore Hospitals
One Nurse Told me She Felt Like Nurses had gone from Heroes to Zeroes
January 5, 2023 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Healthcare / Manhattan Buzz NYC / 387.
On Monday I made the trip to the Mount Sinai Medical Center between 5th and Madison Avenues and between 99th and 101st Street on the Upper East Side. Mt Sinai is the hold out in completing negotiations or even resuming them with the New York State Nurses Association union or NYSNA.
By last Friday, January 6, 2023, New York Presbyterian Hospital, the Maimonides Medical Center and Richmond University Medical Center had reached tentative agreements with the NYSNA union that included improvements in safe staffing and wages.
By Saturday, January 7, 2023 the NYSNA tweeted that BronxCare Health System and Flushing Hospital Medical Center had "reached tentative agreements that will improve safe staffing levels and enforcement, increase wages by 7%, 6%, and 5%, and save their healthcare benefits."
By Monday, January 9, 2023 about 7,100 pf the 42,000 nurses in the NYSNA union were set to go on strike at Mt Sinai in Manhattan and Montefiore in the Bronx. When I arrived around noon time at Mount Sinai in Manhattan on Monday, the NYSNA had a strong showing by their members. And the vehicular traffic appeared to be highly supportive of them, which you will see in the video I shot when I post it later today. The strikers were stationed primarily on Madison Avenue at about 99th Street, and there was a speaker there, but I really couldn't hear what she had to say with all the surrounding commotion, you'll see that too.
So I found a few nurses talking things over a bit away from the crowd, and I spoke with them. They told me that the strike is primarily about two issues: 1) staffing levels and 2) compensation. I learned a couple of things I didn't hear reported in the corporate media, which I'll share. But please note that I've not yet had a chance to confirm these findings with either of the hospitals still on strike.
The first thing they told me is that the staffing levels vis a vis patient loads are and remain the primary cause of the strike. They said that in the last union negotiation the hospitals agreed to put in recommended grids for staffing levels per patient for the various hospital units, which was a good first step. The problem is that the new staffing grids were not made enforceable.
Thus, because the staffing grids per patient remain unenforceable, I was told that they are exceeded too often. The trouble with this, they told me [and remember these are not the official spokespeople for the union, but rather rank and file union members, and I haven't yet cross referenced these findings with either hospital - see below] is that when you exceed the recommended staffing levels for prolonged periods of time, the probability of staff mistakes rise [dispensing meds and providing treatments], and hence this isn't just unsafe for patients, but it also puts the licenses of the nurses in jeopardy, should they make a mistake.
The second thing they told me was that the corporate media tells New Yorkers that the striking nurses are holding out for higher percentage pay increases vis a vis the nurses at the other hospitals who have reached tentative deals. They thought this characterization was incomplete - if not unfair - as the nurses at Mt Sinai and Montefiore have lower pay scales than the nurses at the other NYC hospitals.
CLICK here to read the rest of our report on the NYC / NYS Nurses Strike in Manhattan and the Bronx.
CoVid Update and the Threat of the Tripledemic NYC
* Home for the Holidays - CoVid Update & the 'Tripledemic'
A Three Virus Healthcare Threat may be Good for TV Ratings & Headlines, but is it Real?
An NYC Tripledemic Update - Analysis of Reporting of RSV, Flu & CoVid in NYC
As We Return to En Vivo Socializing Over the Holidays - Things to be Aware of
December 19, 2022 / NYC Neighborhoods / CoVid in NYC / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.
NYC Weather. There's going to be some semi-serious precipitation [at present 2 plus inches] beginning Thursday afternoon around 4 pm, continuing until Friday about 4 pm. The temperatures are expected to rise to well above freezing, so it's almost certain to be rain in the city. As for the rest of the week, no rain Monday through Wednesday, and none is expected Saturday and Sunday, as folks head home for the holidays.
The temperature highs will be around 40 from Monday through Wednesday, rising into the low 50's on Thursday and possibly hit 60 on Friday, before descending into the mid 20's for the Christmas weekend, so Santa and his reindeer won't overheat as they make their appointed rounds. The temperature lows will be around 30 Monday through Wednesday, rising to 50 on Thursday, before falling to into the high teens on Friday, where the low will remain for the rest of the weekend. Monday thru Wednesday winds will be around 5 - 10 mph, rising to 15 - 20 on Thursday and then 25 - 30 on Friday, before falling back to 15 - 20 mph on Saturday and then 10 mph on Sunday. The humidity will be 50% - 65% on Monday thru Wednesday, rising to 75% - 85% on Thursday, and then falling on Friday from 75% to 50% on Friday, before settling into the weekend at between 40% - 50% for a dry weekend.
I. The Tripledemic - RSV How Real & How Scary?
As you likely heard, we are in the midst of experiencing a 'tripledemic'. The triple refers to CoVid, flu and RSV. RSV is short for respiratory syncytial virus, which is a virus that causes symptoms like those associated with a cold, but which can cause serious negative health issues for infants and the elderly. As usual, the TV news teleprompter readers and their writers appear to report whatever they're told, without actually thinking about the information they're conveying. And since they're in the business of attracting viewers' and readers' attention, they seem to have a tendency to sensationalize almost everything they report, including the weather.
So, let's start with RSV [respiratory syncytial virus], which to date, appears to have peaked the week ending November 12, 2022 [see chart]. According to weekly reporting by NYC Health, an NYC government website, there were three RSV related infant deaths since the peak this season, and they all occurred on the same week. As of the NYC Health report on December 17, 2022, there were nearly 30,000 cases in NYC so far this fall. So three infant deaths is a 0.01% RSV death rate in NYC. Given the low death rate, one has to wonder whether there were other complicating factors also at play?
RSV prevention is certainly worth paying attention to in order to protect your loved ones - especially infants, the elderly and immuno compromised. But that said, it rarely appears to be fatal, as you can see by the statistics noted above. RSV cases have been on the decline since the November 12th peak, but as in reporting on all health issues, things can change without notice. So stay tuned, knowing that what we're dealing with generally isn't lethal.
- CLICK here for our report on CoVid Update and how real is the Tripledemic in NYC.
News Briefs NYC NYS USA _ Vaccinations, Masks, MTA & Putin Invades Ukraine
nyc putin covid masks mandates vax manhattan brooklyn queens bronx staten island covid infection rates map putin ukraine just before war started nyc
NYC News Updates, Chinese New Year & Micaiah Carter @ SN37
MTA Ridership & Crime, NYC Vaccination Rates & Some NYS Mask Mandates End & is Biden Doing the Right Thing in Ukraine?
February 22, 2022 / Things To Do NYC / NYC Neighborhoods / Gotham Buzz NYC.
This report is a catch up on some of the key local news items over the past couple of weeks.
MTA Ridership Slowly Inching Back to Pre-Pandemic Levels / Hochul Announces Fare Capping Program / MTA Crime not as Huge as the Corporate Broadcast Media Sensationalizes it
In the photo at right are a number of Chinese American women, who participated in the Chinese New Year Parade celebrating the year of the Tiger in Chinatown in Manhattan, were out to see and be seen last Sunday.
We've been tracking MTA ridership since the pandemic began. The subway ridership plummeted down 90% when the pandemic broke in the Spring of 2020. By the fall of 2020 MTA ridership had risen to a loss of 80%, rising to a loss of 50% - 66% in the Spring of 2021, and then a loss of 35% - 55% in the Fall of 2021. As of this week, the MTA subway ridership losses were in the range of 28% - 43% versus pre-pandemic.
On February 7, 2022, NYS Governor Kathy Hochul announced a new 'Fare Capping Program' whereby passengers would only have to pay for 12 full fare rides in a week [but using the same device / MetroCard] and after which the rides for the rest of the week would be free [Monday - Sunday]. The program begins Monday, February 28th and is expected to run for four months.
The corporate broadcast media seems to sensationalize everything these days in order to ratchet up their ratings, revenue and profit. MTA Ridership during the winter a year ago was about half the pre-pandemic level, and today it's about two thirds the pre-pandemic level meaning it has risen about 50% vs a year ago. According to NYPD Compustat, crime in the subway during the past 28 days is up 33%, so crime isn't rising as fast as ridership.
Nonetheless, crime in the subways is up by about the same percentage versus the pre-pandemic levels, so it's a bigger problem than it was before the pandemic started. It is believed, that the reason for the higher transit crime rate, is that as fewer people rode the rails during the pandemic, the homeless moved in and were able to use the subway as their shelter.
Late last week NYC Mayor Eric Adams and NYS Governor Kathy Hochul announced that the city and the state would collaborate to increase the NYPD presence in the subways to remove and / or assist the homeless from making the MTA their home by offering them an option to leave or an option to get medical, psychiatric and social services help. To that end it was noted that the NYPD upped the deployment of NYPD [about 1,000 officers] into the transit system, focusing - it seems - on the major hubs, and the Governor was working on multi-billion healthcare plans which would include provisions for helping the mentally ill and homeless.
NYC & NYS Vaccination Rates Well Ahead of National Rates
The current NYC vaccination rate is 77%, with another 9% having received at least one dose [86%]. The current NYS vaccination rate is 75%, with another 12% having received at least one dose [87%]. The current U.S. vaccination rate is 65%, with another 12% having received at least one dose [77%].
As a result of the vaccination rates, and with the passing of the Omicron super spreader holiday season, CoVid Omicron new case growth, hospitalizations and deaths have been declining at the NYC, NYS and USA levels.
- For New York City the weekly, daily average, test rate of 1.7% for new cases, with only a weekly, daily average new case rate of 707 reported, a weekly, daily average rate of 35 hospitalizations and a weekly, daily average rate of 17 deaths.
- For New York State the same weekly, daily average rates are 2% positive new test cases, about 1,750 daily new cases, about 200 daily new hospitalizations and about 35 daily new deaths.
For the United States the same rates are 8% positive new cases [this is a week old number compared to the others herein], about 84,878 new cases, about 8,642 hospitalizations [this is a week old number compared to the others herein] and 1,964 daily deaths.
- NYC and NYS are leading the rest of the U.S. in pulling out of the pandemic, as the southern and central states are lagging behind. If you look at a map showing vaccination rates versus a map showing infection rates, you can see that they are inversely related.
- Are these maps indicative of the intelligence, or how well informed the people of each state are? Do the smart people live in the states with the higher vaccination rates, or are the people who got infected with CoVid at higher rates [because they didn't get vaccinated], living in states where they have fewer or less reliable information sources, like Fox News? Studies have shown that Fox News enhances people's ignorance of the facts. Look it up.
- CLICK here to read the rest of our report about MTA Ridership in NYC, Vaccination Rates & Masking in NYC & NYS and Vladimir Putin's Invasion of the Ukraine.
My Personal Experience Receiving the CoVid Vaccination in NYC
May 02, 2021 at 03:41 pm by mikewood
The Corona Virus in NYC & NYS - CoVid Special Section
Mar 30, 2020 at 06:41 pm by mikewood
NYS Affordable Care Act New York City NYS
nyc affordable care act nyc obamacare new york city nys
Affordable Care Act Review
Obamacare Check Up One Year Out
October 20, 2014 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Healthcare / Gotham Buzz. I rarely leave Manhattan for a story, but last week I had an opportunity to attend an NPR forum on the Affordable Care Act at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark. The program was designed to look back on the promise, disappointment and possibilities of Obamacare one year since the program was rolled out.
Brian Lehrer of NPR was the moderator of the forum which included a panel of experts representing different groups involved in the administration of the Affordable Care Act. There were representatives from a local hospital, an insurance group, a journalist who's been tracking the Affordable Care Act for NPR, a documentary filmmaker and the Director for State Health Policy from Rutgers University.
I arrived by train from Penn Station. The train ride took less than twenty minutes and the walk to the New Jersey Performing Arts Center took less than ten minutes. I had never been to the NJPAC and was impressed by its sparkling beauty on both the inside and out. Its a modern glass and steel structure and the windows provided views of the New York City skyline in the distance. But I digress.
Click here for our full story about the Affordable Care Act NYC. This includes delving a bit into doctor participation, patient behavior, costs, breadth and depth of coverage, where the program is meeting / not meeting its objectives and an outlook of the future.
Obamacare Comes To NYC NYS America
obamacare in nyc obamacare nys america
Obamacare Comes To NYC, NYS & America
NYC Prepares For The Affordable Healthcare Act
Update November 13, 2013 / Astoria Neighborhood / Healthcare in NYC / Gotham Buzz NYC.
Update - Over 197,000 New Yorkers Have Completed Applications of which over 48,000 have already selected and enrolled in a plan. Over 142,000 people were helped by the New York State of Health which runs the health plan marketplace for New York State. Note that open enrollment for the tax year 2014 ends on March 31, 2014.
November 7, 2013 / Gotham Buzz NYC.
I just returned from the United Civic Community Association [UCCA] sponsored forum on Obamacare at the Museum of the Moving Image. The forum did a nice job of providing what appeared to be a good summary look into what the federal government's Affordable Healthcare Act [also known as Obamacare] is really all about.
The forum was moderated by Rose Marie Poveromo, President of the United Community Civic Association of Astoria and included a panel of experts. The panel included U.S. Congressman Joseph Crowley, Rebecca Jackson, a NY State of Health Project Coordinator, Caryn Schwab Executive Director of Mount Sinai Queens, Judy Trilivas Chief Operating Officer of Mount Sinai Queens and Minna Elias Congresswoman Maloney's Chief of Staff. They are shown seated from left to right in the photo above, at the UCCA hosted Obamacare Forum at the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria.
Click here to read more about Obamacare comes to America NYC NYS.
NYC Social Issues NYS
Public / Private Education, Schools & Libraries
4 of 5
Weekend Things To Do NYC August Catholic Public Schools Open Teachers Who Made a Difference
NYC Catholic Schools Open September 7th & NYC Public Schools Open on the 8th
Ode to Some of the Great Teachers I've Known, Who've Been Guides on the Trail of Life
In Words & Deeds, We are all Students & We are all Teachers, be it Consciously or Not
September 7, 2022 / NYC Neighborhoods / Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.
On Wednesday, September 7th the Catholic schools in NYC reopen for the new school year.
On Thursday, September 8, 2022 NYC public schools reopen. Many of the CoVid guidelines of the prior public school year have been modified, so copy and paste the following link for an update. https://www.schools.nyc.gov/school-life/health-and-wellness/covid-information/health-and-safety-in-our-schools.
Thinking of Those who Made a Difference
As I contemplated the upcoming school year I thought back to all of the great teachers who made a difference in my life. And so it is to them that I dedicate this column. Generally I'm going to discuss the school teachers as they chronologically entered my life, and discuss the other teachers in my life who taught me things outside of school, in reverse chronological order. Also please note that this is by no means a complete list, but really rather a first attempt at thanking some of the teachers who made a difference in my life, while passing on a few of the golden nuggets I learned from them.
The High School Teachers Who Made a Difference
It started at Abbott Pennings high school in DePere, Wisconsin where I grew up. Father Frigo was our freshman or sophomore history teacher. He was also a coach of the football and basketball teams which won state championships, and as such, was perhaps treated a bit too familiarly, even irreverently, by some of the star athletes in our class. What Father Frigo taught me was that historical narratives change over time, and that, " ... you have to pay attention to whether you're looking at primary sources or secondary sources ... " to truly understand the nature of events.
He taught us that, " ... revisionist history is a secondary source, but also plays an important role in our understanding of the past ...". He noted that pressure to conform to the prevailing cultural norms and narratives of those in power at a given time can distort and obfuscate the truth. But cultural norms and those in power change over time, so that oftentimes, at least in a free speech democracy, the passing of time permits a more honest appraisal of past events. We can see this playing out currently, as the Civil War 'heroes' of the Confederate south are more appropriately treated in historical terms as traitors to the republic, and as champions of a harsh, cruel system of enslavement of a large portion of the American population at the time. Likewise, in dictatorships, narcissitic despots often use and distort history to provide support for their violent aggression. We saw this scenario play out in Nazi Germany in the 1930's and 1940's, and we're witnessing it today in Putin's Russia.
My junior year I came up against a tough nun, Sister Janet, who for some god forsaken reason, took it upon herself to make sure that I understood algebra. I fought her tooth and nail throughout the year, but over time she broke me down and taught me the beauty of the logic inherent in algebraic equations, for which there is no wiggle room between getting it right and getting it wrong.
And lastly, at Abbott Pennings high school, I was taught an even larger lesson by Father Meehan, in religion class. I questioned some of the basic beliefs of Catholicism in class. He patiently answered my questions, and in the end told me something that I will always remember, when he said, "don't stop questioning ... question everything". Little did I know that that was both a blessing and a curse, as I have continued to question everything ever since.
- CLICK to continue reading our report on NYC Catholic and Public Schools Open and teachers who made a difference.
NYC Social Issues NYS
Sexism & Racism
5 of 5
Black History and the Role of African Americans in Advocating for Civil Rights
* Black History Month in NYC
Scratching the Surface of Our Ancestoral African Roots
February 7, 2023 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Things To Do Events / Gotham Buzz NYC.
Over the past few years I've come to enjoy a number of PBS programs that delve into our collective African American ancestoral roots. One of the shows is hosted by Professor Henry Louis Gates, Jr. wherein he researches various celebrities' ancestoral roots, digging up photos, slave ownership records, and connections to other celebrities by tracing DNA trails. The journey can lead to any number of surprises, such as when Gates found that one of actress Carol Burnett's ancestors joined the Confederate Army, and then deserted a couple of years later. Or when Gates uncovered that TV Producer / Writer Larry David of Seinfeld is a distant cousin to Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders.
But for my money, the treasure trove of programming on PBS may be found in its rich collection of documentaries - both old and new. And among those documentaries are a wide number of films exploring the contributions and history of African Americans.
PBS Documentaries During Black History Month in NYC
I'm only going to touch on one of them now, and at a later date will return to engage in a deeper conversation about others. The documentary I watched on PBS this month, was entitled, The Blinding of Isaac Woodard. It was about how an innocent African American veteran was attacked by a white southern police chief [Lynwood Shull] from South Carolina who beat out Woodard's eyes and permanently blinded him in February 1946, while Woodard was changing buses at a bus stop. That's a mighty nasty way to welcome a WWII veteran home and thank him for risking his life to defend us.
Nonetheless, eight years later, the search for justice was fulfilled ... in a way. Of course the all white South Carolina jury let off Police Chief Shull. But that action so enraged President Harry S. Truman, that he ordered a federal investigation into the case. And actor / radio host Orson Welles, took up the cause too, helping make it known what sorts of racial injustices were being perpetrated upon African Americans living and working in the south.
- CLICK here for our report on the Black history and the role of African Americans in pushing for civil rights.
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Democracy in Action: Blue Lives, Black Lives, All Lives Matter in Queens & NYC
A Blue Lives Matter Parade Met by a Black Lives Matter Protest
August 23, 2020 / NYC Neighborhoods / Social Issues NYC / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.
On Saturday morning around 11 am a Blue Lives Matter parade began on Greenpoint Avenue and 39th Street in Sunnyside Queens. I arrived shortly after it began and followed it up to Joseph Sabba Park where several people were to give speeches to the parade participants and attendees.
As the parade arrived at Joseph Sabba Park they were met by a group of Black Lives Matter protesters who were kneeling on the sidewalk holding placards making Black Lives Matter statements. The Blue Lives Matter parade participants paused as they came in direct contact. As I sat there video recording the ‘confrontation’ I wondered whether things might take a turn for the worse and go badly.
Blue Lives Matter Parade & Speakers Queens NYC
Whoever was leading the Blue Lives Matter parade, wisely led the Blue Lives Matter parade around the Black Lives Matter protesters - rather than risking walking through them - where someone on one side or another might have escalated the tension to a higher level.
The Blue Lives Matter parade participants and attendees settled in the middle of Joseph Sabba Park and the speeches began. The first speaker, whose name I didn’t catch, spoke supportively of the police and the important work they do in the community. He struck a human chord, noting that the men and women who serve in the police force are dedicated to serving the community, among whom are their own families and children. He ended saying we’re all human.
The second speaker struck a more passionate Blue Lives Matter tone, remarking that the ‘Diaphragm’ Law hindered police from doing their jobs. The Diaphragm Law allows police officers to be subject to a misdemeanor if they constrict a person’s diaphragm in the process of making an arrest.
What I recorded of both of these speeches will be shown in the video.
The signs of the Blue Lives Matter parade participants also showed a range of thoughts and emotions, ranging from striking a supportive and yet harmonious chord, while others were defiantly in support of the police - seeming to ignore the validity of the Black Lives Matter social unrest. They included Enough with the hate, respect goes both ways, to Reform is for criminals, drug addicts and sex offenders.
- CLICK here for our report on Black Lives Blue Lives All Lives Matter & the role of Pat Lynch union head of the NYPBA police union.
George Floyd Protest Cinematography, Music & Narrative
June 12, 2020 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Social Issues & Crime / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.
The video below is an interpretive depiction of a protest event in McCarren Park early last week. The piece is meant to be savored - like food, music and cinematography.
- CLICK here to read the rest of our report on the George Floyd Pink Floyd protests in Brooklyn, Manhattan & Bronx NYC and George Floyd protest videos.
NYC March For Our Lives in Manhattan
Tens of Thousands Protest the NRA & Gun Violence
March 27, 2018 / Midtown Manhattan Neighborhood / Manhattan Social Issues / Manhattan Neighborhoods / News Analysis & Opinion / Manhattan Buzz NYC.
The March For Our Lives protest started at 11 am on the Upper West Side of Manhattan at 72nd Street and Central Park West. Not coincidentally, this was just steps away from the Strawberry Fields Memorial in Central Park honoring musician / poet John Lennon of the Beatles, who was murdered by a lunatic with a gun.
The March For Our Lives protests were organized and led by students around the nation, with support from a wide range of people in all other age segments of the population. Frequently the Columbine shooting in Littleton, Colorado on April 20, 1999 is cited as the first of these sorts of mass shootings in schools, although a check into mass shootings in Wikipedia, shows that America has a 200 year history of mass shootings, including some of which took place in schools before Columbine.
Fox Fake News Appears to try Discrediting Protesters with False Narrative
If you watch Rupert Murdoch's Fox News you might come away with the impression that the students are trying to revoke the Second Amendment. But based on conversations with some of the marchers and in reviewing other media accounts, this seems to be another Murdoch Mouthpiece Fox Fake News narrative.
But while the students and the March For Our Lives protest wasn't about repealing the Second Amendment, some members of the left, such as Bret Stephens of the NY Times did make a call for Second Amendment repeal in two editorials - one dated October 5, 2017 and the other dated February 16, 2018. Murdoch's Fox Fake News mouthpieces torch the possibility of a national conversation by misinforming their ill-informed audience that the NY Times and Op Ed writer Bret Stephens speak for everyone. What they don't realize is that the America that gets their information outside of the Murdoch Fake News FoxHole is intelligent enough, and adult enough, to have a real conversation about gun ownership and the Second Amendment.
Is the NRA Lobby Out of Control & In Control?
From what I could gather the students seem to have identified and coalesced around tangible changes to reigning in what appears to be an out-of-control gun lobby - the NRA. The firearms industry used bump stock technology to circumvent the unlawful possession of machine guns by providing stocks. And the gun lobby as recently as a few months ago, was pushing to 'deregulate' silencers on guns. Both of these laws - regulating machine guns and silencers - began with the National Firearms Act of 1934. At that time criminal violence by mobster gangs was the order of the day. And it appears that it's just as true today as it was back then - that if you allow guns to be put guns in the hands of lunatics, then murders and criminal violence is what you get.
A mid 2017 poll by Gallup showed that 60% of Americans were in favor of making gun control laws more strict, 33% were in favor of keeping them about the same and 5% wanted to make them less strict. The trend toward favoring more gun control has been going on since 2011 [see chart]. Apparently the politicians we send to Washington do not represent the majority so much as the NRA, and sending a swamp monster to clean up the swamp, is at best delusional. President Trump after opining that more gun control would be good, backtracked, appearing to have caved to the very powerful NRA lobby in Washington.
- CLICK here to read the rest of our report about the 2nd Amendment and the March For Our Lives 2018 in Manhattan NYC.
Pro Choice Rally in Manhattan NYC - A Closer Look into Abortion Rights Ruling by the Supreme Court
nyc abortion rights women's rights pro choice rally in manhattan nyc
Pro Choice Rally in Manhattan NYC Last Weekend
I Heard a Number of Interesting Perspectives of Abortion Rights / Right to Choose Early Pregnancy Cessations or EPC's
May 17, 2022 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Things To Do Events / Gotham Buzz NYC.
Last Saturday there were a few Pro Choice rallies in NYC. Most notable among them were the one that started at Cadman Plaza in Brooklyn, marching across the Brooklyn Bridge to Foley Square. And there was another group that gathered in Union Square which also marched to Foley Square.
I have some video and photos, but possibly the most interesting part of this report are the perspectives I picked up along the way, which provided me with a deeper understanding of the issues, primarily from a women's point of view.
First there's the science ...
Hi. Following up on the conversations I had and overheard led me to a lot of new information that I'm still processing. I hope to return to finish this sometime in the summer.
CLICK here to read the update on the Pro Choice Rally in Manhattan, including a fairly deep dive into the science, social impact, legality and dishonest political distortions of the issue of abortion when we post 'Update' next to the date of May 17, 2022 above.
The Women Keep On Marching
An Estimated 200,000 Participate in NYC Women's March
January 22, 2018 / Upper West Side Neighborhood & Midtown Manhattan Neighborhood / Social Issues / Manhattan Buzz NYC.
It was a beautiful Saturday morning as I made my way toward the NYC Women's March stepping off point at 72nd Street and Central Park West. As I drew closer to my destination, I saw a large crowd spread along the sidewalks and streets, managed skillfully by the New York City Police Department.
The crowd was a friendly one - consisting of all ages from toddlers to grandparents, including a rainbow of gender of singles, husbands, wives and friends - representing America's and New York City's great diversity. During this march they all convened together to make a statement by their very presence. The marchers' statements varied in specificity, but generally seemed to be one of protest against one President, Donald Trump, whose disrespectful personal behavior toward women and people of color, have not gone unnoticed. And to the people marching, the President's bad example as the nation's role model, should not go unanswered.
Women's March NYC 2018 from CPW to Bryant Park
The march began moving on schedule, reaching us a bit past 12.30 pm. We had lined up around West 86th Street, and the official parade starting point was West 72nd Street. We made our way south along Central Park West, past the Museum of Natural History and the New York Historical Society. Generally the mood of the crowd was a joyous one, but it turned a bit nasty and dark as we passed by the Trump International Hotel & Tower at One Central Park West at 60th Street, where some of the marchers expressed their opinions of the President in a politically incorrect manner - in a disrespectful style reminiscent of the President himself.
The official estimate of the crowd was around an estimated 200,000, which was a bit below the estimated crowd size of last year [2017], which was estimated to be around 250,000. Women marched in cities around the nation on this day, and some of the marches - like the one in Chicago - drew an estimated crowd of 300,000 significantly beating the crowd size of the prior year.
The march ended in Midtown near Bryant Park, where we dispersed and headed out for a bite to eat. All that walking can make a reporter hungry. Photos by Dantanyan UWS and story done collaboratively.
Hundreds of Thousands March in NYC
Women's March Appears to Approach 21st Century NYC Protest Record
January 21, 2017 / Midtown Manhattan Neighborhoods / Manhattan Government & Politics / Manhattan Buzz NYC.
I headed into Manhattan around noon on Saturday. The #7 subway line was packed, even more than during rush hour on a weekday morning. There were protesters wearing pussy hats, bearing protest signs and placards, and generally in pretty good cheer as they headed into Manhattan for the Women's March in NYC.
I got off the subway at Grand Central Station along with the crowds of protesters, and made my way up to the 42nd Street exit. Out on the street there was a moving mass of marchers making their way down to Fifth Avenue where they would turn north to march up to Trump Tower along Fifth Avenue at 57th Street.
I have to admit I was surprised by the massive turnout. One person told me that over 50,000 people had signed up for the event on Eventbrite. But it would become obvious to me as the day wore on that the crowd had easily exceeded that number.
The event was planned to begin at 11 am in Dag Hammarskjold Plaza at Second Avenue and 47th Street. There would be a few speeches, followed by a march down Second Avenue to 42nd Street, then west to Fifth Avenue and then north up Fifth Avenue ending at Trump Tower at 57th Street. It was scheduled to end at 4 pm and waves of protesters had been choreographed to leave Dag Hammarskjold Plaza in 15 minute intervals.
I had listened to Donald Trump's Inauguration speech the day before [Friday] and there didn't seem to be anything in there that struck me as very objectionable if one didn't read anything into it. So I kind of thought the march might be a bit premature given he'd just assumed office and hadn't really done anything yet.
I asked one woman if I had missed anything in Trump's speech, that she / others found objectionable. She told me no, he hadn't said anything objectionable, but she went on to say that she didn't believe anything he said. I asked another woman why she'd come out to protest today. She told me that she wanted to stand with other women in making a statement to Trump that they weren't going to passively stand by and allow him or the Republican Party to roll back their hard fought equal rights.
There was a festive mood throughout the day. I occasionally asked policemen keeping the peace how things were going. Many smiled and said it was going well and that they hoped it would continue that way.
I'll have more on this, including some details of how the protest morphed throughout the day, as well as a photo slide show and some video, sometime in the next week.
What I Found: Unite The Right Rally in D.C.
Media Reality Distortion - How Out of Whack is America's News / Information System?
August 13, 2018 / Government, Media & Politics USA / Washington, D.C. / Gotham Buzz NYC.
Just over a week ago, I made the decision to travel down to Washington, D.C. to cover the Unite The Right Rally scheduled Sunday, August 12th, on the anniversary of the same rally organized by the same group in Charlottesville, Virginia. Charlottesville is located about 100 miles south / mostly west of Washington, D.C.
In the rally a year ago, White Supremacists, Ku Klux Klansmen, neo-Confederates and neo-Nazis participated in the rally and it became violent. One person was killed in the event when an alleged neo-Nazi drove his car through the crowd, and two officers monitoring the event in a helicopter died, when the aircraft crashed [I believe it was an accident]. And somewhere between 19 and 34 people were injured in clashes between the Unite The Right rally participants and Antifa along with other counter protesters.
The D.C. event was scheduled in D.C. because Jason Kessler, the Unite The Right Founder, couldn't get a permit in Charlottesville for the first year anniversary of the Unite The Right event. After some skirmishing over the permitting with the local Washington, D.C. authorities, Kessler prevailed and was given a permit to hold a march and rally ending in Lafayette Park, just south of the White House.
At one point there were discussions about arranging separate public transit buses for the Unite The Right rally members from their staging area a several miles west of the White House, to the march starting point at Foggy Bottom Metro Station. But the D.C. public transit union resisted, as the majority of their members are African Americans, and the union reportedly opined that they didn't want to do anything to facilitate the Unite The Right rally.
Meanwhile there were somewhere between a half dozen and dozen counter protester groups that organized to protest the Unite The Right rally. Several of them also sought and received permits.
On Friday Christian and Jewish groups joined forces for an interfaith teach-in and interfaith vigil. This was according to The DCist, which I found to be the best source of information regarding planning / preparing to cover the event on Sunday. The DCist also noted that Black Lives Matter DC in collaboration with several other activist groups held a workshop at an Episcopalian Church.
On Saturday, a Presbyterian Church held a prayer service at Foggy Bottom Station in advance of the rally, where they prayed and chalked some of the sidewalk where the Unite The Right marchers would begin on Sunday.
On Sunday a counter protest, Shut It Down DC, organized a permitted counter protest in Freedom Plaza a few blocks east of Lafayette Park, from where they would march to Lafayette Park beginning at 3 pm. The DCist reported that the Shut It Down DC group included the D.C. Antifascist collective, Hoods4Justice, March for Racial Justice, and others.
Black Lives Matter DC organized to meet a couple of blocks north of Lafayette Park, and would then march south to the park. A group from NYC began their march on August 3rd to D.C. where they planned an event at the MLK monument from 12 noon to 4 pm on Sunday [#AgapeMarch]. And a group, The Real White People's Rally, led by a local tour guide, Tim Krepp, was scheduled to counter protest at Lafayette Park from 1 to 4 pm.
The DCist also mentioned about a half dozen other counter protest group events, but for the most part those noted above, were the ones most relevant to my planned coverage.
I headed down to D.C. a bit anxious, given the violent skirmishes that occurred at the rally a year ago in Charlottesville, and the following instructions on the unitetherightrally.com website.
Do NOT bring these items:
-Guns
-Pepper spray, clubs, knives or other weapons
-Shields
-Non-approved flags
ALWAYS Be aware of your surroundings. Do not talk to the media.
Do not engage in any fighting.
ALWAYS be a good representative for our cause.
My thoughts were that if you have to provide instructions like these to the people you expect at your rally - there's a good likelihood that some of the unwanted weapons will be there. I had read that last year people brought guns to the rally in Charlottesville - but I also reasoned that in Washington, D.C. the gun laws are likely far less permissive than in Charlottesville, Virginia. And there were reports that the D.C. police were preparing for the worst.
Anyhow, I arrived at Union Station in Washington, D.C. Sunday afternoon at about 3 pm. It was hot, humid and rain was in the forecast for later in the afternoon. I took the Metro subway from Union Station to the Metro Center stop, which was only a few blocks away from Freedom Plaza. Once on the street, as I began to get my bearings, I asked a young woman if she could tell me in which direction Freedom Plaza was. She was also headed to the counter protest, so we walked over there together. Ironically, her name was Hope.
CLICK here to read the rest of my report about covering the Unite The Right Rally in Washington, D.C. on August 12, 2018. COMING THIS WEEKEND 8/18 - 19/18. The story has become something bigger than I first envisioned. It's in a rough draft which I hope to finish, edit and add photos to this weekend.
United Nations: Cultural Influences on Gender Roles
Women's Groups Discuss Cultural Influences on Gender Equality
April 4, 2016 / Midtown East Neighborhood / NYC Social Issues / Gotham Buzz NYC _ D.
On March 17th I attended a series of lectures entitled, The Role of Culture in Women's Empowerment: Possibilities and Challenges. The lectures were given to a standing room only audience in Conference Room 7 on the lower level.
The five member speaker panel was comprised of women from Liberia, Nigeria and Thailand. And each speaker came from a different walk of life including law, government, education and social work.
The program was organized by the United Nations Mission from Gambia in collaboration with a number of other groups. The intent of the program was to disseminate information to help those in attendance understand the role in culture in defining gender roles, and how to go about dealing with embedded cultural biases.
We'll have more at a later date. The photo at right was taken in the United Nations lobby.
